When to start teaching how to talk?

[Tequilasunrise]

Hi, I was wondering when should I start teaching my sun how to talk? She keeps making this deep noise like she wants to talk, and she dosen't make her baby noises she used to make.

Thanks

 

[Nakiska]

Well, in my opinion, it's never too early to teach them to talk, but whether they will actually talk or not is up to your individual bird. Conures aren't known so much for their talking ability.

Our conure is Franklin and I've always talked to him from the minute we purchased him. He is 9 months old now and he IS saying some words. He says Hello, Good Boy, Chicken Little (one of our tiel's name) and he's trying to say "Him a good boy" but it comes out more like "heia ooh oie?!" and every night he whispers himself to sleep saying "pretty pretty pretty pretty bird, pretty bird, pretty pretty bird."

Conures have a very gruff, gravelly voice often making them some what hard to understand.

My advice is to speak the phrases you want your bird to learn, and repeat slow and clear and one day you might be surprised to hear your little one blurt out a word.

Oh and I found that if I hear my bird say a word or attempt to say a word, I'll immediately repeat it and tell him GOOD BOY!! And then repeat the word again. My birds seem to understand that it was GOOD and hearing the confirmation of the word they spoke they tend to repeat it again.

Amazingly, our two male tiels are the best speaking birds in our home and I think they have a LOT to do with why Franklin is picking up words so well. Our tiels are the "broken record" every day while I'm at work.

Good Luck with your baby, it IS so rewarding when they learn to talk and I'm extremely blessed to have 3 very verbal boys.

Toni

 

[Amber]

I don't hold high hopes for my Alex (Jenday) ever learning to talk in a big way. Ara conures, though they CAN learn, are not usually great talkers. They have hard to understand voices and don't seem to pick up as many words as others. They seem to have difficulty pronouncing things with their little gravel-y kind of voices. But they certainly learn the meaning behind words! Although Alex can't say 'bath' or 'breakfast' for example, he knows what they mean, and will go to the bathroom for a 'bath' or stick his wings up for a mist, or when I say 'breakfast' hop on me to go to the kitchen. They are smart little guys!

Alex only says "Alex"... it sounds more like ALLLEEEEH then anything though, and only people who know him well understand it. He tries hard, though! He also does syllables for other words and seems to try to say things, but he hasn't quite got there yet.

As for teaching them, I suppose you could sit there and repeat words over and over to them, but I just label things I do with, or give to Alex out of habit. For example, if I give him his ball, I will say 'ball' or 'here is your ball' or what not. He knows what a ball is as a result (he will run to his ball when someone says it now!) and perhaps one day he will be able to say 'ball'

 

[Tequilasunrise]

Thank you both for your answers, and I will start on teaching her how to talk

 

[usamimi]

Our sunnie can say good bird and pretty bird but it's hard to tell if you don't speak bird. "OO UURD" "PEEHEEE BUUD"

 

[roxynoodle]

Some birds start to talk before they are even weaned, so no reason to put it off. My Nanday learned her first word 2 weeks after she got here. My BC didn't speak until she was 5 months old, but one of her favorite phrases was "Watcha doin?" It was the breeder who said that all the time, and whose other birds said it. So I think she learned it then even if she didn't say it for a couple of months.

As for conure speaking ability, mine knows more words than my 2 big birds. Sometimes she speaks in a little scratchy voice that can be very hard to understand, and sometimes she speaks in a clear, high voice that is easy to understand. I think it depends on whether she wants to make the effort.

Sometimes though she will tell me something for 5 straight minutes, like she is telling me an entire story and I only understand a word here and there.

 

[SunMommy]

Pyro has definitely learned the word "treat." He cant say it, but he gets all excited when I say, "Do you want a treat" or "treat, Pyro?" It's so hard not to give him treats all day long because he gets so excited when I just say the word and now nobody can say the word unless he is really getting a treat or he will get grumpy.

 

[roxynoodle]

Yes, they definitely learn the meanings of a lot of words as well even if they don't say them. I can ask Rowdy if she wants her birdie light on/off, if she wants to go to bed, if she wants the TV on, and quite a few other things. She doesn't say, "Hey, woman, put the TV on!", but she manages to communicate to me that she wants something and then I can ask. Based on what time of the day she is asking for something, I usually know what it is she wants, and then ask. Either I'm right and get a positive response, or I'm wrong and get no response. Much more often than not, I'm right, but we have been together a long time now. I'm not as keen with my other birds yet. I also haven't had them from babies like I have Rowdy.

So also bear in mind having this kind of communication is something that happens over time.

What I've tired to do is use the same words and phrases over and over about my routine. And I simplify them as well. I don't say, "I need to go get a cup of coffee." I say, "Need coffee cup." And since she knows my name I talk about myself in the third person.