Why Do Parrots Dance? + How To Teach Parrots To Dance?

If you have watched a parrot, you will know they have lots of funny behavioral quirks. One of the cutest is their tendency to dance on their perch. But why do parrots dance?

Parrots dancing to a song is their way of showing that they enjoy the music. It is an innate ability to recognize and move to the beat. Like humans, parrots also prefer listening to some songs and genres. The reason behind a parrot’s dancing is related to their complex brains.

Watching a parrot bop along with the music is a lot of fun. You can even teach them how to dance. But there is a lot more to this movement than what meets the eye.

Keep reading to learn all about the parrot’s love of dancing.

Why Parrots Love to Dance?

Parrots have an uncanny ability to capture everyone’s attention due to their actions. Just like humans, parrots can also convey their messages through talking. Besides, when they hear a piece of good music, they start dancing in rhythm to the beat of the music.

There has been a scientific reason behind their dancing. No sooner scientists discovered the trick. There has been more research done to understand what is occurring. After studying this, they learned a few exciting things.

First, they wanted to see what triggered their behavior. So, to test this, everyone in the room was instructed not to react to the music. Despite this, the parrot was able to bop along with the beat. It showed that this behavior was innate rather than something triggered by humans. Though, as we will mention later, there are some ways you can teach your birds to dance.

They also wanted to test whether or not the behavior was linked to the song. Because of this, they slowed down the songs. But the bird was still able to pick up the beat and dance accordingly.

These tests showed a few important facts.

Parrots can pick up the beats of a song
They know how to dance along with the music
It isn’t necessarily something that needs to be trained

Your Parrots Dancing Could Be More Important Than You Think

Many of us think that this behavior is just a bit of fun. While it’s a hoot to dance with a parrot, it isn’t an important area of scientific research. But there are plenty of researchers who may disagree.

When a parrot dances, they can recognize and react to the beat. But this isn’t the most exciting thing. The dancing, like their ability to mimic speech, could be a social behavior.

It could help us understand human behavior. After all, we can’t help but tap our toes when a catchy song comes on. We have strong emotional reactions to certain songs.

The similarities between parrots and humans are even more striking when we look at how music affects us. Like humans, parrots have been able to create spontaneous movements in response to the beat. They are one of the only animals that do this. Even chimps, with their higher intelligence, won’t react this way to music.

The reason for this could be their complex brains. The parts of their brain that respond to vocal stimulants are highly developed. It is why they can copy our speech. Scientists have speculated that this allows them to experience and appreciate music in a way that other animals can’t.

Currently, though, scientists are still working to understand why parrots dance. But, when they discover this, it could profoundly affect the way humans view dance and music.

Teaching Your Parrot To Dance

We love the idea of putting on a song and watching the parrot dance to the beat. It may happen naturally.

As we mentioned, most parrots have the innate ability to recognize and dance to beat.

If not, they might need a little encouragement. There are a few tips you can use to get them moving.

Pick the right time

Like humans, parrots have moods. Sometimes, they will want to relax and have a nap. But at other times, they will be looking for more social interaction.

It is the perfect opportunity to start teaching them how to dance. You will be able to get their full attention.

There are a few other tips when training your parrot.

Take it slow, work in 15 minutes increments
Look them in the eye. It ensures that they are paying attention to you
Encourage them, calling them by their name
Incorporate toys
Give them treats when they are doing the right thing

Start slow

When you are teaching a parrot to dance, it’s essential to be patient. At first, your parrot will only have basic movements, like bopping its head. But, over time, you will be able to teach them new moves.

When doing this, you will need to mimic the movements of the birds. Hold out your arms. These will be your wings. You can try dipping them with the beat.

You can also try bunching your arms up, like chicken wings. Then extend them out.

You might need to do this a few times before the parrot picks up on it. But once they do, they will remember the movement.

Show off their skills

After putting so much effort into teaching them to dance, it’s time to show off the fruits of your labor. The good news is that parrots are social animals. They love getting the chance to perform for people.

When you first want to show off their dancing, start with a small audience. If your bird is shy, encourage everyone to get up and start dancing.

You should get up and get involved yourself. Your parrot will soon come out of its shell.

Parrots can recognize musical genres

Like humans, parrots can recognize musical styles. Most parrots will prefer songs that have a strong beat.It means that pop music is often a good choice.

Sometimes, they will prefer genres like rock or country. The one genre that they dislike is electronic dance music.

Parrots may be able to have a favorite song. To test this, scientists gave the parrots a jukebox that allowed them to listen to songs they had selected earlier.

The results showed that parrots overwhelmingly preferred listening to their favorite tunes.During the experiment, they played the same song over 1400 times.

Finding the songs your parrot will love

Like humans, parrots are interested in a wide range of genres. Some will prefer subtler songs like orchestral or opera.

In contrast, others will like heavy metal. Like human preferences, why a bird likes a particular style isn’t understood.

To find the right musical style, play them a range of songs. See which one they respond to the best.

Though being the DJ to a parrot might be a strange concept, it will make training them a lot easier. When you get a song they like, they will often react by bopping their head along to the beat.

If you get something they don’t like, there are a few behavioral signs to look out for in parrots.

They won’t be bopping their head or engaging entirely with the music
They might start vocalizing
They might start to bite at the bars of the cage

Once you notice these behaviors, turn the music off. If it was the song that was causing the reaction, they should stop.

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Leave music on when you leave the house

When we leave the house, it can sometimes make us feel uncomfortable. It can feel like we are abandoning our pets. The good news is that music will keep your parrot comfortable when you have to leave home.

Try to pick something that will offer a variety of new sounds. For example, you can leave on the radio or television. Try to pick a station that focuses on music rather than talking.

If you want to take things to the next level, you can find what music your bird enjoys. Then, you can create a customized playlist of their favorite songs. They’ll be so busy dancing that they will forget that you left the house.