Ask Lafeber

My male cockatiel is attached my female

Why is he doing that

Hi Belinda,

Are you saying he is attacking the female or is he attached to the female? If he is attacking her, there can be many reasons. If this is a breeding pair, for some reason in captivity some males will get too possessive of the nest box and may start to prevent the female from going inside. If this continues, you may have to take him out of the cage while the hen sits, and then switch birds for the next shift. Generally one bird will sit during the day and the other will sit at night. If he does this with the next clutch, it is probably best to not breed the pair again. Not all pairs will be good breeders.

If this is a pet, he is likely jealous of the female because he views you as his mate. In this case, simply do not have both birds out at the same time. If you are saying he has become attached to the female, this is natural and eventually he may stop being tame. If you want pet birds to remain tame, each bird needs its own cage. When you cage birds together, they will often become attached and will stop wanting human companionship.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda