If you are lucky enough to own a parrot, you probably know how active they are. Parrots attract attention mainly because of their beautiful colors, but also because of their uncanny ability to capture and hold everyone’s attention with their amazing dancing skills.
Parrots are very similar to humans when they hear a good beat. They dance to the rhythm of the music they hear, just as we humans often do when we hear a rhythm that inspires us to move.
Dancing is one of the most fun and easy tricks you can teach your bird. This behavior comes naturally to many of our feathered friends, with highly intelligent birds, such as cockatiels and parrots, being the easiest to train.
Teaching your bird to dance is not only entertaining but also provides your pet with extra exercise and mental stimulation, which can have a positive impact on their overall health.
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Choose a suitable training room
Before teaching your bird any tricks, take the time to choose the best area of your home for training. Birds may respond differently to training depending on how comfortable they feel in their environment. Therefore, it is best to choose an area that your bird perceives as non-threatening and safe.
Quiet, uncluttered spaces are usually the best choice, preferably away from most of the foot traffic in the house. Eliminating as many distractions as possible will help your bird stay focused during training sessions.
Choose upbeat music
Birds are programmed to respond to sound, so it’s no wonder that many of them enjoy listening to different types of music. If you are teaching your bird to dance, you should choose upbeat, lively music for training. Rhythmic songs with a medium or fast tempo encourage most parrots to move quickly.
Don’t be discouraged if your bird doesn’t seem to appreciate your choice of music. Keep trying different types of music until you find something your bird seems to respond to.
Be a role model for your bird
It seems like a silly idea, but sometimes birds learn best when you model for them. If your bird doesn’t seem to dance on its own, you may need to step in and model for your pet. Turn up the music and dance to show your bird how much fun it can be. Often parrots are so excited that they start dancing before they realize what they are doing.
Use visual props
If your bird still won’t dance despite all your efforts, you can also show him videos of other birds dancing. Create a playlist of your favorite dancing bird videos to show your pet. In general, birds love to watch other birds and often imitate what they see. This is one of the quickest ways to encourage your bird to dance or perform a range of tricks and behaviors.
Reward progress
As with all training exercises, it is important to reward your pet for any progress he makes in learning the behavior you want to teach him. Even if your bird cannot dance correctly after the first few training sessions, it is important to gradually reward progress to help your pet understand the behavior you are trying to teach him.
Keep some tasty treats on hand during training to make sure your bird stays attentive and interested in what you are doing. If you use treats to make training fun, your bird will learn faster and more easily over time.
Behavioral problems and tests
Since dancing is a naturally occurring behavior in most birds, it is a little different than teaching a behavior such as singing or talking. If you are having difficulty getting your bird to dance on command, try different types of music. Try leaving the music on when you are not present (at an appropriate volume, of course) so the bird doesn’t have performance anxiety. Most birds will learn to dance with a little patience.
