Phalonia
Checking out the neighborhood
- Joined
- 12/26/22
- Messages
- 2
- Real Name
- David York
Good evening everyone!
I have a three (almost four) year old male cockatiel called Vega. I have had him since he was about five months old. He has always been out of his cage except for at night and has free run of the house. He is generally very tame, occasionally a bit grumpy but generally really friendly and pleasant. He lives in our living room, he eats a healthy diet which is a mix of seeds and greens.
Over the last 24 hours there has been a sudden change in his behaviour. Last night whilst watching the television he was getting very amorous with my foot and trying to mate with it, something he has not tried doing before. He has previously been frisky around certain slippers my girlfriend has but we discourage that behaviour.
This morning he was absolutely obsessed with my feet, and was attacking me when I tried to put my hands near him to move him away. He bit hard enough to draw blood, which is something he has never done before. He keeps flying onto the floor to get near my feet and has been behaving very aggressively, biting quite hard and flying at heads.
Aside from him trying to mate with my foot last night, there has been no other change that could have prompted this behaviour. There is nothing new in his living space. We take care to make sure that his cage is light and clean and not in a state that would make him hormonal.
This evening because he was still being so aggressive we had to catch him and put him in his cage and move him to a quiet room to calm down.
I am at a bit of a loss for what to do. This is undoubtedly aggressive hormonal behaviour but it has come from nowhere with no buildup at all, and I am not sure what to do to calm him down and stop him being so aggressive.
Guidance and tips would be very welcome. What should I be doing or not doing to get him to settle? How can I discourage him from seeing feet as potential mates?
I have a three (almost four) year old male cockatiel called Vega. I have had him since he was about five months old. He has always been out of his cage except for at night and has free run of the house. He is generally very tame, occasionally a bit grumpy but generally really friendly and pleasant. He lives in our living room, he eats a healthy diet which is a mix of seeds and greens.
Over the last 24 hours there has been a sudden change in his behaviour. Last night whilst watching the television he was getting very amorous with my foot and trying to mate with it, something he has not tried doing before. He has previously been frisky around certain slippers my girlfriend has but we discourage that behaviour.
This morning he was absolutely obsessed with my feet, and was attacking me when I tried to put my hands near him to move him away. He bit hard enough to draw blood, which is something he has never done before. He keeps flying onto the floor to get near my feet and has been behaving very aggressively, biting quite hard and flying at heads.
Aside from him trying to mate with my foot last night, there has been no other change that could have prompted this behaviour. There is nothing new in his living space. We take care to make sure that his cage is light and clean and not in a state that would make him hormonal.
This evening because he was still being so aggressive we had to catch him and put him in his cage and move him to a quiet room to calm down.
I am at a bit of a loss for what to do. This is undoubtedly aggressive hormonal behaviour but it has come from nowhere with no buildup at all, and I am not sure what to do to calm him down and stop him being so aggressive.
Guidance and tips would be very welcome. What should I be doing or not doing to get him to settle? How can I discourage him from seeing feet as potential mates?
