Aggressive Males! What should I do?

[TwinTales]

This post is about my two cockatiels, I have a year and a half old pied named Seb and a year old white face named Maui.

To preface, the two don't seem to like each other very much, at least Maui never really much enjoyed being near Seb, he would scream and try to chase Seb away, whereas Seb was very much relaxed about the entire situation. However they quickly got to the point where - I could put one on each shoulder and they wouldn't cause a fuss.

This changed about a week ago, and I'm not entirely sure whats going on. My boy Seb has always been sweet and always eager to hope onto my shoulder and loves his head rubs! Well, recently he'll dive into very nasty moods where I can't get near his cage without him aggressively trying to bite my fingers through the bars, and while he still jumps onto my shoulder the first chance he gets, I quickly have to take him off because the moment I move my head he'll start trying to attack my face. I'll put him back in his cage and he'll start pacing around, wanting to get out once more but only to attack my fingers if I try.

This seems to be exacerbated if I have Maui out as well, because he will do a somewhat tamer version of what Seb does, where he will refuse head scratches and kisses when Seb is with me.

I'm not sure what has suddenly changed in both of them. I haven't added anything to their cages, nor have I done anything different to their routines. Their cages face one another on either side of the room, and I always do my best to give them equal amounts of time out of the cage.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Wasabisaurus]

My best guess is hormones are flowing and making them crazy. The only other possibility is that they are not feeling well. Could something have gotten into their food?

If they are hormonal, some people suggest more sleep and make sure it is dark where they sleep and uninterrupted. I hope you can find the answer.

 

[sunnysmom]

I think your boys are entering their hormonal teenage years. (I know they're not really in their teens but around two is when tiels become "teens" for hormone purposes. )

 

[Birdbabe]

My first thought was hormones too, it's that time of year...this will pass. Boys will be boys and girls....well, let's not go there!

 

[Tiel Feathers]

They sound very hormonal to me also. It's their age and the time of year. How much quiet, dark sleep are they getting? They should be getting 12 hours a night. Also, make sure you don't pet their backs which can stimulate hormones. Other things you can try are rearranging their cages, limiting soft foods, and limiting baths. Just remember to keep consistent with ignoring good behavior and rewarding bad. This too shall pass!

 

[blewin]

It really does sound like hormones. Buddy's been a brat lately, too.

 

[lesliekiki]

Interesting. Does showering and soft food encourage hormonal behavior?

 

[Jaguar]

Interesting. Does showering and soft food encourage hormonal behavior?

Wet means rain which means growth and an abundance of food, perfect time for breeding - warm/soft foods are similar to regurgitation which is great for feeding babies.

 

[lesliekiki]

Thanks for the explanation!