Anitha cowan has launched new African Grey Parrot forums

As a bulletin board for the ones who love the African Grey Parrot, greforums.net - even though it has a small community - tries to address issues that the African Grey lovers encounter- Training, feeding, and living with this unique bird, which is considered to be one of the smartest, interesting and most intelligent birds. Young hand-fed African grey parrots may start to mumble human sounds at a few weeks of age. Just as wild parrots learn natural vocalizations from their parents, companion parrots learn to imitate human sounds from their "surrogate parents." The first words they learn are usually simple words their owners have repeated often with enthusiasm like 'Hello', 'UP', 'Hi!', or 'Wanna Bite'. Some greys start talking at a young age while it is not unusual for others to start talking after they are over a year old. I am often surprised when people tell me their greys are not talking, yet I listen to them and I hear words. Parrots learn to talk much like small children. When they hear certain words over and over, they start practicing the sounds. At first the sounds are simply incoherent mumbling but the proper inflections are often there. This is the origin of much 'baby-talk' in humans. Just as small children need an adult to listen carefully to pick up what the child is trying to say, young greys also need a human to reinforce the words they are trying to learn and teach them to say the words correctly. Pay close attention to the mumbling and you will begin to hear the words as they develop. Remember although a grey bappy may be fully feathered and looks much like an adult, they are still learning a great deal. Don't expect too much. Your six month old baby grey will not learn the "Gettysburg Address." Be patient - and work with your youngster even though he may just be mumbling incoherently. Successful learning in intelligent species often requires more maturity Greys who have shown no indication of talking by the time it is 2 or 3 years old may not become good talkers. However, I do know of many exceptions. These are often birds who are placed in new situations where they receive more stimulation and attention. Please do not misconstrue this to mean that if your grey does not talk, he is unhappy with you. Many of the non-talking greys I have met have been contented parrots. Another misconception I have heard is that parrots will not learn anything new after a certain age. This is absolute nonsense. Bongo Marie, my grey who is at least 25 but may be well over 40, is constantly learning new words, expressions, sounds, and even sentences. http://www.greyforums.net