Dave_McMinn

I do my best

If only SHE was a BLUE FULL BODY COLOURED GREYWING........PIED she would be perfect - :rofl::rofl:

It looks like she might be getting some down feathers so that is a good sign

Colony breeding might be your problem, as Kaz has said above

that is what you want - full blue body colour!!!

Well done!!!!!!!!!

I had paired some normal cocks to normal hens. I did not know that the cocks were split opaline, and I have been a little unlucky. For my opaline cocks, most were spangles paired to spangles or DF spangles, and I seem to have somewhere between a 33% and a 40% success rate in achieving DF spangles, so that is good. Opaline is good for size I am told, so that is okay in that sense. When I put the new pairs down, you are guaranteed pics. As you can see by my posts in this thread, I quite like taking the occassional snapshot.

I am so bad at sexing chicks. At first I thought Kiwi's remaining chick was a little boy as he was not opaline, but then I looked yesterday I think it is a little girl. Just because Dad is split opaline, it does not mean that all the chicks will be girls does it? I am so confused - LOL. Looks like it is opaline city. I think that all the chicks from my green and greygreen pair are going to be opaline. They all have that white fluff down look. It is only a matter of days until all of the DF widows chicks in all nestboxes have fledged. One little spangle to go. I am going to move some of them into the kindy cage today or tomorrow, and that means that the spangles and pieds will go into the aviary. They will enjoy the extra room to fly. Let me tell you - the others I moved in the other week are loving it. They are zooming everywhere. Baby budgies - show budgies anyway - are a lot like puppies - all this energy, that never seems to run out. I have a greygreen hen who is only young but she seems determined to eat her eggs (in all fairness, she loves the nestbox, layed one egg off a perch, and has layed on egg in the nestbox, that i know of - and ate that one). I was thinking that I might give her some fake eggs to sit on, try to eat, realise that she cannot eat them, and then hopefully she will not try to eat the new ones. Thoughts? My albino hen in with Bruticus got an egg stuck to her chect the other day. At first I was worried as it had feathers all over it, and as I was trying to catch her it came loose. I grabbed her and she was upside. She bites real hard. She bit into my wrist, into that soft skin on your inner arm. Man, that hurt. Anyway, she is all good now, sitting on her 5 eggs. Earl looks to be doing okay in regards to feeding his two remaining chicks. He is going to get a rest soon, as are Twtich and Kiwi, before they all return to the aviary. Almost time for a new round of cocks and hens int he breeding room.

Has she bred before?

Yes, but by the end of the week, you willl be able to afford to do what you want to it. Damn job providing income but taking up my leisure time!!!!!!! :angel::rofl::sad::rofl::sad::rofl::sad:

Welcome to the forum. I look forward to seeing your pics

Sorry to hear this. Birds are so good at masking their illness that by the time we see they are sick, it is too late.

I think Splat expresses a thought that a lot fo us have - pure jealousy :angel: Very impressive Kaz. It is really coming along.

It always amazes me that people who know nothing about budiges think this type of behaviour with budgies makes them gay. It is simply communication. I suppose if these people saw the way that ants communicate with all their touching, they would simply call every ant a victim of bullying or sexual harassment :angel: and every dog that sniffs abother dogs butt is simply a freak with a fetish :sad:

All looks good with this lot. earlier today I euthanised one of my chicks because of a leg deformity. She too had a very long body, but the hips looked to be a real problem.

It is hard deciding what to cull. i am going to do that myself in the next few weeks. Simple rule as i understand it is don't do anything that is going to harm yourself, long term.

I am sorry to hear about the troubles you are having. I really do feel your pain.

Had to make a tough decision, and I did it. Kiwi's youngest had severly deformed legs. They were not just splayed, her hips were all out of whack and there is no way she could perch normally in the future. Even with her legs in a splint, they stuck out behind her. She was never going to recover so I ended her life. Very sad to have to do that, but it is for the best.

Siblings look like they have generally grown their feathers back well

Glad to hear that things are going well. I loved the cock bird in the pair you want to breed. A electric blue cobalt YF1 spangle with dark spangle markings. Brilliantly coloured bird.

Looking good Kaz. Blue Greywings are definitely the way to go

Thanks for the options everyone. My thinking is much like GB's here. Whilst I would prefer he ring on, if it does not have it, it just means I do not show the bird. This is not the biggest concern for me as I am not into showing as much as I am in producing the best birds. Sounds kind of silly, but that is the way I think.

Not a good day in the breeding room. The greygreen hen that had layed one egg off the perch then finally layed an egg in the nestbox appears to have eaten the egg she layed in the nestbox. She is a first time mother, so hopefully it spooked her and she will be fine after that. She spends a lot of time in the nestbox, getting it ready, so i think she wants to breed. The youngest of Twitch and Kiwi's little pieds, the little hen, has badly splayed legs, not jsut played, but they appear to be very twisted. I have given her a drop of calcivet to the beak, and using a sponge, pinned her legs in the right position. I cut as much off the sponge as possible, but I fear it is still too heavy for her, as she has her legs out the back. I do not think she can stand properly. I am going to reassess in the morning, and I may move to gauze and tape, we will see. Poor little thing. It feel it is more a hip problem and I am not sure what can be done there. Strange that young have been perfect, but not the last. Strange. My dark Green cock and his GreyGreen hen have youngsters. I rung them all. The last 2 have managed to slip their rings off, and I think they are not too big to get rings back on. I am going to try the youngest in the morning, after oiling the leg up, but they may become great stock birds, never to be shown. Tragedy really. Same thing happened with Dumb and Kestral's middle spangle. He is unrung. I need to be more attentive to ensuring they "still: have rings on. I check their beaks, bums, nestboxes, parents, but not their rings. My fault. Live and learn I suppose. Not a massive dilemma, but a little annoying. The little grey Opaline cock keeps jumping out of the nestbox, and I find him huddled in a corner. I am going to have to put a flat tray in the corner and fill it with nesting material and seed. Hopefully Earl will not get possessive over this like he did with the ice cream container.

How old are the babies? If they are getting close to the age where they will be coming out of the nestbox, she may be looking to breed again. Some mothers do nto worry about older young in the nestbox, some try to kill their previous young as they see them as "in the way".

Sometimes hens skip days when they are laying. I suppose that if she missed multiple days it may have been that her body had a little glitch, and she did not produce an egg on that day. Most things run like clockwork, but even the best watch can skip a beat or two. I do look forward to seeing any pics you take.