We Can’t Blame Everything On Hormones

Are you noticing lately that your sweet, happy cockatiel is a little nippy? Has your quiet-as-a-mouse African grey become loud and opinionated? Is your cockatoo cuddling in ways that make you blush?


It’s the onset of the spring season here in the northern hemisphere of the world. Although in most places it is still very cold, our birds are able to perceive the subtle signs of spring, even when all we see is the harshness of winter.


Parrots see things we do not. Their amped up eyesight ...

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The Spring Crazies

It’s not even technically spring yet and my birds’ hormones are RAGING!  The last time we reached these heights of insanity was about 4 years ago and it was a season for the record books. The first signs this year...

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Over-Stimulated Parrots

 With springtime fast approaching we have to be on the lookout for “quirky” behaviors that are related to the onset of hormones. I have often compared hormonal parrots with teenagers. They both know what is right and wrong in terms of their behavior, but neither seem to be able to control themselves at times when hormones are involved. Your once placid parrot may overreact to things that he would normally overlook, and he might express himself with aggression.

Linus, my umbrella cockatoo, always seems to be walking a fine line when...

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Amazon Parrot Fight: a Lesson For Us All

Birds squabble, just like humans.  They get on each others nerves and will warn each other, in no uncertain terms, to back off! Even my cockatiels, who cannot bear to be apart from one another, get into it from time to time.  Sometimes a disagreement might escalate to raised wings and flared tails, but it is always peacefully resolved. There are times, however, when a war is waged that is unprecedented and, from our point of view, unprovoked:

A friend has, among many other species of parrots in her home, two amazons: a female aged 45, and a male aged ...

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