renee

All that you've established is that Opal and Samuel are not compatible. You cannot say that it is Opal's fault if they don't like each other. Again, if you put her with another cock in condition you may find that they get the jiggying going too .... However, the fact that she is not showing any signs of interest in the nest box is a pretty certain indicator that she is not ready yet. If you have another option, give it a go - Otherwise it's back to the drawing board and crossing off the checklist.

Gotcha Time for you to get Samuel a nice, nubile, new girlfriend!

i was giving them the medications in the water and theyve gone off the soft foods since i started the treatment . i hadnt thought of the fact they would possibly get enough water from the fresh veges and therefore not drink the dosed water I stay away from the greens when I'm treating my birds (treatment usually lasts 3-5 days) although they still get soft food daily. I don't really care whether they go off it or not, it's available fresh so they can eat it if they want. The advice I received this year for the treatment of doxy ahead of the breeding season was: 6 days treatment, 1 day rest with soft food and veggies. However, this is for an extended period- up to 2 months ... It's vital that the birds drink their meds when your doing relatively short-term treatments. When I do the 2 day treatment for parasites I withhold water the previous day. It works a treat!

I like the look of his cere. You know it just could be that she doesn't like him. It happens more often than you could imagine. How about you try putting him with another hen in a holding cage for a 2 day trial and see how the new pair interact? If they get the jiggying going you will have your answer!

The injection does seem like the very last resort .... I would separate her from the other budgies, especially her mate, and bring her indoors so you can monitor and regulate the sunlight hours closely. Hens can and do lay up to 10-14 days after mating. I agree it's important to keep up the Calcium levels via cuttlefish and calcium in the water. Keep her isolated and remove the all the eggs every 7th day. If she is still laying after 21 days, talk to your vet again about options. Or send her to the Pet Shop.

As this seems to be your first experience by all means take her to the vet sooner rather than later. Here's a few tips for when you are more adept at spotting the signs: Pull the vent feathers so you can get a good look Gently feel for the solid mass of the egg IF she is egg bound she will need heat and lubricant to pass the egg Some breeders place the hen in a warm hospital cage and apply olive oil to the vent I run a warm tap and allow the water to wash over her (hen head up, water cascading down). The warm water massages the affected area and helps the hen to pass the egg. After about 15mins of this I gently towel her and place into the hospital cage. I repeat this process every couple of hours until she passes the egg. Good Luck!

The following poem was published in this month's edition of Aviary Chatter, the magazine published by The Rare Bugie Club in WA. BREEDING ROOM BLUES That wretched big cock Has not filled an egg And my very best hen Has broken her leg Sometimes I feel I could pack it all in When the chick in the nest Has a head like a pin I rant and rave At the silly young hen That abandoned her eggs On day nine or ten Now she's sitting again With the husband she chose Her very last chance So we'll see how she goes I've heard about cocks That are vicious at best Attacking their young On leaving the nest When it happened to me I was raucous and loud And uttered some words Of which I'm not proud I've given myself A thorough old scolding For breaking the egg I was carefully holding But for all my tears And the words I have spoken The shell is all crushed And the eggs remain broken A hen that has been A gem in the past Plucked all of her chicks From the first to the last I shared them all out To their rellies and friends In the hope that one day The wounds would all mend One nest's full of chickens Another has none So I divvied them up And everyone won Their crops are all full And the parents content Watching over the brood In the way nature meant The kitten has opened The cage with her paw Knocked over a bottle of water All over the floor While her brother is standing With paws on the table To eye off the cock That is married to Mabel Things hum along And all's going well Then out of the blue Comes the pairing from *** The hen lays her eggs All perfect and white Then smashes the lot In the space of a night I paired up my Lute With a nice Olive hen In the hope that he Would have daughters again But they seem to have Got themselves stuck in a rut With son after son Of cocks, there's a glut Then all of a sudden Things start to go well No chicks that are dying Or dead-in-the-shell The Dad's are all feeding Their wives and their chicks The nests are all full With a five or a six And wouldn't you know it The season is done My rings are all used To the very last one The flights are all full Of the next year's winners And the duds have been sold To buy seed for their dinners!

The straight answer is that when 2 birds are compatible and in breeding condition they will pair up, breed and raise chicks with few or no problems whatsoever. But when you have a pair that won't do any of these things you go through a check list to see if by changing the conditions you can help them along. It's clutching straws sometimes. Occasionally it works, sometimes it doesn't. What color and variety is Samuel? Please post pics so we can see if he's in condition.

okay. Recap: at this end I started with 3 pairs but one of my hens (probably the sister to the horrid Violet ) didn't like Kaz's magnificent Recessive Pied, so he went home. So I was left with 2 pairs: Violet & Spangle laid 4 fertile eggs, first chick died-not fed; second chick quickly transferred to a foster nest and doing well; third chick died - not fed; fourth chick didn't have a chance to hatch as Violet chucked the egg out. Lutino & Olive have laid 8 eggs to date and while I thought 3 were fertile I can only see 1 definitely fertile egg. Maybe something will show through - HUH!

I always knew this Violet was trouble - if she weren't such a good looker I would have happily wrung her neck today. Transferred chickie wasn't fed and she chucked the last remaining fertile egg out. I have moved them both to a 'summer' breeding cage. Maybe they'll go down again. :rofl:

I have observed that all the best cock birds sit in with their hens. Sometimes they help incubate the eggs, always they are on hand to help feed the chicks. The best chicks seem to come out of these nests .... the said chicks don't always go on to develop into amazing birds (it depends on the gene pool) BUT these chicks have the best start in life! :rofl:

3rd chick of Violet & Spangle dead in the nest. Removed well fed chickie and replaced with 2 day old foster chick. Let's hope the last fertile egg hatches AND is fed. :hap:

Mmmmm. I had words with the Violet last night and it seems to have done the trick!

Good news! Chickie has been fed and the Violet has fed the chick I put in with her to learn .... Just as well! :glare:

2nd chick of Violet hen and Spangle cock just hatched. He's chirping loudly but of course hadn't been fed..... Transferred chick to my BEST feeders and popped a 4 day old chick in with the Violet. I'm quietly confident this time. FINGERS CROSSED! :parrot:

Love the budgies BP. If you're judicious with your pairings you could get some lovely babies. :party0011:

I'm with Kaz on this one. I will never feed my budgies pellets because I believe that providing nutrition as close to their wild habitat is best. So plenty of branches, veggies, and good quality seed. Make sure he gets a good work out flying around.

Yes, that's why it is SOOOO important to LOOK AFTER your birds when they're going through a molt. Extra protein in the form of soft food is a must and you can also supplement with Tracemin in the water which contains plenty of amino acids (it does virtually the same job as Moulting Aid). For birds who are struggling, a nice quiet holding cage is a good idea; if it's a severe case like the Oplaine you could even try a bit of extra warmth with a heat lamp for the crucial period.

Isn't Gerald Binks amazing?! I love the way he writes, it's so chatty and informative. Thank you Kaz for posting the article. By the way, wasn't someone transcribing his original articles posted to you what now seems an age ago?????? Or is this one the first of many?

I actually looked into this subject a few months ago. I wanted to know whether I could feed my budgies raw eggs so I called the top breeder in this State and asked my "silly" question. I was told in no uncertain terms that any part of a raw egg was potentially harmful because of the Salmonella risk and how it develops from the inside of the egg (not absorbed from the outside via the porous egg shell). And I was recommended to boil the eggs for 20 mins. Up until very recently I boiled all my eggs for 20 mins, now I've discovered egg powder, so my egg boiling days are over!

No, you need to boil for 20 mins.

The reason you shouldn't give raw eggs or eggshells with membrane to your budgies is due to the risk of Salmonella. Salmonella grows from the inside and should an eggs be infected the membrane will also be compromised.

Yes, that's another alternative.

Another typical day in budgie land.... The Temporary Foster Mum squashed the chicklet to death and the bloody Violet didn't feed the day old chick I had left with her to learn with. I'm considering fostering all remaining 3 chicks now as they hatch. Hey ho.

Very Nice Dave! You DO know that breeding Show Budgies is an addictive past-time, don't you? You'll always be looking for Bigger, Better Birds .... and you'll never be satisfied for long.