Rainbow

nlpmaster1974, I have a hard time finding books that deal specifically with breeding. I have two general budgie books that have sections on breeding but nothing that is only about breeding. They are "The Complete Book of Parakeet Care" and "The Parakeet Handbook". They are published by Barrons, and have the most recent publication dates. What I know, I know mostly from raising them in my living room, and watching over them like a mother hen. If you are looking for reading material, I would try to find the one hath recommends, as he knows a great deal more about it.

I know you can't watch the birds 24/7, even though I'd like to - flock dynamics are so interesting - and I know these things happen. I did not mean to imply in my earlier post there was something wrong with it - but from the way the injuries were presented, I'm sure you agree that veterinary attention was necessary. I sincerely hope he was able to get his birds taken care of, and that their injuries weren't too severe. One question though - if you know there is an agressive bird in your aviary or cage, and that is how you breed (colony-syle) instead of using individual breeding cages, aren't the signs there way before a bird is injured or dies that signal there could be trouble? blvlguy had an odd bird in the breeding cage, which I think contributed to his troubles. Knowing flock dynamics as I do, I'm pretty sure there were signs all his birds weren't getting along. I don't think Budgies just all of a sudden decide to go on a killing spree. But having never bred birds in a colony situation or with an odd number of birds in the same cage, I do not know from experience. (I bow to those that do.) Raging hormones do change behavior. I know that when mine have disagreements, they are quickly taken care of between the birds and none of them have ever attacked each other enough to cause injury. They are more vocal than anything. Am I just lucky in that respect? Were you able to move your agressive bird before any more problems occurred?

Julie, I think you have an exhibition budgie. Yours is one big budgie! I don't think Birdy Boo's grey budgie was that type.

Are you sure you are ready to breed budgerigars??? I only question you because you seem to be new to budgerigar-keeping. The type of nest box necessary is a very basic question. Breeding parrots is not like breeding any other animal - there is so much more you need to know to ensure the health and safety of your birds. If you would like more information before you start, please ask on the forum or pm me. If I have assumed wrong, forgive me. But please think quite a bit about breeding your budgies. There are a lot of unwanted birds out there. I didn't find homes for my baby birds, and ended up keeping all of them. I was lucky enough to be in a position to do that, but not everyone can. Do you have the space and resources to do that if necessary? Vet bills for multiple birds can be prohibitive, as any of the breeders on this site can attest to. And if you can find homes for them, are you certain they are good ones? If you are going to allow these babies to come into the world, you have a responsibility to ensure they go to someone who can give them the best possible care, and who will love and cherish them. You need to make sure they know how much work goes with owning a parrot. It takes a special kind of person to be able to give parrots the type of care they need to thrive and be happy. I'm sure you've figured out that they require much more time and effort than dogs or cats, and their diet requires more than opening a bag of birdseed. That being said ( and I hope I did not offend you - that was not my intention at all), I'm guessing you cannot buy nest boxes in pet stores or online where you live? My box was 9 1/2 " long x 6 1/2 " wide x 6 1/2" tall. Both ends would slide up, but I never used that feature. The top was hinged and would open for nest box inspection and cleaning. The entry hole was 1 1/2" diagonal, and was on the left hand side of the front and had a small perch on the outside. My hen laid her eggs on the end opposite from the entry way. It did not have a concave, and my birds refused any type of bedding, so they laid the eggs on the bare wood. They did not roll around, even though the box was not entirely flat once it was hung. The box should be made out of wood, and it doesn't need to be very thick, mine was only 1/2" thick.

Oh, I'm so sorry about your bird...I know how you must feel. He was a very pretty grey. It seems the different mutations may be genetically predisposed to a shorter lifespan. I found that out with Rainbow. I've never had experience with only one bird raising chicks, but I will tell you what I think. Maybe it will help. Your hen will still be able to raise the chicks by herself, but I would help her out some by putting millet in the nest box, and if she will let you feed her while she's in it, give her some green food by hand so she doesn't have to leave as often. If she is not that tame, or if she is very protective of her eggs and it stresses her out too much if you do that, it's a very good idea to move her food dishes closer to the nest box opening. I think she would be more inclined to feed herself properly if she doesn't have to go as far for food. If you still don't think she's eating enough, if the box is large enough you may have to dump some seed in a corner for her. It will work best if there is no bedding in the nest box for that option. If you have wood shavings in there, you will have to clear a bare spot so she knows there is food in there. You will need to check on the babies daily, and make sure their crops are staying full. Unfortunately, I think you will have to keep a closer watch than if there were two parents. It's a good thing you have hand-fed before. Hopefully, you won't have to hand-feed them at all, but especially not during the first week. Baby budgies are fed on their backs then - the only species of hookbill to do this, I think - and I can't imagine how difficult it would be to do that and not aspirate them. Have any of the eggs hatched yet at all? I used to check on mine at least two, sometimes more, times daily when they were on eggs.

Julie, I think you are correct. Mine have a grate in the bottom, so there is no way to escape when the tray is out. A very nice blueprint...will the water be misted from the top for bathing, or will you have a small fountain of sorts? Or will it be used for drinking? What will you use to keep it fresh?

I guess not. I certainly hope he took the birds to the vet though.

CagesByDesign sends me catalogs all the time. They look very nice, but are also very expensive. The indoor aviary in your link # 2 was nice. I think I would prefer natural ventilation on all sides instead of only on the top though. I've thought of an indoor aviary for a long time, my only problem is where to put it....

I didn't handle mine until they were feathered (about three weeks old).

All those pictures are fantastic! He is a right pretty bird. And I could use an indoor aviary myself...but I really don't have anywhere I could put one and have it look right. I'm all for getting rid of some furniture to make room, but no one else here will go for that so I make do with cages.

Welcome to the forums! I think they're great too. It's a little early to put the nest box up if you want to wait until March. It will not take them long to get used to it. I hope they are at least 18 months old when you breed them, I read somewhere their (pelvic) bones are not fully developed and fused until then, as well as being more emotionally ready and not as likely to become egg-bound. Most people here advise waiting at least until they are over a year old. I also do not advise giving them grit. Grit is for birds that do not hull their seeds and need a way to grind the outer part of the seed off to get at the nutritional inside. My birds were together for 2-2 1/2 years before they began to breed. They remained tame during the breeding cycle, and are still that way a year later. I have all the babies too, and they all live very happily in my living room. If they are tame now, I don't see why they wouldn't remain so. A good seed/pellet mix with plenty of fresh veggies and some fruit will be good for them. Mine greatly increased their intake of fresh foods during the breeding cycle. I fed them veggies two or three times a day, as much as they would eat. The babies were raised on lots of fresh food, and ate it willingly as soon as they left the nest box. The cuttlebone and calcium blocks are good to have. They will probably eat more of them once they get into breeding condition. I would read up as much as you can on breeding budgies before you put the nest box in. Hope I've helped some. If you have any more specific questions, please ask!

You can take away the box if you don't want babies. She may still lay another egg or two on the bottom of the cage, but probably will not pay much attention to them.

Yes, that would be good. So would carrot, green and red peppers, baby spinach, dark lettuces, carrot tops, broccoli, grapes, egg food. Access to a cuttlebone too. Try to have more nest boxes up than pairs since you are breeding in an aviary situation. Do they have toys?

Yeah, I know. Eastern time too, huh? Morning's going to get here way too soon... Keep us posted on the eggs. She will lay one every other day until she is satisfied with the clutch size.

Sometimes the hen will not begin to sit tightly on the eggs until the second one has been laid. That is normal. I'd lay off the treat sticks for a while, (they're usually full of sugar calories), and stick to more nutritious fare. The carrot is good, she will probably like baby spinach leaves, broccoli, kale, carrot tops, maybe try green and red pepper as well as a dark colorful lettuce like red romaine or red-leaf. While they were breeding and raising young, any vegetable was preferred over seed, believe it or not. The babies were raised on vegetables, LOL. Make sure she has access to a cuttlebone too. It's exciting, isn't it?

Did you get a budgie box? Mine was about 9 1/2 " long x 6 1/2 " wide x 8 " tall with about a 1 1/2 " diagonal hole and a flat bottom (no concave). I think that's about the average size you get in pet stores. Make sure you offer them LOTS of veggies and a cuttlebone. I found mine ate tons more fresh food when on eggs and feeding young than usual. And if you've never bred budgies before, read tons of stuff about it so you will be prepared for whatever happens. They will be so precious!

You can just look at the crop to see if the baby is full or not. If you haven't done so already, I would suggest some reading up on baby budgies. Here is the address of a site I found with some pictures of babies at different stages of development: http://w1.822.telia.com/~u82203160/english/breeding.htm I'm sure you can find quite a few as well. If you have any questions about anything you read, you can ask me about it.

If are really sure you want the responsibility of baby birds, you can move her and the **** to a different cage with a nest box. If not, just don't put one up, and the eggs will usually be ignored if they are laid on the floor of the cage.

:bluebudgie: Um, I don't think so. I think it would be better to add more fresh veggies instead. epiphany, are your birds indoors or outdoors?

Well, I know a greywing is a 50% diluted form of the normal, so I think one of the parents must be a normal (ie-normal black wings). I would think you can probably get them if both parents are greywings also, but that's just a guess. I know my greywings came from a whitewing and a pied (some white flights, some normal flights). I will look through some of the stuff I have on genetics and see what I come up with as far as the body colors and let you know. Cool question!

Sounds pretty normal to me. Your hen will leave the box for a minute or two a few times a day to defacate (she should refuse to use the box as a bathroom) and get a little drink. The **** may try to chase her back in, but that is normal too. He may or may not be allowed in with her, that decision is apparently up to the hen.

Mine had 7 the first clutch too. She will stop when she has reached what she thinks is the proper clutch size. Each bird is different. If she is a first time parent, or the **** is inexperienced, they may not all hatch anyway. I would just write down the dates each egg is laid, and about 24 or 25 days after the LAST one was laid, take out any unhatched eggs. I never candled any of mine, if they hatched they hatched. Of course, if any get broken or start to turn a leaden grey color, take those out sooner. You don't need to check them to see if they are fertile if you don't want to.

Hi belco, and welcome to the forums. Your birds look nice - how many to you typically have at a time? Do your budgies torment the cockatiel? I never had a problem with feces getting stuck to the babies feet...the feces always dried quickly and weren't that wet until the birds were almost ready to leave the nest box. I think more frequent cleaning would be advised for next time. That should help.

Hairspray or any aerosol can kill your budgie. This includes room fresheners. So can scented candles, bug sprays, and heated teflon.

Thanks everyone for the support and good wishes. We think he has a kidney tumor, but he is on some meds that seem to be making him feel a little better, even though he still can't use his leg. I'm not sure how long I will have him, but he is in good spirits and still is holding his own when I let all the birds out together. As long as he is happy, so am I.