Aggressive Lovebird

I have had my lovebird for about 7 or 8 months. I had him trained very well and he was well behaved. Recently he has been very aggressive and he bites everybody he comes close to. I started school this week and am not spending as much time with him as I did when I wasn't in school. My mom is home with him all day but she works so they don't interact very much. When I get home I take him out of his cage and I let him socialize. Could it be his living conditions or what he eats? I'm confused and I don't know what to do. HELP! PLEASE! :0011:

 

HI socialization is the key too keep him happy and content.
Also its mating season for birds so this could also be why he is agressive lovebirds should be kept in pairs as they are not happy being on there own.

Leave a radio if possible while you are not there see if this helps.

Mike

 

thank you! I will definately try the radio thing. But i did notice one thing that I didn't agree with in your response. Before i got a lovebird I researched them and every book i read and every website I looked at says that it is just a falacy that lovebirds need to be kept in pairs. they can be quite content on their own. but another thing. for the past 3 days he has purposely come over onto my shoulder just to bite my ear, or my neck. I can understand my neck because I have a necklace and he likes shiny things but anything that he can seem to bite he will. its like he seeks me out to torture me and bite me and i don't know how to stop this behavior! once again, thank you for your help.

 

Thank you! I tried the radio thing and it seems that he is better behaved. not way better but just a little. he made lots of noise and it seemed like he enjoyed it. and right now he is out and he isn't purposely flying on me to bite my ears! Thanx a bunch!

 

Hi glad the radio worked for some reason birds like music and if they hear a tune they like they will start to whistle it if they hear it long enough.

Good luck and i hope he improves.

mike

 

hey there! when we turn the radio on he sqaucks so loud! he's a lovebird so he can't really whistle along. but he likes trying to overpower the radio. he is really loud. he likes to beat everything! if something is loud he has to be louder! and the coolest thing is that he lives right in front of a window in my room and he talks with the birds outside. he loves it so much and it gives him another source of entartainment. he is a great bird, despite the biting. hopefully it will get better as time moves on! thanx again!

 

The aggressive lovebird

Hi Kem....I came on this board searching for information on cockatiels...we took in a rescue in June....while browsing I noticed your post about your aggressive lovebird. I have 2 lovies...I started with one lovebird, Pippy....16 months ago....then we took in a rescued lovie...(man, people have OUR number, don't they? lol) in January...We named her Sunny. Anyway, turns out Sunny is a female and now she is sitting on 5 eggs!

The aggressiveness that your lovebird is showing probably is the change in environment...he's a little 'mad' at you because you've gone back to school...and as Mike said~ leaving the radio on quietly is a really good idea...you might also take him out of his cage in the morning while you are getting ready for school and just let him go through your morning routine with you. My birds are very spoiled as I stay home with them everyday and they are very seldom caged....but when I leave home...especially if I'm gone for HOURS....Pippy does that same thing...just a quick nip to let me know that he is NOT happy with my having left him! You might, when you get home...give him a nice little treat when you take him out of the cage....like a broccoli florette or shredded carrot or something like that...just no avocado, chocolate, onion, or any of the other things that are toxic to birds. Just relax, give him a little more attention and let him get used to his new schedule...he'll come around and pretty soon he'll know about what time you will be home and look forward to that little treat. Good Luck! Now I'm off to search for info on Freddy, our tiel!

 

thank you for your help. i have gotten lotz of ideas and i'm going to take on one at a time. he really likes the radio. but the bad thing is that he will NOT eat any fruits or veges. And I don't know what to do to reward him because he won't eat ANYTHING!!!! He will only eat cockatiel food!! he is completely crazy! but i love him to pieces. again, thank you!

 

Veggies

Hi again, Kem.....What I have found from my birds is that they are kind of 'leery' about new foods...they have to learn that it is something that is safe. Once you get them to at least 'beak' it...and believe me, it can take up to 2 weeks of seeing the same food before they might even TOUCH it...is that once you get them started they will start eating it. The key is to get them to try it. What I did with mine was give them a dish....one that is their 'own' so they will recognize it as something safe...I use the small oriental 'sauce' cups...they are kind of flat and look like a lovebird dinner plate! I have a whole stack of them and just wash them in the dishwasher. My birds favorite..other than broccoli! I cook about a cup of rice.....and chop up very very very finely different veggies and mix in when the rice is warm. I use different things different times, but almost always put in shredded carrot as that's one thing they love. Disguise the veggies....so tiny they're just specks in with the rice. As I said, you can use most any veggie, just no onion or avocado or cabbage. I mix the veggies in with the rice when it is still warm so it softens it some, too...my birds seem to like stuff they don't have to work too hard for...LOL You can refrigerate this and give it to your bird for about 3-4 days...then I give the leftovers to the outside birds. By doing it this way your birds can have fresh stuff everyday and you will only have to do the chopping, mixing every 3-4 days. Also, don't leave it in the cage for longer than about 3 hours as bacteria will start to grow. I hope this has helped you. Ideally, a birds diet should consist of only about 40% seeds and pellet (my avian vet recommends Harrisons as it's all organic) and the rest fresh stuff like what I just recommended. One of my lovies actually sees the little plate come out in the morning and there's hardly no stopping him! LOL He climbs down my arm and trys to fly to it before I even have it cool. It's a happy moment when you can get them to eat the stuff that is best for them...Good luck!

~Rita

 

I will definately try your ideas. I can get boots to touch things but then he just leaves it alone. I'll see if I leave it in for longer if I can get him to actually eat it. he is such a picky eater! I just got him a new toy (when I went to the bad pet store) and he loves it! It has a bell on it and he has a thing for bells. Almost every toy in his cage has a bell. I really likes noise! He loves the radio and my music and bells and things like that. he also likes to tear things apart. He can be really destructive to his toys. But they aren't expensive so my mom doesn't worry about it. He can find a way to tear anything apart. Even if it is a really high quality toy. He is like an engineer. He likes to see how things are connected and, with his bells, he likes to see how they make all the noise that they do. He is the best! I love him so much. He can be a menace but when he isn't he can be a really good companion. I can't even imagine what my life would be without him. (Even though I have only had him for 8 months or so) I have just become accustomed to life with a bird. It is so much fun to have him and is just so fun to be around!!!!! The world without birds is terrible. Everything is way better when I have had boots around! Thank you for your suggestions!

 

Hi Kem....I agree....Birds can really bring alot of joy into your life, can't they? Especially lovebirds...they are such little clowns! LOL

Some really cheap toys , but messy because mine tend to string them all over after chewing them up...are toilet paper tubes..they love to tear those up! You can also buy Tinker Toys...that wood is safe for them and you can build your little buddy a gym! They love it and it's fun for you, too! LOL Most likely your little friend will hang out and watch you build it and try to get in on the fun! I just bought my birdys a hamster wheel today....they haven't taken to it yet, but they sometimes are afraid of new things until they get used to it being around. I'm home most of the time so my birds are rarely caged and they have toys all over the house. They have a manzanita wood perch hanging in front of the sliding door window...and it has swings and toys hanging off of it...they have a little birdy tent, too, that they play in...I got that from a gal in my other group that makes and sells them...It looks just like a lovie size dome tent like what WE camp in! They also have a t stand with toys hanging off of it and Pippy has a stuffed duck...Sunny has a stuffed bunny....and the cockatiel, Freddy, has a mama pony with a baby...when you push the heart on her side she sings! They also have a 4 ft. birdy ladder that all 3 love. LOL Nope, they're not spoiled. hehe My husband and I don't have any children ...mine are grown and his live with their mother...but his 17 yr. old son will be coming to live with us Oct. 1. I hope he likes birds! It's a prerequisite here. It's da rules! LOL

Just be careful with the bells on your toys....some of the ones that have those 'slashes' on the bottom can hurt your birdy if he would happen to get his little beak stuck in there...I've heard of that happening alot! They have such strong little beaks that they can pry them apart and get their beak stuck in there....I've also heard of them taking the little dinger thing off and choking on it. They're just like little kids, aren't they? With the bell part...if you're talking of the round ones..you can just use plyers and make sure they are tight together to avoid that danger. The only other thing is that I know of a lady whose bird got heavy metal poisoning from getting metal flakes off his bell...she almost lost him. That sounds horrible, I know and I'm not trying to scare you....if you just examine his toys often all of that can be avoided.

Have a great day...or evening....it's still afternoon here! It sure sounds like you take excellent care of your little bird! He's a lucky little guy!

~Rita

 

i check his toys everyday. i love him so much. i would die if i knew that my not taking proper care of him let him die. I don't give him bells with the slits in the bottom. i don't think that they are safe. thank you for your suggestions! i find that the bird community is very knowledgeable so I post lotz of things here just for some random facts that I might get out of it! Thanks again!