Aggressive dove :(

[Yada]

Hi,

I'm pretty desperate for suggestions at the moment.

About 3-4 years ago i got a young ring-neck dove. He was fully feathered but he was a fledgling of that year. He was really socialised with the breeder, and quickly got used to me.

He became really tame, and i used to let him have the run of my room almost every day. We used to have a great relationship. He had perches in my room for him to doze on and when he'd wake up and want company he used to fly down to my desk and get all curious as to what i was doing, eventually falling asleep again on my hand while i was writing!

He used to fluff up and close his eyes to my cuddling. And was perfectly happy with anything i did. I could even clip his wings without holding him down! He'd just sit on my finger and watch me!!

And now i can't get near him!! because he's become completely aggressive and terretorial. I haven't let him out of his cage in over a year, because all he does is display, get in my way and bite me whenever my hand goes near him!!

I've tried ignoring the behavior. I've tried flicking him on the beak when he bites. Nothing works.

One day he just started getting really territorial and when i'd go move him from somewhere he shouldn't be perched he'd immdeiately fly back and display, and get pretty angry at me when i insisted he couldn't sit there. Once he started, it was like he couldn't stop. He's decided that i'm the enemy and thats that!

I can't even change his food without him getting territorial and fighting me!!

I've pretty much given up hope to get him tame again.

The problem now is that cooped up on his own he's going out of his mind. He's constantly cooing and displaying to any bird that lands near his cage and courts absolutely anything that comes within his site. From birds to leaves blowing in the wind!!

I can only assume that his hormones have driven him into being this way. ANd if thats the case then the only way to calm him down would be a mate.

I bought a new cage, intending in getting him a mate. But i don't have the room to let them breed. Can i somehow stop them from breeding?

Does anyone have any idea what i can do??

 

[HeatherLynn]

By you don't have room for them to breed do you mean you don't have room for any little ones they bring along or the actual act? I had a pair once that were very determined to be parents. We just removed the eggs at night and put in fake eggs for them. They seemed happy enough. Eventually the fakes got pushed out of the nest and they would start all over.

 

[SummerChick]

Hi,

We had a white wing dove that had fallen out of its nest so we hand fed him and he was the sweetest dove, i can't remember how long we had him but maybe a year or so then all a sudden he got aggressive and he had never shown any aggression before. We finally decided to let him go free if that was what he wanted...we sat him in our homemade bird feeder outside and he sat there for a few minutes then flew to the tree...everyday i would go out and call to him to see if he wanted to come back....he never did, so i guess he was happy with being free. I think his aggression was due to his hormones.

Good luck

 

[Yada]

Sorry i was unclear.

I have a large enough cage for 2 doves. But if they start breeding i won't have enough space for their offspring. And if doves are anthing like pigeons i imagine it will get overcrowded very quickly.

I'd heard about replacing their egg with a fake but was afraid that he'd then associate me reaching into the cage with stealing his eggs. Did you buy the fake? If i make one out of clay do you think that will do?

Summerchick, I'm so glad to hear it happened to you too!! I was so worried i'd some how done something horribly wrong. On websites i'd always find that they're the sweetest animals, no aggression, easily tamed!
I wouldn't risk setting him free though. WHen i used to take him out before he turned aggressive, he got loose twice, and he's not much of a flier. He just kind of flapped and got caught by the wind and zigzagged to the earth. Once he landed in the road, Thank god we live somewhere quiet. He was easy to catch and looked really confused as to how he got there!
THe other time he landed in our neighbors garded and they have a really predatory cat. Luckily the woman of the house saw him land and went out to catch him before the cat got him.

 

[Mary Of Exeter]

My birds usually have no problems with dummy eggs. They don't even realize you're taking their eggs if you slip the fakes in and take the real ones out. I've had ringnecks incubate small lightbulbs and quail eggs. You can also take one of their eggs at a time, hard boil them, and return to the nest. Of course they aren't going to smell unless they get cracked open, haha. You can buy fake eggs too, just not sure if everyone carries dove sized eggs.

Whatever you do, don't let him go. He won't survive very long on his own.
I think a mate is just what he needs. If you still have his old cage, put the two beside each other for a week or two, then put them together. Since he's been the only one for so long, he might be pretty aggressive to the hen even if his intentions are good. So having them separated but close will let them bond through the wire, but save the hen from getting chased and beat.

 

[Yada]

The new cage has dividers so i can easily keep them seperated. How long do you think i should separate them for?

Also should i just let them nest on the floor of the cage?

 

[HeatherLynn]

We made ours out of salt dough. We did reach in at night once the lights were out. Simply because they seemed to settle down better at night.

 

[Yada]

Thank you all for your help.
I've been putting off getting him a mate for half a year because i just wasn't 100% sure it was the right thing to do. It's a relief to finally do something about it.


Any ideas on how long i should keep them separated?