aggressive male kakariki

allie · Member Joined: Jun 22, 2010 Posts: 12

I have a 1 and a half year old male kak who has been quite aggressive towards me for a while now. I cant put food in his cage without being bitten and when he is out he will deliberately go for my face!! He is also very vocal and makes the most awful screeching noise similar to a magpie!!!
He is well fed on a varied diet, gets plenty of exercise and attention.
I would be so grateful for any advice anyone can give.

Gee · Snr Member Joined: Feb 05, 2011 Posts: 222

Hi allie,

Sorry to hear you and your bird are having problems communicating.
I take it he is a pet bird with no other birds around?

Birds seldom use their beaks to bite eachother. Biting means the risk of being bitten back. A bite is a wound. A wound could mean death in the wild.
So they use their beaks to eat, to preen and to impress others and only bite in utter self defence... if all other signals were ignored and the bird feels he has no other choice.

A scared bird flies away. A bird that feels there is something important enough to him to defend will stay and fight.

A bird defending his cage is an ok bird. Means he settled in Wink

A bird atacking you in freeflight is bad news.
So you should ask your self.. what is he defending outside his cage?
Has he overbonded with you or someone near you?

Check the net for "bird bodylanguage" / "overbonding" etc.

Meanwhile, try not to show any fear. Don't pull back . Hold your grounds , make a REAL angry face and growl/ roar like a lion next time he bites.

Dutch greetings,
geertje

allie · Member Joined: Jun 22, 2010 Posts: 12

thanks for reply. He is by himself but in a room with other animals, his cage is near our chameleon Bud but he has taken no particular interest in him.

He doesnt seem to be very tame, we had a female before him that we sadly lost very suddenly and we got a male because i was afraid she had died from being egg bound and didnt want it happening again so i have no experience with males!!!

He will defend his cage, i understand that and he is a bright and very intelligent bird, am definately going to look up your recommendations.

I dont supose u have any thoughts on the screeching noise? i had asked on here before and was told they are relativley quiet birds, not in our house!!! the noise is so bad sometimes u cannot hear yourself!!!

Thank you so much for ur reply, i dont feel so alone with my problems now!!!!

greetings from not so sunny Northern Ireland!!!!

Gee · Snr Member Joined: Feb 05, 2011 Posts: 222

the screeching noise.....

I have 4 males. I don't find them noisy, but they do make a lot of different sounds.
Most of the time it's just background chitter chatter to me.

They are at their loudest early in the morning and late in the afternoon.
specially if fed a little later than they are used to Wink

They do have some sort of alarm call that can be very loud. I sometimes hear it when they spot a neighbourhood cat or hear wild birds singing.

I wonder.... could the chameleon or any of the other animals be the problem? Have you tried moving his cage?

allie · Member Joined: Jun 22, 2010 Posts: 12

He has never known any different in our house, we have quite a lot of varied pets, including 2 dogs who he loves to tease!! He is not nervous around animals or people either.
We moved house a while ago but all animals came too and i have moved him around the house because he just loves exploring new places!!!
The screeching does occur first thing in morning and whenever he hears birds outside, have taken him outside in his cage so he can chat with them!! Also happens whenever I use the phone!!!

Thanks for all the advice, had come to the end of my tether and was seriously considering rehoming him!! But i refuse to now, he is part of our family and want to resolve the issues!!

Finally, would u recommend another kak, male or female for company?? Am undecided if it would help him or make it worse!!

Gee · Snr Member Joined: Feb 05, 2011 Posts: 222

Another kak?

That's up to you to decide. They can be twice as loud and messy.
But at least he would have someone around who not only understands what he is saying but talks back as well :)

Kaks make great foster-parents, so a younger male could be a good choice.

Kaks can be choosy beggars and don't necessarily get along with just any other kak. Specially not if they are of opposite gender.
IF you decide to introduce him to a female, make sure she is sexually mature. You don't want him to harass a teenager.

Introduce the newcomer thoughtfully. Specially since he is so territorial.
Each their own cage for a short while, next to each-other. Let them decide for themselves when it's time to move in with each-other.
And avoid jealousy by paying too much attention to the newcomer.
Your "firstborn" has the oldest rights.

About the screaming... ignore him when he does. Don't let attention be his reward. Pay attention to him when he is quiet. Kaks are like 3 year olds and learn fast!

Steptoe · Site Admin Joined: Oct 06, 2004 Posts: 4550

Georg · Snr Member Joined: Jul 12, 2009 Posts: 174

Hi,
is your kak a hand breed?
Those, specialy the male, often show missbehaviour as you discribed.
Our Kak "Rocky" came to us because of the same problem.
And he is not the only kak we know wit this kind of missbehaviour.

allie · Member Joined: Jun 22, 2010 Posts: 12

our bird is in no way lacking attention, he is kept in our busiest room and is out of his cage a fair amount of the time, he is constantly talked to and has a variety of toys etc to keep him amused.

I have been doing as u both say and ignoring the bad behaviour and rewarding the good, hopefully it starts to pay off soon!!!

Am giving some serious thoughts to getting him some companions and will be having a chat to the breeder I got him from for advice and help.

This site has been such a good help to me over the past 2 years and I wud like to thank those who offered constructive critisim.

Steptoe · Site Admin Joined: Oct 06, 2004 Posts: 4550