Points To Consider...............

[Daz 0]

I think there is one thing to remember, we are always learning. The more you learn about breeding and caring for these birds the more you realise there is more to learn.

[Guest mariah]

Very Good. One thing I would add to the section on how often to check the nest box.... Check the nest box at least once a day. The hen could have died from being egg bound and the chicks, depending on age, would need to be moved.

QUOTE.....Best time to check a nest box is while the hen is out eating...early morning or early evening or both times.

I thought I covered that bit

would it stress the hen out though?

every time i go near the cage like walk past it the hen just keeps on eating.

i have a difference to my cage set up.

is it okay to just lift my finger through the bars and lift the lid up?

then i get a glimpse of momma and kiddos

[maesie 0]

Now I'm preparing to start breeding again next year! I have the space, the cages needed, the money, the support, the super experienced breeders on this site and the breeding flock all I need is to wait a whole year so my flock is old enough.. My oldest hen is about 6 months and my youngest cock is about 2 months I think.. but since I'm not sure I figured I'll just wait a whole year..

 

:fear :bow: :yes:

 

Brilliant move!!! It's great to see members put the health and welbeing of their birds before what they want!

[**KAZ** 0]

Very Good. One thing I would add to the section on how often to check the nest box.... Check the nest box at least once a day. The hen could have died from being egg bound and the chicks, depending on age, would need to be moved.

QUOTE.....Best time to check a nest box is while the hen is out eating...early morning or early evening or both times.

I thought I covered that bit

would it stress the hen out though?

every time i go near the cage like walk past it the hen just keeps on eating.

i have a difference to my cage set up.

is it okay to just lift my finger through the bars and lift the lid up?

then i get a glimpse of momma and kiddos

This is why its best to fit the nestbox OUTSIDE the cage so you can check easily.

[GenericBlue 0]

okay i think its time to bring this informative post back we seem to be getting a lot of people having breeding problems and asking alot of questions that this just answers

please read it all not just what i have coloured

it is very good read with some importaint and good points

Breeding Budgies..........points to consider

 

1. How old are your budgies ?

For the sake of your budgies health, the minimum age for a hen and cock should be 12 months. Any younger and a hen can become egg bound and need urgent vet care. The maximum age for a hen to be bred should be 4 years and a cock at 5-6 years. At four years of age a hen struggles to produce enough calcium and may have issues laying an egg and become egg bound also. If you are in any doubt about your new budgies age with regard to breeding keep them longer before you begin to breed and ask for help on here in working out its age. A coloured cere is NO INDICATION of breeding age as a coloured cere can happen from 3 months onwards.

Breeding age

 

2. Do you have a plan and money set aside for vet care if needed ? Many young people enter into budgie breeding with parents saying..."yes, go ahead" but often the very same parents have no desire to allow veterinary care for any sick birds should the breeding project fail or present problems. Please check with your parents to be sure that they WILL allow a vet visit or two and pay for it, should the need arise. Make sure you have saved enough money to cover all the extra expenses. Breeding budgies for pocket money is no quick way to financial success. In reality it might well (will) end up costing you more than a potential sale of babies.

 

 

3. Have you done your research and asked all the harder questions of responsible and experienced breeders ( not the kid next door who has done breeding once or twice ) ? Have you knowledge of the history and health of your breeding pair ? A pair of budgies newly bought for breeding purposes need both a settling in period of time before you start breeding them and you also need to know their history and their personality before proceeding to breed with them. Stress equals illness in budgies...stress from being caught, and put in a petshop, and brought to your home and put in a breeder cage...all these things CAN and do often cause budgies to get sick and die partway through breeding if you put them straight down to breed the second you get them home.

 

4. Your budgies are mating...does that mean a "pregnancy" and you need a nest box ? No. Budgies from a young age often indulge in recreational sex. Just because you see a pair of budgies mating does NOT mean there will be eggs or does NOT mean you have to put a nest box in their cage and set them up for future babies. YOU providing them a nest box gives them PERMISSION to lay eggs and have babies and a place to do it, regardless of age. Refer back to point one for age of breeding budgies.

 

 

5. What food must I provide to help my budgies breed ? Although breeding budgies need good food to withstand the rigors of breeding and raising a successful clutch, the foods you need should be the food they have been getting on a regular basis anyway...fresh vegies, especially greens, soft foods, quality seeds, pellets if you use them, etc. For added calcium requirements some liquid calcium added to the drinking water of birds you intent to breed would be beneficial, as would the addition of a cuttlebone to their cage. Bear in mind that cuttlebones arent always the best source of calcium and often are more something the budgies likes to "play with" or destroy just for an activity.

 

6. Do you have a safe place for the budgies to breed...cage and location ? Best place for a breeding pair is in a breeding cage of their own and not in an aviary with a pile of other birds and lots of nestboxes......i.e. Colony style.

colony vs closed breeding

Breeding is a time of stress for birds and birds get sick and die from stress. To give them the best chance of raising a clutch of babies successfully, you need to make it a stress free event. A separate breeding cage will help as there will be no interference in their nest from other birds, no destruction of their eggs or chicks from others hens who decide they want that particular nest, and assuming you have the breeder cabinet in a safe place. If you don't have a breeding room, then your bedroom might be the best place for them. Try to have it a cat and dog free space during this time for safety and reduction of stress on the birds. A breeder cage tucked into a dark wardrobe will not be a good place for them.

 

 

7. Climate and temperature for optimal breeding try and make the temperature and conditions the best and most comfortable for your breeding pairs. Bear in mind too warm and dry and environment may affect your eggs hatching or not. Try to not have your pairs in a cage situated in a draughty and cold area.

 

 

8. Have you set up your perches properly ? the perches in your breeding cabinet must be sturdy and not too thin for the mating act to be successful. Perches that roll around and are too thin to grip properly will not help the mating or fertilization of eggs. You may well end up with clutch after clutch of clear eggs if you do not address the perch problems. Age will also affect fertility...too young and the eggs wont be fertilized properly. Too old and the same end result.

 

 

9. Nest boxes and cages ? If you have to use a nest box in a normal type cage, try to attach it to the exterior of the cage and higher rather than lower at floor level. This can be attached by tying or wiring the nest box securely to the exterior of the cage with using either a hatch door as entry point to the nest box hole or by cutting a section out of your cage for entry ( you can always patch the cage again later ). Please make sure the cage is at least 2 ft by 2 ft by 2ft to ensure plenty of space for fledging youngsters. Try and have two perches so that parents can fly back and forth as part of the mating ritual to encourage breeding. A cramped breeder cage may well contribute to the parents attacking their own youngsters once fledged as their is no space and the babies find their way back into the nest box while the Mum tries to lay more eggs.

 

10. Your anxiety and interference with the breeding pair..... it is very easy to get excited over the prospect of breeding your budgies. Try to give the birds some privacy even if that mean covering two to three sides of their cage if it is in your bedroom. A breeder cage put in a high traffic area of the home may not get you the results you need as it may be stressful to the birds. Lots of anxious checking and rechecking by you also may cause problems for the birds feelings of safety and serenity in incubating eggs and raising a clutch. Try NOT to handle the eggs and shift them about in the nest box. If you need to candle the eggs to test if fertile or not, invest in a flexible shaft candling torch.This can be used without moving any eggs. Touching eggs will contaminate them with germs from your hands. Moving eggs will also upset the order in which the hen rotates the eggs to keep them at the best temperature for hatching. There is no real need for an inexperienced person to write on eggs. You can write on a card on the outside of the cage when the first eggs was laid and so on and then know when roughly to expect your first hatchings.

 

11. How and when to check the nestbox if you know you have eggs in a nest box and wish to check, try and do this while the hen is out of the nest box as many hens get agitated and kick the eggs around in the nest box while you are trying to look. This will cause addled eggs and those eggs will NOT hatch. She may also pierce the eggs with her claws while you are trying to look, causing death of chick and again eggs that wont develop. Best time to check a nest box is while the hen is out eating...early morning or early evening or both times.

Care of baby budgies in the nest

 

hens need to be checked daily to make sure their not egg bound or dead

 

12. Homes for the babies ? Have you a plan that finds homes for your babies ? Try and remember that pet shops do not pay a lot for your babies so they would not be an ideal solution and make you wealthy. Are you prepared to keep any and do you have enough housing for them ? If you keep any can you identify them and stop them breeding with brothers and sisters ? If some of your babies are hatched in a handicapped state or become handicapped ( i.e. Flightless, splay legged, twisted feet and legs, rickets etc ) are you prepared to keep them and accommodate their special needs ? Have you thought ahead to the best life you can offer your babies in the future ?

 

13. Have you prepared a care sheet for your babies future parents and have you thought hard about what you want from the adoptive parents of a baby you have cared for ?

14. Have you hand rearing formula, crop needles and lots of time and expertise to raise chicks that may well be abandoned by their parents and go unfed or do you have work or school commitments ?

15. Examine your motives for wanting to breed your birds. Weigh up all the pros and cons. Are you doing this for yourself or the bird ? Have you considered ALL the implications of what may well be the end result of doubling or even tripling your flock ? Are you thinking the birds need to breed will make them unhappy if they dont ( wrong, by the way ) ? Be honest with yourself and do not blame the birds "need to breed" on you just wanting to do this.

 

16. Do you have FULL PARENTAL SUPPORT if underaged and do your parents have an agreement with you to cover any vets fees should they incur ?

******MAJOR POINT TO CONSIDER IS.......one pair of budgies set up to breed can turn into a disaster if the parents fails to feed babies or many other things that can occur. ALWAYS set up at least three pairs to breed at the same time or you may end up hand feeding babies and you may end up with chicks dying if the parents dont know what to do

Edited February 26, 2010 by maesie

[Garret 0]

For all the children on our forum who think they can breed budgies too young, or to make pocket money

 

 

I am preplexed by this comment - what do you mean? Are you saying children should not consider breeding? She has been researching for some time now and bought her first birds because of a love for them. As far as I can tell, she has done everything right and wants to be a serious breeder, with our full support, but of course is still learning from the 'experts' (her grandfather used to be a Finch breeder). This comment made me raise an eyebrow & seems quite discouraging..... I don't see anything wrong with earning a bit of pocket money to help pay for the expenses at the very least.

Edited April 12, 2010 by Garret

[**KAZ** 0]

For all the children on our forum who think they can breed budgies too young, or to make pocket money

 

 

I am preplexed by this comment - what do you mean? Are you saying children should not consider breeding? She has been researching for some time now and bought her first birds because of a love for them. As far as I can tell, she has done everything right and wants to be a serious breeder, with our full support, but of course is still learning from the 'experts' (her grandfather used to be a Finch breeder). This comment made me raise an eyebrow & seems quite discouraging..... I don't see anything wrong with earning a bit of pocket money to help pay for the expenses at the very least.

 

 

Dont be too worried by that comment.........it was aimed at a particular member a long time ago who did not have support or encouragement of her parents ( unlike your case ) re her birds and was she making some very bad choices in regard to the ages of the birds she was breeding and their welfare in order to make what she hoped was a quick dollar. She had cages in her wardrobes with no sunlight or airflow and all jammed and stacked into her room and the conditions were both appalling and worrisome to members here. They were also ( as a family ) collectors of animals and had what could be described and a houseful of cages of all kinds of animals and birds all for breeding purposes and animals in far too small enclosures and not in breeding conditions.

Edited April 12, 2010 by KAZ

[Garret 0]

Oh okay then - that does sound sad and worrisome.... thx for explaining.

[rachelm 0]

This is the information i was looking for. I have a long way to go before i start to breed budgies.

[Ratzy 0]

I remember when I was 4 a friend used to breed budgies. I was allowed to hold a two week old chick and saw a one day old one with eggs. She colony bred but never had any problems. I researched everywhere for about ayear and a bit before I bred this year. I do have parental support as long as I pay most of the vet bills ( don't worry I have a heap save up). It was a really good experience and I do understand that breeding does not always go to plan. For now I am giving it a rest, until I upgrade my current cage. I'm almost there now. Exellent topic by the way.

(yeah I know I chatter on too much)

[GenericBlue 0]

just as i think this topic needs to keep appearing :glare:

[ima.snowbird 0]

I'm getting the horrible feeling that I'm racing off in the totally wrong direction.

 

I have 4 budgies now, 2 male, 2 female. 1 pair each, blue and green. The green are older, the blue quite young. That's about all I know for sure. None are banded, and all come 'breeders' that I know little or nothing about.

 

The 2 babies came from a pet shop, that breeds some of it's own birds, and buys others from a local breeder. They seem healthy, but are not hand tamed, or are just totally traumatized by being chased around the cage in the pet store, stuffed in a little box, then dumped into a cage with an older pair. Because of their age and similar color, it's occurred to me that they could be siblings and not suitable for breeding. I'm going back to the pet store tomorrow to see if I can find out for sure.

 

Reading this post on considerations, it occurs to me that, at a minimum, I need 1 more pair! That came as quite a shock.

 

I am going to buy a breeder cage that's 72" long x 36" high x 18" wide. Would that be large enough for 3 pair? It can be broken down into 2 36" cages, probably better to keep 2 pair separated. So maybe I need a 3rd cage that's 36x18x18? One cage for each pair?

 

The same pet store has some hand raised English x American cross budgies. I was drooling over them, but they were more expensive than the ones I got. Should I get 1 or 2 of them, and pair with the 2 blue babies I got, thereby separating the 2 that could be siblings?

 

Should I find yet a 3rd source for another pair that I can pair with the young blue ones? Or should I put the 4 of them in the big cage and just not put down nest boxes? Forget breeding all together.

 

How many chicks am I going to have to find homes for if I have 2 pair? How many for 3 pair?

 

I think my reasons for wanting to breed are sound. I LOVE animals of all kinds. I trained dogs for years just for fun, and I studied operant conditioning/clicker training, and have tried to adopt it as a lifestyle. I want to start with the clean slate of newborn babies, and train them to be hand tamed, happy, well adjusted pets, suitable for families of any age.

 

I'm frustrated by pet shop birds that freak when you walk near the cage, and want to offer the public an alternative. In the US we have 'Craig's List' where I can list the babies. (I appreciated the article on staying safe when advertising. I don't have an aviary, but I do live alone in an apartment, and would be concerned about strangers coming to look at the babies. So it gave me something to think about.)

 

As I've read, I've learned that it is not unusual for the pair to have back to back clutches. How many do you let them have? And how do you stop them? George and Gracie, the green ones seem old enough that they may have already had chicks. How long should I wait before allowing them to breed? I suppose, if I need 3 pair breeding at the same time, the answer lies in the time it will take for the young birds to mature. THAT begs another question, how long does George and Gracie have before they'll be to old to breed safely? Guess I'm off to read about breeding age, and how to estimate their ages...

 

As you can tell, my head is SWIMMING! ANY help will be greatly appreciated.

 

Diana