How To Deal With Aggressive Cockatiel Behaviour
Cockatiels don’t show aggressive behaviour for no reason, there is a cause behind every hiss, screech, and bite.
The cause can be hard to find, especially for inexperienced cockatiel owners.
This article aims to help you understand why your cockatiel has become aggressive and how to deal with it.
I’ll be going through specific situations where cockatiels tend to become aggressive and I’ll explain how to calm them down from their agitated state.
Because each aggressive situation requires a different response from you.
First, let’s briefly discuss some situations where cockatiels become aggressive.
And then I’ll explain how to effectively deal with each situation without losing any trust with your bird.
Quick Navigation:
- Common Situations Where Cockatiels Become Aggressive
- How To Deal With Aggressive Cockatiel Behaviour
- Cockatiel Aggression At Night
- Sudden Aggression
- Territorial Cockatiel Aggressiveness
- Hormonal Cockatiel Aggression
- How To Prevent Aggressive Cockatiel Behaviour
- Sources
Common Situations Where Cockatiels Become Aggressive
Cockatiel aggression at night – One of the most common times where cockatiels get aggressive is at night, just before bed. I personally experience this aggressiveness almost every night with my cockatiel.
Territorial aggression – When your cockatiel is defending something, they’ll usually hiss, screech, or even bite you for attempting to interact with them or they’re prized possession. They can become territorial over another bird, human, object, nesting box, cage, food, and pretty much anything else that interests them.
Hormonal frustration/aggression – There are many causes of hormonal aggression in cockatiels. You can cause hormonal frustration by touching them sexually. Cockatiels go through hormonal mood swings when nearing the age of 1. They can also get agitated when something they show affection to doesn’t show that affection back to them, this could be a bird mate, humans, or even objects such as toy mirrors.
Breeding aggressiveness – While cockatiels are breeding, they’ll become aggressive, territorial, defensive, and hormonal around their eggs and their mate. Male cockatiels are typically more aggressive in this state than females, but both birds will still bite any hands that intrude into their nesting site.
One-person birds – Cockatiels that are attached to a single person can become aggressive toward others who try to interact with them. They may even become territorial over the person they’ve bonded with, especially if they see them as a mate.
Cage-bound cockatiels – Cockatiels who were rarely let out of the cage or neglected will be reluctant to come out and socialise. They’re also likely to become aggressive when you try to interact with their cage.
How To Deal With Aggressive Cockatiel Behaviour
Ok, we now know some common situations where cockatiels are prone to becoming aggressive.
But how do we deal with these situations?
As mentioned, each aggressive situation requires a different response from you in order to calm the cockatiel down.
So, let’s discuss what to do in each specific situation.
Cockatiel Aggression At Night
No matter how calm or well-behaved you think your bird is, all cockatiels are prone to becoming a bit aggressive at night.
And there is a simple reason for this:
Cockatiels will get cranky when they’re tired of playing or being outside the cage all day.
If you notice your cockatiel becoming increasingly agitated as bedtime gets closer, they’re probably getting tired and don’t feel like interacting with you anymore.
It’s similar to how we humans get irritable after a long day at work.
But unlike us humans, cockatiels can’t just drink coffee, they actually need to sleep.
Cockatiels need 10 – 12 hours of uninterrupted sleep every single night.
If they don’t get that, they may get cranky earlier in the day as they’ll get tired much faster.
When your cockatiel becomes aggressive at night, simply place them in their cage and get them ready for bed.
Sudden Aggression
Sudden cockatiel aggression may seem unprovoked, but there is always a reason behind any sudden changes in behaviour.
There are many situations where cockatiels can become suddenly aggressive to their owners.
But one of the main situations is when you’re scratching your cockatiel, and then they give you a sudden bite.
I’ve been there plenty of times, and I’m sure you have as well.
Both your feelings and your fingers are hurt and you’re left wondering why this has happened.
Here are some possible reasons for the sudden aggression:
- They heard a noise, got frightened, and bit your finger
- They had enough scratches and communicated that to you through a bite
- You pushed a pin feather into their skin while scratching (birds HATE this)
Closely observe their behaviour and body language to determine what caused the sudden aggression.
Also, take note of what you do after they bite you.
Do you keep scratching them?
Did you give them some food?
If so, you have actually reinforced the bite and encouraged future aggression.
Sudden cockatiel aggression also seems to happen a lot while they’re on shoulders.
Many people have reported their birds suddenly biting their face while they’re on the shoulder, if this happens to you, remove them from your shoulder immediately.
For birds, shoulder time is fun time.
And they don’t deserve a fun experience after behaving aggressively toward you.
By allowing your bird to stay on your shoulder after a bite or aggressive display, you’re encouraging the bad behaviour.
Whenever your cockatiel is suddenly aggressive, do not reward, praise, or encourage the behaviour in any way.
Simply walk away, deprive them of your attention, and don’t acknowledge the bad behaviour.
Those who encourage aggressive behaviour, even accidentally, will experience sudden aggression from their cockatiels in the future.
Territorial Cockatiel Aggressiveness
When your cockatiel wants to claim something, they’ll become territorial, defensive, and obsessed with that thing.
As mentioned, they can get territorial over pretty much everything.
Trying to interact with something your bird has developed an interest in will likely lead to a bite, or at least some aggressive behaviour.
If your cockatiel becomes territorial over household objects, toys, or hiding spaces, you must remove those from their sight.
This will help reduce territorial behaviour.
Birds often get obsessed and territorial over mirrors, so it’s best to avoid giving them as toys.
However, there are things that cockatiels are naturally territorial over, such as their breeding box and their mate.
If you’ve chosen to breed your cockatiel, you should expect territorial behaviour.
You should also expect to not be able to interact closely with the birds and their breeding box during this time.
When attempting to interact with breeding cockatiels, you’ll likely receive some hormonal/territorial aggression.
As well as other birds, cockatiels can also become territorial over their beloved owners.
This is especially common with one-person birds who have grown overly attached to just a single owner.
Cockatiels most often become defensive over their person when they’re on the shoulder.
If your cockatiel displays territorial aggression while on your shoulder, remove them and keep them at chest level.
You should also encourage other household members to interact with the cockatiel.
This will help prevent them from becoming one-person birds and developing social problems in the future.
Hormonal Cockatiel Aggression
There are many things that can cause a cockatiel to become hormonal.
And a hormonal cockatiel can quickly become aggressive.
One common reason why cockatiels become hormonal is due to their owners sexually stimulating them.
Sexually stimulating your bird can result in a whole range of behavioural problems, including sudden aggression.
Touching the wings or back is considered sexual contact for a cockatiel.
In the wild, only the cockatiel’s dedicated mate is allowed to touch their wings and back while all other birds are allowed to touch their head and necks.
Do not rub, stroke, or scratch your bird on their wings or back.
Cockatiels also go through natural hormonal changes as well.
For cockatiels and most other types of birds, spring and fall is their breeding seasons, which naturally makes them hormonal.
You’ll definitely notice behavioural changes during this period.
Here are some common hormonal behaviours cockatiels display during their breeding season:
- Regurgitation (To birds, objects, or their favourite person)
- Masturbation (where they rub their tails on objects, birds, and even your hands)
- Looking for nesting locations
- Singing to lots of different birds, objects, or people (trying to seduce a mate)
- Mood swings (Including aggression)
Trying to interact with a hormonal cockatiel is like gambling with your fingers.
Your hands might be greeted with a head bow if they want a scratch, or they’ll be greeted with an aggressive lunge.
Luckily, there are some ways to help reduce hormones in your parrot:
- Reduce their exposure to light during the day (let them sleep for an extra hour or so)
- Avoid feeding warm mushy foods because it resembles regurgitation
- Remove anything that resembles a nest (breeding box, happy huts, cupboards, and other dark hiding holes)
- Keep them busy (with foraging or shredding toys, bathing)
- Discourage any masturbating behaviour (especially on you!)
By doing these things, you can help reduce hormonal aggression in your cockatiel.
I’ve got a full article on parrot hormones if you want to learn more about this subject.
How To Prevent Aggressive Cockatiel Behaviour
Of course, not all aggressive behaviour is preventable, such as hormonal aggression.
But there are some actions you can take to prevent as much aggressive behaviour from your cockatiel as possible.
Don’t Force Interactions
A good relationship with your cockatiel is founded on trust and communication.
By forcing scratches, treats, or training sessions onto your bird, they’re likely to lose trust in you and become fearful.
This newfound fear of you will manifest into aggression, especially if you keep forcing unwanted interactions.
You can usually tell what your cockatiel does and doesn’t like through their body language cues.
But it’s up to you to either acknowledge or ignore those cues.
If you simply respect your cockatiel’s boundaries, they’re less likely to become aggressive or fearful toward you.
Encourage All Household Members To Interact With The Cockatiel
One-person birds can develop a lot of problems.
For those who don’t know, a “one-person bird” is the term used to describe birds who are overly attached to one person.
They don’t interact or accept care from anyone else except the person they’ve bonded with.
This causes the bird to become extremely dependent on that person for affection, so much so that they’ll scream when that person leaves the room, even if other people are nearby.
In extreme cases, the bird will become aggressive and bite everyone except for their main person.
“So, how do birds become one-person birds?”
Primarily, it’s due to a lack of proper socialisation with other people while only interacting and bonding with one person.
This is why I suggest encouraging all your household members to interact with the bird equally.
Of course, your cockatiel will still have a favourite person.
But they shouldn’t be entirely dependant on that person for care, affection, and training.
Companion birds should be able to comfortably interact with all members of the household.
By keeping your cockatiel properly socialised, you’re reducing the chance of them becoming aggressive toward other people.
Understand Your Cockatiels Biting Signs
If you find yourself in a situation where your cockatiel has become aggressive, the next best thing you can do is avoid their bites.
And to do that, you need to understand your cockatiel’s biting signs/signals.
I already have an article discussing 4 reasons why cockatiels bite and how to stop it, so I’ll make this section brief.
Here are some cues cockatiels give before biting:
- Folding back their crest
- Hissing or screeching
- Beak open, ready to bite (also aimed at your finger)
When you notice these signs, keep your fingers clear, back away, and evaluate what you did to anger your cockatiel.
And then take note to ensure it doesn’t happen again.
Don’t Breed Cockatiels You Intend To Keep As Pets
You should not actively breed any cockatiels you plan to keep as loving companions.
If you want your bird to keep their friendly, affectionate, and tame personalities, you should not breed them regularly.
Birds that are breeding often develop a lot of behavioural problems that you might not understand.
One of the main problems is increased hormonal aggression for long periods of time.
The best way to avoid these problems is to not allow your cockatiel to breed in the first place.
I believe this quote from lafeber sums it up pretty well:
“When you turn your pet into a breeder, you need to be willing to give them up as a pet”
So, before turning your beloved cockatiel into a breeder, think of this quote.
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