Gail Langsner, Avian Consultant

Gail, with a biology degree specializing in animal behavior, began her career training tigers and lions at the San Diego Zoo and at Marine World. She liked the work but was troubled by the small cages in which the animals were kept. Casting about, Gail offered to help out the bird trainers and was stunned by the sophistication, responsiveness and intelligence of parrots, who grasp complicated concepts quickly, in comparison to lions, who learn new behaviors in stages by repetition. From then on she specialized in parrots, fascinated by how they learn, and the "EQ" (Emotional Quotient) component of avian intelligence.

Gail's gift for helping us to view our bizarre human behaviors through the eyes of our birds shows us that our birds' habits, for better or worse, are usually reasonable responses to the lives we impose on them and the cues we give them. Birds come to our homes with survival skills already intact. Instead it falls to us to teach them social skills and healthy eating habits. Often we don't realize that birds read our actions as reinforcement for certain behaviors. By not understand our birds' perceptions of us and of their environments, we inadvertently teach them behaviors that we don't like. Gail's goal is to teach us how to moderate undesirable behaviors and to change them to better ones.

Gail defines "training" for domestic parrots as getting them to be happy in their living situations. In response to written questions submitted by the audience, Gail discussed a wide range of issues affecting the lives of bird-enhanced families. Many questions concerned the dynamics of introducing new birds into an established bird/human flock, about the compatibility of different species sharing space, and about the shifting intricacies of bonding and disaffection among various combinations of humans and birds living together. Gail uses a practical approach to handling new bird introductions, i.e., starting new birds within sound but not sight of established birds, slowly moving the birds within view, then, over time, moving both cages closer together in stages until the birds (hopefully) share territory.

Everyone worries about screaming. Gail suggests not reacting, if you and your neighbors can stand it, in order to teach the bird that screaming accomplishes nothing. Since some birds scream for the joy of it, or to keep track of flock members out of sight (you, for example, in the bathroom), Gail suggests trying to switch over a screaming birds into talking mode. One bird owner she knows, working in a room near to but not in sight of her bird, moderated the bird's anxious "where are you" screams into an amusing call and response routine between the bird and herself, consisting of, "What are you doing?" "What are you doing ...?" and so forth.

Teaching a bird to eat right is one of our biggest and most challenging responsibilities. Since our birds cannot possibly burn as much energy as they would in their natural habitats, calorie and fat intake needs to be controlled. Fat birds are susceptible to serious health problems. It's too easy for birds to make unhealthy choices when allowed uncontrolled access to foods that taste good but should not form the bulk of their diets. Gail put it into perspective: "Hmmm ... what would I rather have ... lettuce, or Kentucky Fried Chicken?" Without our influence, most birds probably would gorge on peanuts and let the carrot stick and green beans fly through the cage bars. Gail has her birds on a "spartan" diet high in vegetables with limited seed access. Be careful when moderating your birds' eating patterns, though, to tailor your approach to each bird's temperament. If a bird becomes miserable, you've done more harm than good, and may be inviting unwelcome and unhealthy behavior patterns. Considering the bird's morale, and whether he is actually eating enough during this process. Gail advises weighing your bird daily to be sure. It can take years to convince a bird to eat fresh vegetables. Be patient, love your birds for who they are, and don't give up!

Among other crowd-pleasing questions were: How do you teach two cockatiels to mate (Gail has no idea!). Why will a bird suddenly bite you in the middle of a tender moment (could be the bird's emotions building up to a nervous crescendo; could also be the bird's frustration that its romantic intentions toward you aren't being fulfilled.) What are the limits of avian vocabulary (depends on the species and individual bird) and how to teach new words ("What's the magic word?")

Gail's fresh, bird's eye point of view, her direct approach and hilarious anecdotes help to translate inscrutable bird behavior so we can understand it, and also our roles and responsibilities in our birds' lives. Most birds really do want to please, and look to us for cues on how. By understanding how the wheels spin inside those birdy brains, we can teach our birds to be happy, healthy, endlessly entertaining friends instead of screaming, biting, feather-plucking, peanut-guzzling nightmares.