Question:
Hello to all! I have been incognito for a while & missed reading the posts to RPB. I have a question that I feel certain someone here can answer for me. I purchased Rogan (he was wild at the time) at a pet store that was changing hands 9 years ago today. He was really frightened of me & my family (perfectly understandable, given what he was subject to…unbeknownst to me at the time). It took me two weeks (& countless hours) to get him to perch on my finger. He was a baby at the time. His eyes were just starting to turn color. It took me a couple of years to get him to eat food other than seed. He eats Pretty Bird & people food now (he’s actually quite a piggy…he will come down from his cage, waddle over to us, look up & beg for food!). I began teaching him to talk right away & I must say, he HAD a rather amusing vocabulary! I am able to clip his wings & toenails. I can even put him on his back. He walks into the spare bedroom (where I keep the computer) & climbs up on Claude’s (my Rottie pup) crate all of the time, either insisting on a head rub or to sit on my shoulder. I have 2 chocolate labs in the house, also. They respect Rogan tremendously! I never allow the 4 of them together unsupervised & Rogan is never locked in his cage when we are home (except when we go to bed). Sorry to have gone on & on. I wanted to give you a little history first. I started college in 1994 & went full time until I graduated in 1997. During this time, I had absolutely no social life, we moved once, & I really didn’t have a whole lot of extra time to give to anyone (Rogan included). Rogan’s vocabulary has dwindled to close to zero. He whistles alot now & screams (I guess like he would in the wild). I have been repeating the old words & phrases that he used to say more frequently in the hopes that he will remember & start to talk again. Every once in a while, he will floor me with something witty…every once in a while & I have to crack up. Could my inattention during college have done this to him? He is not ill…in fact he is very healthy & I plan on taking him to the vet for a checkup. I took him to the vet only twice, when I first purchased him…the vet said he was healthy. Any help you could offer would really be appreciated! And if you have any questions, I would be glad to reply. Thank you all in advance! Sierra 
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Response:
Having purchased a "wild" bird, I think your situation of training and keeping Rogan trained is a little different. I purchased a wild bird and I think I understand your situation. I had to continually keep up the training or "Louie" would fall back into his old habits. I believe if you keep working with Rogan, he’ll become the bird you used to know. I wish you all the best. Before you buy.
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