4 Situations in Which Cockatoos Hiss

Published on Oct 15, 2021 by Bilal Qamar

Last Updated on November 6, 2022

Every posture or actions cockatoos make tells something about their mood. Whenever they raise their crest, flash their eyes or scream, they are expressing their feeling through their body language. Similarly, cockatoos hissing is also a sign.

Cockatoos hiss when they are unhappy, defending themselves or disapproving an act. Usually they hiss only when they feel insecure and need to warn you. But there are some other situations too in which cockatoos hiss.

Cockatoos give Reminder by Hissing

Different situations in which cockatoos hiss

Below are all the situations in which cockatoos hiss and all the other signs they show.

Self-defense

Cockatoos hiss when they feel insecure about someone or something. It could be a new person or a new pet. Usually, when cockatoos hiss in self-defense, they also puff up, raise their crest and slowly move to and fro. This posture shows they are ready to attack the intruder in self-defense. [1]

Stress

Sometimes Cockatoos do not want to be patted or touched too often and hiss to warn you. This is different from self-defense; they don’t feel threatened and want to be left alone. Cockatoos usually do this when they are stressed.

This stress could be because of sickness, something disturbing in their environment, or even a lack of interest in the food being served. Other reasons can be keeping them in a small cage, loneliness, and lack of rest.

By hissing, they express their anger and warn you to leave them alone. But if they are still approached, they can also bite. Frequent exposure to such situations can further stress the bird and make it permanently aggressive.

Displeasure

Some cockatoos raised in an abusive or stressful environment can do this. They react very strongly by hissing when they don’t like something.

Whether they are being put back in their cage after they had their time outside, they are being stopped from scratching something they shouldn’t, or being stopped from biting you, they hiss.

This is uncommon, but it happens. Such cockatoos can be trained to stop biting with affection and care. Eventually, they also stop hissing, especially when you properly bond with them.

Cockatoos Hiss When they are in Mood

Hormonal change

During the breeding season, cockatoos go through hormonal changes. They become slightly aggressive and protective. They do not like anyone getting close to their nest, especially when they have laid eggs or their babies have hatched. This behavior is more prominent in females.

Cockatoos hiss to keep you and other animals away from their nest. They raise their crest, slowly move to and fro, flash their eyes and also puff their feathers. This is something close to self-defense, but in this case, they do it for the eggs or the babies. After the breeding season ends, they stop doing it.

It is recommended to leave them alone during the breeding season and not to frequently interact with them while they are caring for eggs or babies.

Final Thoughts

If you pet cockatoo has developed the habbit of hissing, it must be discomforting. But like I already mentioned, it is treatable. Just make sure your bird stays happy and is never stressed. Be kind to it no matter how rude your bird acts, just focus on building a trustable relation with him.

Once your bird starts trusting and loving you, it will never hiss to you. I also recommend consulting an avian if you are inexperienced.

Bilal is an aviculturist who loves to write in free time. His personal experience with bird care and breeding enables him to share valuable tips. So far, he has contributed more than 100 blogs to this site. His goal is to promote bird-keeping and save endangered species.

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