Ask Lafeber

Mating Ritual

I have six year old Fischer’s lovebird who is a male and lives with his female mate. It was mating season and I already gave them a wooden nest. I noticed when he tries to mate, he bobs his head up and down aggressively and makes quiet clicking sounds. When he finishes mating, he stays still for few minutes as if he’s very exhausted. Once in one of his mating rituals on the ground, his head tilted over and panted when the mating was finished. Then after some moments, he was fine and energetic. I was very concerned about this and wanted to ask if mating activities are hard work and stressful. Note that the pair has been given a whole year of rest before I gave them back their nest.

Hi Lillium,

It’s not something I have seen, but I’m not an expert on Fischer’s specifically. But generally mating should not cause him to pant. This could be behavioral or physical. If he never did this before, there could be a physical issue with him. At 6, some captive bred lovebirds are already old. It depends on genetics. Usually you have no way of knowing their background and whether there has been any inbreeding in his line. I think you mentioned another one who seems to have some type of seizure. If the birds came from the same breeder, this may be a genetic issue. There isn’t much you can do. You can try recording this and showing your Vet.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda