Male Cocatiel

[HannesT]

Hi All,

This has probaly been asked before, but i looked around the forum and did not find what i was looking for, so i'll post my questions here. If you know of a thread that answers these, please link right to it

We've had our male cocatiel for a couple of months now, and he is around 9 months old.
Up until a couple of weeks back he was very timid, when we had him out he sat very close to us, on our shoulders or chest with his beak pushed up against our faces. He sings alot and has learnt 2 songs while in our care (The smurf song, and the addam's family song .

Now, a few weeks back, he is getting "cockier", he still wants us to pet him etc, but he is very protective and a bit of a "sourpuss". We have 2 other birds, a female cocatiel 2.5 years and a little budge, around 3 years old.

He courts the female alot (Muffins), hops toward her and starts to sing, she however is not that interested but she is warming up more and more.

He has started biting, not to draw blood, but pretty hard.
Before we could pet and kiss him on the head, we still can, but now, we are a bit more cautious...

I am guessing his behaviour is part of him maturing, he also started rubbing his vast(?) on perches, so i guess he reached sexual maturity.

I am not saying anyting is wrong or out of order, i just wanted to vent his behaviour and hear if this is normal behaviour for a 9 month old tiel, and if this "cocky/sourpuss" - moods will lessen once he gets older?

Our female went through a similar period wwhen she was the same age, and it went away...

He (Opie), is still cuddly at times and enjoys a head rub and kisses on his little forhead (which is yellowing more and more every day).

Cheers bird lovers!

/Hannes

[Pajarita]

If you are in the Southern Hemisphere, you are in winter right now so he should not be producing sexual hormones yet. If you are in the Northern Hemisphere, it's molting season preparing for the resting season (winter) so sexual hormone production has already stopped. The behaviors you mention are breeding behaviors (he is masturbating, trying to court the female and becoming nippy) for which he should be too young but pet birds that are fed high protein and kept to long days with artificial light will mature early (lots of showers make it worse).

Keeping them to a solar schedule, reducing protein after molt is finished and not bathing them more than once a week during winter helps to keep their endocrine system healthy and the birds sweet-tempered.

[Eric&Rebecca]

Actually with cockatiels their first hormones are by age not times of the year... well after puberty they are but during the first molt and puberty between 6-9 months of age this is what happens. It depends if they were born and the beginning or the end of breeding season. Your chick was obviously born later in the breeding season hence his later blossoming shall we say. EVERY male cockatiel I've had has been varying degrees of it but around the same time or year and the same symptoms.

You are correct he is going through puberty and no he's not too young for masturbation both of mine were exactly the same at this age. You've just got to ride it out. Come the right time as Parajita outlines next year it will happen earlier during breeding season and then subside into molt. The first puberty molt and hormone rush is the worst.

It can be remedied by completely dark and interrupted and sleep and the same methods as Parajita suggests. So mix parts of our two answers together and you'll have a plan.

[HannesT]

Hi,

Thank you both for your answers.
We'll ride it out , he is not a menace just a little nippier, still very cuddly and well behaved.

Again, thank you for your replies.

Cheers,

Hannes