Conure WILL NOT stop "pleasuring" herself

[bobbietheconure]

We have a 1 1/2 year old Green Cheek Conure who will not stop pleasuring her/himself.

"She" will do this many times during the day each day.

Is this normal for a bird of her age? Is it a maturing thing that will go away?

We have also noticed she is a little more aggressive with biting which she hasn't done in the past? Is this related or a separate issue?

Many thanks

 

[MaraWentz]

Our female goffin cockatoo was 1.5 when she started, we just rotate her toys daily (so gross when that word has two different meanings yuck! ) and eventually it was out of season and she stopped, but rotating them helped as she had to... well find a way to get 'comfortable' again

 

[BirdSquawk]

She probably thinks it is mating season, make sure she gets 12 hours of darkness a day, and ignore her if she is 'pleasuring' herself in your presence.

 

[lexx510]

What is she doing exactly?

 

[DebsFlock]

I've not had this problem, but the advice I've heard is take away any favorite toy, avoid handling her anywhere but on her head, make sure she gets 10-12 hours of dark quiet time, don't feed over-abundantly (but don't withhold food). You can also try removing any tent or hollow, but GCC are full time cavity dwellers and the presence of one shouldn't trigger breeding behavior. OTOH, it might be worth a try in this case.

It is a natural behavior and not one that does any harm, except that it might trigger egg laying which you don't particularly want. She's not embarassed....