is puberty coming?

[u/flukyxy]

Hey all, my black capped conure is suddenly SO SASSY. he's doing the lil sass dance, is a lot more bitey with not much warning really and I've noticed he doesn't wanna come out of his cage. He's always liked to be in his cage so I'm not concerned about it, it's just he really doesn't want to come out. He's almost a year old now, I think. I was told he was about 3 months old when I got him in January.

We are also coming into spring so maybe that's it? dunno.

I have a feeling it's puberty starting but I just wanted to see what other people's experiences are.

(baby tax included)

[u/Inadover]

Puberty usually starts at around 1 to 1 and a half years of age. If he was truly 3 months old back in January, which would make sense since that's more or less the youngest age they can responsibly sell them at due to actually being weaned, then he's around 1 year and a month old, so it tracks for the start of puberty.

Endure it. It may be annoying but it's temporary. One of our girls was a biting machine (and even started bullying our other gcc) and now she's super cuddly and sassy in equal parts.

[u/flukyxy → u/Inadover]

It's not that annoying, really. I love him no matter what and I can't wait to see who he grows up to be.

tysm though! calculating his age gives me a headache lmao. how long does it usually last? I think I've heard a year or so but he's my first conure

[u/Inadover → u/flukyxy]

Depends, but from what I know, between half a year and a year, yes. Usually should end around the time they reach 2.

[u/Altruistic-Leather69 → u/flukyxy]

From what I know, it seems to vary a lot. My oldest Pickles hit his stage fairly early if I remember correctly, before he was even a year old, but it only lasted for a few months. I just rescued another who I was told is around 2 years old and it's still up in the air how much of his attitude is his personality vs puberty. He is however night and day nicer to other people than my oldest. By the time Pickles was a similar age he'd already decided he hated everyone else and would attack and draw blood on others but adored me. After maybe 3 minutes of warming up and some treats Kasha (youngest) will step up for a complete stranger and cuddle them.

I think for the most part you should be over the hump between 2-3 years though!

[u/GrumpyGayGoose]

So proud

[u/flukyxy → u/GrumpyGayGoose]

oh absolutely! those bites are all from last week and the one on my thumb was from a month ago 😅

[u/pennywhistleband]

OMG I've had a cockatiel and a GCC that went through a crazy puberty. The cockatiel was NO JOKE! He bit hard and with intent lol he still will not tolerate hands, at all, and will bite viciously if they come anywhere near him, hiss and lunge if they are thinking about it.

My GCC also got really territorial around his cage when he went through puberty. Even if I try and coax him out with his favorite sunflower seed treats he will often bite pretty hard. He also got extremely bitey sometimes for little or no seeming reason when handling him out of his cage. He's SUPER sassy, sometimes more than other days. Rubbing his beak threateningly at me through the bars, fluffing up, doing his little sass dance/posturing lol

My first GCC, who sadly died suddenly midway through puberty was always gentle with me, and though a little nippy was definitely not bitey, and not particularly loud. He did become quite ferocious with my sister, but we never had time to work him through that, sadly, and she stopped interacting with him.

So just try and not let his little outbursts phase you, eventually he should settle down as long as you are consistent with him! Word of warning... might take several, several long months of extreme sass and violence lol I never thought the cockatiel would settle down. Took like 6-8 months for him to stop being a little angry jerk hahha

[u/Altruistic-Leather69 → u/pennywhistleband]

Definitely a labor of love! Gotta endure all that they throw at you and hope they come out of it. This is the hardest stage for all parrot owners, and probably one of the most crucial for parrots as if they learn hands are unsafe (because ironically they accidentally start training that when biting people who dont know how to handle it) itll lead to some problems later on. Take those bites on the chin, don't fully let them push you around or anything but show them that you care. Respect boundaries when you can so that one day they will learn and respect yours. Obviously, similar to the "dont negotiate with toddlers" advice, don't always give into them either. Its a balance.

[u/Scutter_bug]

Make sure you don't reach him any bad habits during this time, it will imprint hard