This Parrot Talks on Cue!

I recently received a link to a video that made me grin ear to ear. I absolutely love it when people watch one of my DVDs, read one of my books or an article I wrote and apply the information at home. A teacher’s greatest reward is a successful student. And the students of the day are Einstein the Texan Talking Parrot and her caregiver Marcia!

You may know them from my latest DVD Train Your Parrot to Talk. Marcia, Jeff and Einstein the African Grey Parrot all graciously agreed to appear in the DVD. In the DVD Marcia and Jeff shared their experience of living with a very gifted talking parrot. Einstein also lends her vocalizations to the accompanying CD ROM of talking parrot recordings. I have known Marcia and Jeff for a few years now. One thing they had not yet spent too much time on was putting Einstein’s many vocalizations on cue.

After receiving their copies of the Train Your Parrot to Talk DVD they went for it. And I am over the top excited for them. Check out this clip of Marcia demonstrating all the things she has already put on cue. This was all within a few weeks of the DVD coming out. You go girl! I love the "where's the mouse" behavior. Awesome cue!

If you have had success using the Good Bird Inc resources to train your parrot, drop me a line and tell me about your experience. I really do love hearing what you are doing with your parrots at home. Take some video and a few pictures too. Your story could end up in Good Bird Magazine and you and your parrot can be an inspiration to others. Just like Einstein.

Barbara Heidenreich
Copyright 2011 Good Bird Inc
For quality information on parrot training visit www.GoodBirdInc.com

Parrot Training DVDs – Behind the Scenes

Oh have I got a fun video clip to share with you. Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes when making a DVD? Here is your chance to find out!

Whenever I film a DVD I am busy at work doing my part as the host or animal trainer. I do a little bit of work explaining my vision and shots I think would support it. But most of the real work is in the hands of the film crew that you usually don’t get to see.

Einstein the African Grey Parrot, who appeared in my recent DVD Train Your Parrot to Talk, has caregivers who find film and photography as interesting as I do. Jeff and Marcia were gracious enough to allow me to interview them for the DVD, and they also set up their own cameras to capture this glimpse into the making of a parrot training video.

I was also thrilled to hear that Marcia has already been putting more of Einstein’s vocabulary on cue using the instructional information in the DVD. I have my fingers crossed she will get that on film too so I can share it here. If you want to learn more about Einstein the Talking Texan Parrot and see more video clips of her visit her website. http://www.einsteinparrot.com/

An interview with Jeff and Marcia is featured in the DVD. And of course Einstein also makes an appearance. She also lends her voice to the CD ROM of talking parrot recordings you can play for your own parrot. You can find out more information at Train Your Parrot to Talk.

Barbara Heidenreich
For quality information on parrot training visit www.GoodBirdInc.com
Copyright 2011

Train Your Parrot to Talk

Have you ever wondered how to get a parrot to talk? They say all parrots can mimic sounds, but we all know not every parrot is a talker. The good news is there are some techniques you can utilize to increase the odds of creating a great talking parrot. I have had the good fortune to work with a number of amazing talking parrots over the years. But of course my personal favorite is my own Yellow Naped Amazon parrot, Delbert. I applied all the techniques I have learned over the years as a professional animal trainer to train Delbert to talk and sing. And I am pleased to report the results have been beyond my expectations.

So others can enjoy the pleasure of sharing their life with a talking parrot I have created a new resource for parrot enthusiasts. It is a new DVD CD-ROM set called “Train Your Parrot to Talk”




In this DVD I address common myths about talking parrots, which birds make ideal candidates for talking, the most effective ways to expose your parrot to sounds you want repeated, proven methods for encouraging your parrot to vocalize and most importantly how to train your parrot to talk on cue. Also included is an appearance by Einstein, the Talking Texan Parrot, plus an interview with her human companions. The bonus CD ROM includes recordings of a variety of species of parrots vocalizing to inspire your bird to talk. The recordings feature participants in our Best Talking Parrot contest and also my Amazon parrot Delbert, plus Einstein!

You can play just the species most closely related to your bird or you can play the mp3 of the entire collection of vocalizations if you live in a mixed species household. In the DVD I explain how I use this tool to train Delbert to pick up new things. I have a special set up that makes it super easy.

Besides being a great training resource I find the recordings are a wonderful form of enrichment for my birds. It makes me feel good to see and hear my parrots having such a great time listening to the mp3's.

I was at a conference recently and when I mentioned how much I enjoyed having parrots in my life, everyone in the room seemed to know just what I meant. I also received many emails from people who told me how much they enjoyed watching the videos of people interacting with their birds in The Best Talking Parrot contest. It was that special connection that was having such an impact.

Training is such a wonderful way to build that special connection. And training your bird to talk just takes it to a whole new level. I gotta say I love having my bird sing "happy birthday" to me every day. (Lately the new favorite has been "I feel good" by James Brown. I can’t wait to share that one with everyone.)

You can order your copy of “Train Your Parrot to Talk” by visiting the Good Bird Inc website.

Happy Training!

Barbara
Barbara Heidenreich
http://www.goodbirdinc.com/
Copyright 2011 Good Bird Inc

Best Talking Parrot Contest Winners!

The contest is over and the winners have been selected. It was indeed a difficult decision. There were over 175 videos entered and yes I watched every single one…several times : ) I have to admit this contest turned out to be more fun than I could have imagined. I was laughing to the point of tears on several occasions, but the most rewarding part was watching so many people enjoying their parrots. The good news is we plan to keep the site up. Although we will change the text about the contest, people can continue to share their special parrots at http://www.besttalkingparrot.com/. One viewer pointed out that they enjoyed being able to view so many talking parrot clips at one location. I agree.

Onto the winners! This contest included an amateur and professional parrot category. Our professional parrot category only had one entry. Therefore Clover the Congo African Grey parrot from Turkey takes the prize in this category. The amateur category had lots of competition. We let your votes decide and the front runner when it came to votes was Mishka the Congo African Grey parrot. Mishka resides in South Africa and carries a lovely accent as he announces “He would like to go to the bathroom.” Congratulations to our top prize winners. They will receive a gift certificate to Good Bird Inc products, prizes provided by KAYTEE and five free signed copies of the soon to be released “Train Your Parrot To Talk” DVD/CDROM.

In addition to Mishka and Clover, there were a number of other notable entries. The following parrots and their families will receive three signed copies of the “Train Your Parrot To Talk” DVD/CDROM.

Ariel the Panama Amazon Parrot

Bibi the Congo African Grey Parrot

Bongo the Congo African Grey Parrot

Bowie the Indian Ring Necked Parakeet

Casey the Yellow Naped Amazon Parrot

Disco the Budgerigar

Einstein the Talking Texan African Grey Parrot

Emma the African Grey Parrot

Freddie the Yellow Naped Amazon Parrot

Kona the Green Winged Macaw

Koolaid the Parrotlet

Ozzy the African Grey Parrot

Pluto the Quaker Parrot

Ray the Blue and Gold Macaw

Sunny the Cockatiel

Poly the African Grey Parrot


I hope you enjoyed our talking parrot contest. The new DVD/CDROM “Train Your Parrot to Talk” should be in stock mid February 2011. Just sign up for our mailing list on the top right hand side of this page to be notified or visit this link to purchase it shortly.

Barbara Heidenreich
http://www.goodbirdinc.com/
Copyright 2011 Good Bird Inc

Finding a Lost African Grey Parrot. A Success Story!

Losing a parrot can be heartbreaking! And it can happen to the best of us. I was thrilled to receive this success story about Scarlett, the African grey parrot. I hope it inspires more people to be prepared for a possible parrot escape. It does not take much to have all your tools in place and it can certainly make the job of recovering your parrot a lot easier. Thank you to Keith and Christine for allowing me to share their story with you.


Dear Ms. Heidenreich,

We recently joined a bird support group near Cincinnati and as an organization we showed your video "Get Your Bird Back" to the membership, with DVDs up for sale. This occurred last Sunday and Wednesday my African grey parrot escaped out the back door. We tried to call her but she flew higher and higher and we lost sight of her.

While we had not completed obtaining all the materials you suggest, we had a carrier and most importantly had already trained our two year old bird to step up to us and strangers and to fly to us. We placed the flyers, the Internet ads, newspaper classified, called zoos, vets, TV stations and police departments and then tried not to go crazy with grief.

Yesterday we received a call from a woman who was on a scenic bike trail about 10 miles from our home. She had been out walking and then stopped at a local park where she was near a nature center booth. A man came off the trail and reported he saw a bird on the trail. He stopped and had the bird step up on a stick. This gathered attention and he moved the parrot away and then tried to wrap the bird in a small towel ( He knows nothing of parrot care but he was smart!) She did bite him and then flew away. This woman went to the nature center and asked about the story and then called a vet she used ( the same as mine) and the word was out! This woman called me, my breeder form Columbus Ohio called me, our organization members called....... the hunt was on.

I arrived at the bike trail about an hour later and the woman who called me started walking back up the trail to find the bird, as we kept in touch, she heard another biker say they saw a group of people with the bird up the trail. I drove to that end point of the trail and the woman caller and myself closed in the gap between us but never found the crowd of people or any other reports.

My wife was on her way to this area and immediately called the police department and reported the bird missing. They did not seem too interested at first but my wife made it personal for the officer with her loss and then he wrote a more accurate report. She then drove to a point on the bike trail where we were and we started getting people to different spots up and down the trail to look. At this point, the lady who called left, but not without taking flyers to post near where she lived and she said she would contact local vets near her. (She is a bird Saint!)

We posted fliers on the two ends of the trail and then my wife and I were going to walk the 4 miles of the trail from each end again to meet in the middle as it was getting near dusk. I was then called by the police department with a report that a bird had landed on a basketball goal near a man who was mulching in the town nearby.

I raced, and I mean raced to the house and saw no bird on the goal but another man said the one who was mulching had the bird. It seems that when Scarlett came to land near the man on the goal, his wife thought he was being attacked, but he was calm and told her to go get crackers. He knew it was a pet by the band on the leg. The bird flew to his shoulder and started eating. I taught Scarlett to fly to me this way. He then walked into his garage and put down the door. (Smart!!!)

We found Scarlett inside, put her in the cage and asked for water which she took out of a bottle. She is home now and I am thanking all of those involved including you. Thank you for the video and the help. While we knew we may never have found her again, we knew that you gave us the best chances for success. We are your fans forever.

Keith and Christine Denning

http://www.goodbirdinc.com/

Bizarre Rare Parrot......The Feather Duster

Behold the feather duster. Kind of a controversial topic I have discovered. Apparently they are a rare mutation of the English Budgie. I recently met Munchkin a feather duster hatched at J & M Aviaries in Austin, TX. I remember when Linda and Jerry told me they might have a feather duster baby. They were hand raising a few budgies and one appeared with unusual feathers. At first they thought it might be a disease such as psittacine beak and feather. They had even thought they might need to euthanize the bird to protect the flock. Fortunately they realized what they had on their hands was one of these rare mutations.

The controversy over these parrots is that there is concern that they don’t live long and that the feathers create a hardship in their lives. This can mean challenges seeing and also keeping the feathers clean. The shorter life span has been attributed to the nutrient requirements for feather growth. All of this may be true for some, but what we all wondered is how many people actual have the opportunity to give a feather duster the kind of attention it needs to live a healthy life?

As a small facility J & M is able devote plenty of time to each bird. Larger aviaries that hatch a feather duster may not have that luxury. Munchkin goes home every night with staff and is attended to all day at the aviary.

As a hand raised baby he is extremely engaging and appears to respond enthusiastically to attention. In this video clip, you can see him perk up when he hears his name called and spin circles when Linda comes closer.

In one article I saw comments that it was unkind to allow feather dusters to survive. I found this difficult to agree with after watching Munchkin. He certainly did not seem to be suffering and in fact he was as vital as any bird I had seen. He has a preferred toy that he rests up against (made by the Leather Elves….Robin is quite proud I am sure!) and probably gets more attention than most parrots I know.

Working in bird shows for so many years I often had the privilege to work with and train some unusual cases ….a blind Harris Hawk named Storm; a Barred Owl with brain damage due to a head trauma named Mr. Magoo, and an amazing wing injured Bald Eagle named Hope. One thing that amazed me is how adaptable these animals are. As with any animal the goal was always to use positive reinforcement to help makes their lives as rewarding as possible. And in turn they helped educate and inspire so many people despite their personal individual challenges.

I hope people can look at Munchkin as a special bird who happened to hatch into the hands of some people who care deeply for him. With any luck he will teach us more about this unique condition and how best to care for feather dusters.

Barbara Heidenreich

Copyright 2009 Good Bird Inc
www.GoodBirdInc.com

Parrot Play Time and You. AKA Stop and Smell the Amazon Parrot

All day long I found myself saying "lovely fatty bum, bum." Why you may ask? It is this dude's fault. This particular you tube clip has cracked me up more than his famous potty mouthed parrot (warning! not for those offended by curse words). I am not sure if it is the accent (Americans love those English accents), the phrase or perhaps that he is just having a fabulous time playing with his dog. Or maybe it is just that everyone needs to hear they have a lovely fatty bum, bum from time to time. Here is one for you dear reader "lovely fatty bum bum!"

Anyway, I think the real message in the clip has to do with taking time out to have some fun time with your companion animals. I must wrestle, hug and love on my dog countless times throughout the day. I whistle, sing, scritch and play with parrots off and on all day as well. (Now everyone knows the real secret as to why it takes so long to answer my emails. Busted!)

Sometimes this means typing with one hand as I give a nice little preen to my cockatiel. Usually I try to make my work time, fun time for my parrots. The cockatiel not only visits with me but also wanders around the window sill where I stash lots of parrot safe toys.

Several times a day I also take short breaks for training sessions. I actually find them a nice relief from the computer and of course my parrots benefit as well. A session might be followed up by lunch for me and more playtime on the counter for my birds.

When my brain can't take any more work, I do like many and find TV to be a nice way to clear out thoughts about work and drift into someone else's story. This too is also parrot time, as my Amazon parrot of 21 years likes to make sure my eyebrows get a good preening. It's Extreme EyeBrow Make Over for me if he is on a roll.

While I know many are often seeking help for behavior problems with parrots, I hope they also are also having some moments to stop and as I like to say "smell the Amazon" (Those Amazon parrots do have a very distinctive odor. All the Amazon people are nodding their heads. )

Amazon smell for me is associated with all things warm and fuzzy from the many years of enjoying sharing my life with an Amazon parrot. Hope you get a warm fuzzy feeling all over from your parrots too!

Barbara Heidenreich

Copyright 2009 Good Bird Inc

Einstein the Talking Texan Parrot

I thought I would post a short note on a new parrot friend of mine named Einstein. She is featured on one of our recent podcasts (Visit Wings n' Things at http://www.petliferadio.com/)

Einstein is not the same one that appeared on Pet Star, but she has a pretty extensive vocabulary. You get a sample of her skills on the podcast. Check her out and also the article on her in the latest issue of Good Bird Magazine http://www.goodbirdinc.com/magazine.html

You can also visit her website at http://www.einsteinparrot.com/

Enjoy!

Photo courtesy of www.Einsteinparrot.com