Posted February 11, 201015 yr Hi, Brought the kids four budgies, added two boxes, and wow... both boxes have 10 eggs in them and birds (obviously females) inside. I've never bred budgies before and seeing how we are at the end of a very hot Australian summer, I didn't expect them to breed. Are all 20 going to survive? I don't want to hand feed any baby's so should I just let nature take it's course? I don't know how long the eggs have been in there but the two females have been in the boxes for about a week or so now. Any advice would be appreciated. I have absolutely no idea what to do. I'm guessing whenever the babies come out of the boxes I should remove them to avoid the female laying more eggs? The boxes are at the top of my cage, there is a 4-5 ft drop to the cage floor, will the baby's fall out and die? Should I be feeding them anything special? PS. I think I'm going to need a bigger cage. The one they are in is about 6ft high, by 3 ft wide by 2 ft deep. Edited February 11, 201015 yr by lazynicole
February 11, 201015 yr Author I've been up most of the night and early this morning reading the FAQ section but it's so much to take in. The shock is starting to wear off now and I'm kind of excited to see what happens. But, I will be going back to the Pet Shop I brought the birds from and kicking the salesman square in the **** for telling me birds need a box to sleep in like dogs need a kennel. Lesson learned the hard way. If any baby's survive we plan to keep all of them. When is the best time to remove the boxes so we don't end up with another batch of babies?
February 12, 201015 yr So you were told to add a box for the budgies to sleep in ??!! I guess then you have budgies breeding that are too young really ? Under 12 months ? You wont have ten eggs in each nest hatch....the last ones get so poopy that they dont.....and they may all not be fertile anyway. Read up on candling the eggs to see if they are fertile. When babies come out of the nestbox they glide to the floor and will be fine. Some come out too early and need to be put back Edited February 12, 201015 yr by KAZ
February 12, 201015 yr Author One of the male birds is over 2yrs old. We have owned him that long. As for the other male and two females I have absolutely no idea how old they are. I've read so much of this forum and FAQ my head is starting to spin . LOL. I've just finished reading about candeling, i'm not sure if i'm going to get that right. Going to bring the cage inside today (it's on wheels) and have a good look at the eggs (colour, etc) I'm completely overwhelmed and alittle miffed at the pet shop for misleading me. Should have used common sense and thought the box part through a bit more or done a heap of reading first. <sigh>
February 12, 201015 yr Hope all goes well with your first experience so that you're not scared off later down the track.
February 12, 201015 yr If you want your budgies to sleep in a bed/box of some kind, you can use the bird beds... A triangle bed which can hang from the roof... I have a couple in my adult aviaries and they sleep or destory it... So it also acts as a toy aswell... Otherwise budgies are fine to sleep on the perches... I hope your experiences with budgies get better...
February 13, 201015 yr I made a sling for my cockatiel and he used to sleep in it until we moved him outside. I put a hot water bottle in it too. Yeah, my mum think nesting boxes are for sleeping in. Lately, though, I think she knows a bit more about budgies.
February 13, 201015 yr Budgie don't need anything to sleep in. Anything, even those snuggle huts can be seen as a good place to nest. Also, based on the size of your current cage, you may have problems. Small spaces with multiple nest boxes can mean dead chicks etc...
February 13, 201015 yr Budgie don't need anything to sleep in. Anything, even those snuggle huts can be seen as a good place to nest. I so totally agree here........................... There is no need for anything for budgies to sleep in....its humans putting our preferences over onto budgies. And we all know budgies just see cosy places as nests at one time or another.
February 14, 201015 yr Sounds like you have 2 pairs breeding? If both pairs are settled and not fighting over box's, eggs in both, it sounds o.k. for now. They should be busy feeding their own hen, chicks etc, when they arrive it could work. Just watch your hens don't become over protective of their chicks, box etc. and start a massacre. You may have to divide cage somehow until chicks are out of nest's. If the birds have worked it out and don't fight you might just get away with it. Take out the box's or remove any second round eggs, whichever comes first. Enjoy your babies. Keep reading!! and posting so we know how you go.
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