Aggression in mature linnie

[Maria_C]

Hi all,
New to the forum here (although I used to belong to an all linnie forum that suddenly disappeared from the internet)!

I have a linnie female that is about 3.5 years old. My partner and I bought her from a reputable breeder at 6 months old, and she was hand-fed. She is still great with being handled--we can literally hold her in the palm of our hands...!

My partner and I have been apart because of his schooling, but we moved back in together a year ago, and moved to a new state. The bird of course was along for all the changes. She's spent time with just me, but she is clearly bonded to him. She LOVES him. She constantly gives him kisses, calls for him, grooms him...all the cute things linnies do.

Unfortunately, she doesn't feel too great about me. She's not horrible, but she's definitely aggressive. She doesn't like me to go near her cage, and is very unhappy about me picking her up. That said, once she's on my finger, she's much better behaved. She lets me give her scritches and gives me the occasional kiss. And if I'm lucky I get a little hello noise in the morning

I think the aggression may, in part, be linked to her feeling territorial about her cage. But does anyone have suggestions for how to help with aggression?
She currently uses the same cage for day/night, so I thought maybe changing cages would help with the aggression.

This isn't a big deal, because I get a lot of joy out of seeing her and my partner interact, but it would be nice to get some of the love for myself...

 

[sunnysmom]

Welcome to the forum!

@Lady Jane ?

 

[Maria_C]

Thank you

 

[Lady Jane]

Linnies are not normally "aggressive". They have a rep for going through the terrible two's but you bird is older than that. My best and top suggestion is to get another Linnie. These birds need to be with their flock more than most other species. I started out with one male for about 6 months and after talking with other Linnie owners and researching the species I decided to get a female. They bonded instantly! The female is still shy and does not want to be touched but I am working on that. What you are seeing is most likely hormonal behavior and picking one mate instead of both of you. She is old enough to breed now and is looking, feeling the urge. I imagine this is not the helpful advice your were wanting but its the best for this situation.

@jmfleish

 

[Monica]

Why not every time you go by her cage, you drop a very special treat inside a treat cup that she *only* gets from you, and *only* when you go by the cage?

 

[JLcribber]

You should get some new insight from reading this.

Site Name - Articles - Behavioral - Sex And The Psittacine

 

[Maria_C]

@Lady Jane Thank you! It is definitely something we have considered! It has just been very difficult to find a breeder. We live in Pennsylvania. We don't have a car, but we can rent one. We'd rather pick up the bird. I don't like the idea of shipping them...
Also, will the birds be less social with us when they are bonded to each other?

And I didn't mention that she likes to 'make it' with just about every toy in her cage! Haha...
Our cage is also huge (like 5' tall) so it is more than enough space to house an additional linnie.
Are you saying that we should get her a male? Or should we stick to a female. That is what I was thinking.

Poor baby. Now that you say that she is hurting for her flock, it seems so true. And kind of tragic.

 

[Maria_C]

@Monica Thank you. I think I can try this.

 

[Maria_C]

@JLcribber Thank you for the link.
Yes, I didn't mean to suggest that I really believe she can feel human love. Also, my partner is pretty good with her. He grew up with birds and we both realize that certain kinds of touching for them can be...misconstrued. I definitely think there is a mating/bonding thing going on between them, so the suggestion of getting another linnie is probably the best.

 

[Lady Jane]

I got my female in Pa. There is a cluster of breeders around Lancaster. I will PM you her name. She is a very conscience breeder and tries to mostly get green because that is their natural coloring. Both of my birds remain hand shy after 6 months for the female and one year with me for the male. They are bonded very tightly and I love to watch that. My male loves humans and will fly on shoulders of strangers as well as me. He is a social butterfly. His breeder is in West Va. I did not get him directly from his breeder but from another person who took a new job and was traveling too much to keep a bird.