**KAZ**

No biggie

Incorrect Jetsbudgies. 18-21 days only applies from point of incubation not point of laying. Hens usually incubate once they have 3-4 eggs so thats another 5-7 days into the egglaying. You cant count the 18-21 days till you know when the hen began to incubate in earnest.

Good to hear about Cheeky Bren. I look forward to your photos. Taylor...to the left of every post is the persons details...like if it says they have made 18 or so posts....it means they arent new and dont need a welcome like they are new Welcome back is fine for anyone who is returning

Thankyou for the clarification

try posting clear cere photos using macro setting on the camera, no flash and normal light conditions.

If it was green those pin feathers would be yellow. They are white. Hey Shazz..........chick 3 and 4 seem to have plum eyes / Is that correct ?

Stop with the clearwing stuff guys ??!! Just because a budgie has no or little markings on the wings does not make it a clearwing anything Dominant pied it is for sure. It has very light markings on the wings and they appear to be spangle greywing markings.........more photos to confirm please as one far away photo isnt enough in this case. I suggest at this stage maybe a greywing spangle dominant pied BUT better and closer photos needed before I make that definite.

If a budgie was being offered a wide varied diet including fruits and vegies as well as a top seed blend there should be no reason to use a multivitamin in a bottle.

They will come into breeding condition with all things come together.......health, not moulting, good diet, seasonal changes etc. It isnt so much a time thing, but its a condition or state of health thing.

I agree.......they arent in breeding condition......................the ceres tell the story

Please dont put all your faith in a multivitamin with a smidge of calcium.

What time of year ? It all depends on local conditions and I dont live where you do. Ask around, in particular a budgie club....ask them when the best breeding time is, or ask here if anyones in your area.

I guess if she lays eggs with no male that could be considered chronic egglaying. The fact she now has a male in with her will provoke her to laying again. Generally no nestboxes means no eggs, but in her case she may still lay anyway.

Your hen has already shown she will lay eggs with or without a male and with or without a nestbox. So expect eggs as per usual as she has this habit. Only difference is the eggs may be fertile due to the male. Are you aware that a period of quarantine is essential when you first introduce another bird......that at least 30 days in another cage in another room in another airspace. Too many diseases are carried these days and the stresses bring them out. If he's new, he shouldnt be in the cage with her. As she has a habit of CHRONIC EGGLAYING then he shouldnt be in her cage either on a constant basis. All these eggs will be depleting her calcium levels and lead to egg binding at some point.

Thank you so much Kaz. All the websites I looked at said that there may be a respiratory problem, but that didn't seem right to me, but thanks for that. I am new to breeding so how should I know when they ARE in breeding condition and how long should they take as I want to breed at the end of this year, OCTOBER-DECEMBER. Respiratory issue would be staining on the feathers above each nostril on the cere............nothing to do with colour of cere. As far as breeding condition goes.....correct colour for a female is light to medium brown. Dark and crusty is considered past breeding condition and at the stage where the dark brown crusty part peels off to reveal the white blue underneath of a female not in breeding condition. Male is they have a blue cere......colour blue is to be a full on bright blue, not a washed out blue. If you choose to breed through hot weather you will have to ensure they are somewhere that can be cooled or run aircoolers in a breeding room for them.

Not necessarily ..........seems to be a whole lot of white on that cere.........if so.......female. If not male. How about a better clearer closer cere shot. PS did you mean to mis spell your user name ........if so let me know and I will change it for you. Currently pronounced bug-de-bra

You cant be breeding without a medicine cabinet of essentials........and calcivet is an essential.......amongst other things.

Hi and welcome You have posted. Choose the appropriate forum heading for any topic you choose to raise and post there Cheers kaz Co Admin

This is NORMAL for any hen not currently in breeding condition.

Kaz, do I remember reading you can put a little bit of vaseline around the vent too? You may have Stace..........BUT I wont put vaseline anywhere near my birds. Remember they preen their feathers with vaseline tranfered from butt to face to other feathers. Vaseline is a product I wont use.

Not the whole bird.....use some warm water and a kleenex ( tissue ) or cotton balls to clean its butt. During the warm part of the day....dont get it wet heading to night time.

Ivermectin will worm them at the same time. Dirty vent may be the scaly mites in the vent area... they dont just stay at beak area....Beak, face, around eyes, feet and vent. Dirty vent can be also stress due to the mites.

Internal egg layer ? You usually see signs of it in plenty of time. A non productive hen in the box with a distended yellowish lower belly to vent area. Sounds like she was eggbound. Did you feel for an egg ?

This can sometimes be an indicator of lack of calcium so add calcivet to the water or get a few drops down its beak by crop tube.

Nobody is judging you as a bad bird owner, so dont think that for a second. Yes, we pointed out he didnt look at all well in your staged photos, but thats because some of us have a keener eye for noticing these things and the sooner action is taken when its pointed out...the better. I am real sorry your efforts on his behalf werent enough to save him but dont let that influence you getting another budgie in the future. Some budgies go years without needing a vet. You just had the odds stacked against you this time.