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Hen Looking Tired? Sitting On 9 Eggs Currently

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Hi,

 

I have two show budgies breeding for the first time (both budgies are 18 months+ old) and I need some advice, as I haven't bred budgies before.

 

The hen (Audrey) appeared to be in great condition when she started laying unexpectedly, but she now has 9 eggs and is looking a bit frazzled/tired/thin to me. The male (Tank) appears to be doing the right thing - he feeds her constantly and sits in the nest box with her a lot, but any time she comes out for a break, he is still trying to mate with her and just won't leave her alone. She spends less than a minute out of the nest being hassled constantly, before going back in, and she doesn't eat anything on her own.

 

Is it normal that the hen appears so tired, before the eggs have even hatched? I guess I'm worried how she is going to go if she potentially still has to look after up to 9 chicks.

 

I've attached some photos, maybe she looks normal for a hen at this stage of breeding and I'm just being over-concerned?? Having not seen any other hens mid-breeding I really don't know.

 

Any advice would be much appreciated, as I would like to put her health first.

 

Thanks :)

 

Audrey before breeding:

Budgie_Audreyb4_zpsxaikga9h.jpg

 

Tank and Audrey today:

Budgie_Audrey3_zpsrujtofli.jpg

 

Budgie_Audrey2_zpsdu9npci4.jpg

 

Audrey today:

Budgie_Audrey1_zpsguvow8xv.jpg

 

Tank:

Budgie_Tank1_zpsfoln3zwm.jpg

 

Budgie_Tank2_zpsrlng34f3.jpg

Hi,

 

I've had some hens look like yours currently and other hens who look fine. I may be wrong but I think it all comes down to the bird itself. Do you have any other pairs with eggs at the moment, you may need to foster eggs to help her out.

 

Continue giving the fruits and veg and just keep an eye on her

  • Author

Thanks for letting me know.

 

Maybe it's just this hen and, like you say, I'll have keep a close eye on her and make sure she's getting the right foods. I know she hasn't bred before either, so I have no idea what she'll be like as a first time mum.

 

I did have another pair sitting on eggs but, the other morning, I came in to find their eggs broken on the floor of the cage. They were in a cage on their own, with a breeding box, so I'm not really sure what happened. It looked like they tossed the eggs out. Have returned those budgies to the main cage, with no nesting boxes, to stop them breeding again so soon.

 

Am now just left with two breeding budgies, Audrey and Tank, so I won't be able to foster any of their eggs out unfortunately.

 

By the way, any ideas what colourings might result from the offspring of these two? Just curious as the hen and cock are both so different.

 

I think maybe I'm worrying more than I should as, at the moment, I'm also looking after a cockatiel with a respiratory illness (that someone else couldn't take care of anymore) and my italian greyhound dog fractured his leg late last week, so I'm busy carrying him about with me everywhere as well.

 

Hopefully the hen will be okay. I'll keep you posted.

doesn't sound too good for some of your pets at the moment, hopefully all get better soon! :)

 

Sometimes pairs will throw the eggs out and start again, you probably could have let them try again. Usually 2 clutches in a row is okay, depending on how many eggs/babies from those 2 clutches could possible allow for a third. Three clutches should be your max, 2 is probably the better amount you allow each season.

 

Your hen is a spangle and your male is a normal green. Unless your male is split blue you will be getting greens.

50% of the greens will be spangles and the other 50% will be normals.

This is what will happen if none of the birds are split for any mutation. You may get some surprises if they are split to anything.

 

Good luck

 

Also your female is an opaline, meaning your male babies will be split to opaline. Unless your male is split to opaline you won't be getting any visual opalines.

  • Author

Thank you for that :)

 

Yes, some of my pets are not doing so great, but hopefully it's just temporary. The cockatiel spends all day whistling 'oh my darling Clementine' to my dog, who loves it, and sits by the cage wagging his tail. It's good that the two of them are keeping each other company with their joint woes.

 

Green budgies would be great. Will be interesting to see what I end up with, though am really just hoping for any at this point, given that Audrey is a first time Mum.

 

I stopped my other budgies from breeding a second time as I didn't really want more budgies right now, given that the other female has 9 eggs currently. I was worried I'd end up with some sort of 'baby budgie explosion', and then I wouldn't be able to bear to part with any of them!

 

By the way, does anyone know if there a post somewhere on this website, or any good reading, which gives a description on pairings and possible colour outcomes?

  • Author

Thought I'd give an update. Audrey is now sitting on just 1 egg. Found all the other eggs broken this morning in her nest. It didn't look like any of them were fertile. Given there was only Audrey and Tank in the cage, I'm not sure how the eggs got broken.

 

The one egg that was left had a small crack it in, which I fixed with a tiny piece of tape, and now she is back sitting on it. I have no idea if that egg will even still hatch, given that it was damaged.

 

Should I leave her to sit on this one egg or remove it, give them a break, and let them try again another time?

 

Clearly my budgies are not doing well at this breeding thing, though it was their first time, so maybe that was the issue?

Sorry to hear about Audrey and Tank. It is always a bit of a shock to find the eggs broken in a clutch.

In my experience, a cracked egg won't hatch. Assuming it is fertile (which it probably isn't because all the others weren't), if an egg is damaged the chick will usually die in the egg. You could try candling the egg to check for fertility. (google candle budgie egg) You would be looking for red glow or movement.

If she is looking a bit ragged, then maybe you could give her a break - particularly after laying nine eggs. Although if it was her first clutch, you could leave her to try for a 2nd. Once you remove the egg, she will probably resume laying in a week or so. If the 2nd clutch is infertile, I would definitely rest her. I have had hens lay infertile clutches before and after the 2nd or 3rd clutch manage to produce offspring. I usually try to breed at least two pairs at the same time, so that if one has a lot of eggs and another has infertile eggs, I can foster.

  • Author

Thank you :)

 

I have taken the remaining egg away as I couldn't see any red glow, or evidence of fertility, after candling the egg a few times over the last two days.

 

I have now separated the budgies into two large flights, one for males and one for females, to give the budgies a break for a while. I'll leave the budgies for a few months at least before thinking about possibly letting them breed again. I want to make sure they're really ready next time.

 

On the plus side, both Audrey and Tank seem quite happy in their respective cages and Audrey is eating on her own again and looking healthier already :)

Glad to hear that you have it all sorted. All the best with your future breeding.

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