[Philby]

I've got a male and female which get frisky most days and this week the female has laid three eggs over the week, in three different locations. One was in the outdoor cage, on the floor. I moved that one to a cloth into the main cage inside where it was ignored.

The second was laid in the food bowl, which she nested on for a few hours and got quite protective over before she eventually went back to roaming the house presumably looking for a suitable nook to set up.

Five minutes ago she dropped another egg in the main cage. I removed the other two eggs with no change in her behavior. Today, I knew another egg was coming as she was exploring and I had a little feel for it.

Should I go back to putting the egg on a cloth at the bottom of the cage? I guess I should expect more in the next week and depending on where they are, place them all on the cloth. I don't want to set up a nest and there is no nesting type material around. However, I also don't want to mess with nature. Should I just leave them/move them to the cloth and see what happens? I thought the first couple were a one off, now it's getting serious.

So far she is ignoring the new egg. I have plenty of cuttle fish, calcium bells and sticks which she has been enjoying, there's some vege's like broccoli, sweet potato, corn, carrot an apple available plus seed with protein bits.

This is exciting, I don't want to mess anything up.

 

[lperry82]

I would try and putting all the eggs at the bottom of the cage on the cloth, hopefully she will sit on them

 

[Tielzilla]

yes leave the eggs on a paper towel or cloth on the grate at the bottom of the cage...she may ignore them at first but leave them 25-30 days or until she abandons..if you do not want them to hatch then boil them wait for them to cool and replace..you can also buy false eggs on line at birdsupplynh.com comes in handy for those broken eggs and egg replacements..also please increase her calcium supply i.e. cuttlebone and calci rich foods like broccoli and kale.

 

[tielfan]

Do you want to have baby birds? If you don't, you can boil or freeze the eggs then let the parents tend the eggs on a cloth on the bottom of the cage until they lose interest. Taking the eggs away will just stimulate the female to lay more trying to get a full clutch, so you should leave the eggs with the parents.

If you do want babies you'll need something better than a cloth in the bottom of the cage. Put a box or a bowl down there - something heavy enough that it won't tip over as the parents come and go, and with high enough sides that the babies won't be able to fall out as they grow. However a real nestbox will provide the best chance of success.

You'll need 2 to 3 inches of some kind of bedding material in the bottom to help keep the eggs together and warm, and to give the babies a soft surface after they hatch. The preferred bedding is pine or aspen shavings (no cedar!) which is available in most pet shops in the small animal (rodent) department. If you can't get this, some people use other materials like grass cuttings or shredded newspaper. Don't use coconut hair or carefresh bedding, they will rob moisture from the eggs.

 

[Philby]

Thanks for the replies. As much as I'd like to have little baby birdies, I just don't have the time to watch over and make sure everything is okay. My work schedule is too erratic which is a shame. Just how capable are they of self management should the right feed be in place?

 

[tielfan]

That depends on the individual birds. Some first-time parents perform flawlessly and others are disastrous.

The results tend to be better if the birds are fully mature (at least 18 months to two years old) and if they were raised by their parents or in the presence of other breeding birds. If they were pulled for handfeeding and removed from contact with adult cockatiels, there is less chance that they will know what to do the first time around.

 

[Talkatiels]

my father is a little young, he was hand fed but he's a great dad. he's actually taking a more active role than the mom.. he's so cute when he returns to the nest box he whistles to the baby. He says peek a boo or does his pretty bird whistle. they're both doing good but the dad is much more attentive..