Finnie

Hi Andrew, welcome! As I am in the U.S., I have no idea when the best time for finding baby budgies is over in your part of the world. I think I've read that show breeders often have a "season", when most of them find is the best time to breed their birds. And from what people on here have said, they prefer to stay away from breeding during the really hot summer months. But over here where I am, it seems that most bird fanciers house their birds indoors, so we have the ability to breed year round. I've also had local bird breeders tell me that their birds just seem to naturally go into condition in the fall, and based on the higher volume of ads I see in the fall, I would say that is a common experience. (Here in the U.S.) I know for myself, with my kids off school in the summer, I usually have to put bird activities on the back burner, so fall is when it's most convenient for me to start a round of breeding. And my birds are very cooperative with whenever I put them down to breed. They are the year round breeding type, I guess.

Lol, I think I'd ask before I pinched anything from the police station!!

Before I start, just a short commercial plug for making your thread titles descriptive and specific. I just did a search, because I know this topic has been discussed before. But do you realize how difficult it is to weed through your search results if all the threads are titled "I have a problem" or "I need help"? Specific information in the title of your thread can really help future people know what your post is actually about. Thanks guys. So on to my situation. I have a pair that I had really high hopes for. A few months back they laid a huge clutch of infertile eggs. So I removed the box to give the hen a rest and to allow them more time to bond, hoping that the next round would be fertile. The hen has turned into a chronic layer, and has laid quite a few eggs during this "rest" period, all of which I've thrown away. She is now getting a brown cere, so I was just about ready to give them their box back, when the cock died. It has ocurred to me that there is a slight chance that the eggs she has been laying are actually fertile, so now I would like to give her the opportunity keep laying and sit on the new ones so I can find out. I know she can do this on her own if necessary, but I'm wondering if she would have a better chance for success if I just introduce a new cock right now, mark the eggs, and hope I can tell which chicks came from which father. (Assuming she even mates with the new cock.) Another option would be to give her a box and wait to introduce the new cock only if I need to. But I figure that risks losing any eggs she might be sitting on. I feel like I have to decide whether to let her go it alone or not right now, and not change my mind later. I don't have any other pairs with boxes right now. I'm about to set up a few, but this hen will have quite a head start on the others, so I don't know whether fostering down the line will be an option or not. So, do I let her go it alone, or do I give her a new mate and mark the eggs? What do you guys think?

Robyn, this thread came up while I was doing a search. Did this hen of yours stay on her original eggs after you introduced the new cock? Kaz' answer above says some will and some won't, so I was wondering if yours did.

It kind of looks to me like she has scaley face.

Well here is your answer, Birdlove, came right up on the google search for "star fruit toxicity". Oxalic acid is known to be in irritant at least, if nothing else. I would say keep Allen away from it. http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/poison/starfruit/

Yeah, time is the crucial thing, so if you don't have it, you are right that he won't become tame. You can put an ad on here in the for sale section. Maybe your vet's office will let you put up a sign. People seeing it in a vet's office would be a good base to work from.

Eve! That's awesome- thank you for the link. It's what I've been looking for for myself, due to my Seasonal Affective Disorder. Kind of pricey, but some of the ones I've been checking into, I'm not sure if they emit the proper UV waves. I've gotten some from this website. They say "full spectrum", but since they don't mention UV anywhere, it makes me suspicious that they might not be "true" full spec. http://www.lightbulbsdirect.com/page/001/CTGY/FLFSSpiral5500K

I think it probably would, until they adjust to the new water. I know that traveling with my dogs, different water can affect them for a little while.

I'm sorry no one else seems to be coming and mentioning whether they ever get this on their hens. If it's something that just comes and goes at breeding, but doesn't bother her otherwise, maybe she will be fine.

Those pictures are nice! Up at the top, you had said the mother of the cinnamon chicks was a lutino, but I had a suspicion she was a lacewing, so that's why I wanted to see pictures of her. She is nice. I think lacewings must be more common over there in Australia than they are here in the U.S.. I only know of one breeder who has them. (Of course, I'm sure others do too, but I haven't run across them.) I'm starting to work on breeding some in my pet lines.

How are they doing after all this time?

Please be aware that there is a HUGE distinction between "animal rights" and animal "welfare'. Animal welfare is important. But Animal RIGHTS groups want to take away all of our human rights to own or do anything at all with any animals. They are a dangerous group that wants to eliminate all pets and food animals. Be careful which ones you donate to. Also, if any money was given to the pet stores from which these birds are "rescued" from, then the pet store owner has been duly rewarded and encouraged to continue offering sick birds for sale, since they obviously sell well. Harrass these stores, annoy them, educate them, or badger them into better care, but do NOT support them with cash and open up a spot for their next sick victim. We need the market for sick birds to dry up so the stores, and in turn the breeders, will stop having incentive to continue to produce them. When you buy one of these birds, and "rescue" it, you doom even more birds who will follow in it's path to take its place. (I commend you guys for doing what you can to solve the problem. )

The chick is also opaline. Welcome to the forum! If you would like to know what this chick can produce with your yellow face cock, give us photos of him, and also of his parents if you have them. Photos of the parents of this chick would help, too. (Besides, we love photos on here! )

My husband is getting me this book for Christmas!!

It could be from the stress of moving, or it could be some other more serious issue. That's what's nice about quarantine. You can make sure it clears up without worrying that they might have already infected your other birds. And if they are stressed from moving, this gives them a chance to get over that before they meet their new flock. If there are no other symptoms, I would watch and see if their poops go back to normal, once they seem settled and eating properly. Poops tend to get wet if they stop eating for a day or two. But if it continues, then you would want to look at other causes, like worms or protozoal infections. Some people have a routine they go through of preventative medication during quarantine, and some just treat as needed. If you search quarantine, there will probalby be threads about it.

Yeah, we don't hate you.

okay BJ, I want to know, so I can link it to my website for my customers. I always tell them they can teach their birds tricks, but that I don't know how to do it myself. I tell them to come on here and look for your articles.

Hi Rashu, Is this your first clutch? How exciting!! The chicks are cute the way you have them lined up there. You won't get any normal wing bars with these parents. All of the chicks will be some sort of greywing. And that's probably why you have the white down. I get a lot of white down on my greywings, even when they are not opaline. But the dad could still be split to opaline, so if you do get any opaline chicks, they will be hens.

If it is common for the skin to swell in a yellow lump due to egg laying and incubating, then hopefully breeders with more birds and more experience will be able to come on here and tell you that they have seen it on their hens. It doesn't sound right to me. Was it an actual avian vet? A yellow lump under the skin on any creature would make me think "pus filled", like a pimple or an abcess.

What good ideas, LeoOlive! I've always wanted to get one of those stainless steel "kabob" holders they sell, but they are really overpriced, so I haven't gotten one. I never thought of using wooden skewers. I have a ton of them sitting in my drawer that I don't use.

I do believe in "unsettling" birds to prevent laying. It doesn't always work, but if it can prevent her from becoming a chronic egg layer, then it is healthier for her growing body and it is worth a try. (Mind you, sometimes it can't be prevented anyway.) Extra dark time at night is good. It can make a difference in her mood, if she is feeling crabby and hormonal. You can also remove the paper from the bottom of the cage to take away her nesting site and materials. Removing any feed dishes that she could lay in might help. And rearranging all of her perches and toys can make her feel a little less sure that her environment is right for raising chicks. All of these ideas are perfectly fine for normal care of budgies anyway, so they can't hurt, and they might help. And like Nerwen said, the signs you describe don't necessarily mean that she will start laying. It's normal for budgies to feed each other and mate all the time. And all hens chew stuff. Does she have enough stuff hanging up higher in her cage that can satisfy her urge to destroy things?

Hm, I guess you could be right. But his yellow seems so pale. A lot of my yf2s feather up immediately to the seafoam color, but it is true that when they are this young, the seafoam still has a more bluish tint to it. And photos often don't show a birds true color. So I guess he could be green series, at that.