can cage height difference cause aggression?

[DanaandPod]

My parrot is a little terror again. The only thing new that I can tell is that the budgies got a big new cage that is taller than his therefore his highest perch is below theirs. Can this be the cause of his latest hormone flare? I have no idea what I can do about it now..... Will he calm down eventually?

[Wolf]

As far as I am aware of the height is not a factor, aggression and territoriality is caused by hormones. When you control the factors of lighting and diet sufficiently to reduce his hormones the aggression will also diminish.

[DanaandPod]

He's been like this for about a week. And nothing about his food has changed. Any other ideas for this sudden spike?

[DanaandPod]

Actually, my freezer broke...so I didn't have peas for him and I gave him a whole bunch of pasta so he'd leave me alone while I was eating. I'm going to put thought into what I eat and when. Luckily, my life doesn't revolve around food pleasure like many folks. And, I reread the food management section of the parrot wizard. Starting tomorrow he gets twenty min utes to eat after trick routine in am. And no free feeding on days I'm home. (At least) I may do pellets just in theevening . not sure. Need to think about this.

[Greg]

Some birds can get aggressive about height. If it started right after puttting the budgies in a higher cage, then it is a good bet that caused it.

[liz]

To me he sounds hormonal. If that is the case hang on and it will pass.

Cage height does not cause aggression that I can see. Giving a bird a perch at eye level is basically showing respect for him.

[Wolf]

There are some accounts that claim that there is a dominance issue over cage height from people that have birds, but there is no scientific research that states that this is a factor that I am aware of. In almost every case that I have seen it is usually a matter of an overly hormonal condition. However if you believe that it is a factor in this than by all means rearrange the cages so that this can be eliminated from the possible causes. Even though I do not believe it to be a causative factor, you can never be wrong to try and eliminate anything that appears to case this type of behavior. It is much better to be safe than sorry.

[seagoatdeb]

If it happened right after the new budgie cage it could be related. I agree eye level is best with a parrot. I have observed many parrots, and I do see them going for the highest positon purposely. But all parrots are unique, so you will have to experiment to see what is bothering your parrrot. Every parrot will act differently when hormonal, but you should work with their behavior from a behavioral standpoint as well as diet and light exposure. Ususually, I find a change in behavior suddenly, has a cause, and I bet my bottom dollar, it has to do with the new cage somehow. Maybe you can change the perch heights, but he will get used to it eventually.

[ParrotsForLife]

Maybe he is territorial of his new cage

[Wolf]

It could also have something to do with what interactions that they would normally have with other birds in their natural environment. They may be a species that does not get along with most other species of bird in the wild. Even with all of these ideas I would think that it may have more to do with jealousy than any other thing and would try moving the new cage farther from his cage and see what happens. I do not think that it has to do with the height of the cage, but I do think that the closeness of the budgies to Pod may be the factor that is bothering him at this time.