Is it possible that a hen doesn't like any cock and just doesn't want to breed?

 

I have been following step by step the correct breeding faq. I have separated my hen as her cere has turned medium brown placing her into a breeding cage. After 3days I have added my only 2cocks of age, both cocks try to go near her but she just pecks them away. She doesn't seem to be interested in either cock or the nest box.

 

So back to my question is it possible that she just isn't interested in breeding?

 

It has now been 7days with both cocks. She is still not showing any signs of interest in either cock.

 

Thanks heaps

Kaitlyn

Hi There is a possibility your hen isn't yet in breeding condition. The cere colour is only an indicator of condition.

 

Not a dead cert. I suggest you remove one of the cocks & the nest box. & allow the remaining pair to get acquainted

 

for about a week. Menage Aux Trois . If that's the right spelling will never work out ,except in exceptional circumstances

 

Yours B.J.

 

Is it possible that a hen doesn't like any cock and just doesn't want to breed?

 

I have been following step by step the correct breeding faq. I have separated my hen as her cere has turned medium brown placing her into a breeding cage. After 3days I have added my only 2cocks of age, both cocks try to go near her but she just pecks them away. She doesn't seem to be interested in either cock or the nest box.

 

So back to my question is it possible that she just isn't interested in breeding?

 

It has now been 7days with both cocks. She is still not showing any signs of interest in either cock.

 

Thanks heaps

Kaitlyn

 

I'm quite sure the FAQ never says anywhere to put two cocks with a hen in a breeding cage! You are asking for a big fight that way. I would take one of the cocks out right away. (If she doesn't seem to have a preferred one, then I don't think it matters which one you take and which one you leave.)

 

I would also close up the door to the nest box, so she can see into it, but not go into it. Then you need to wait for her and the cock to make friends and court. Usually with mine that happens instantly, and I see mating within the first five minutes. But you have probably thrown them off by putting in two cocks. And sometimes like you have guessed, the hen just isn't ready, and it will take a while. (Until she is ready, she will not allow any advances.)

 

 

Since her cere was already medium brown when you started this, she may be past optimal breeding condition. You might have to wait for her to go out of condion and then back in again later. Maybe by then she will have bonded with the mate you choose for her. Is the breeding cage large enough for them to live in that long, or do you need to move them to a larger living space while you are waiting?

 

Waiting is the name of the game, here. They will do things according to their own schedule, not ours. And breeding isn't something to rush into. So while you are doing all this waiting, you can be reading up more about what you will need to know. The more you can learn ahead of time, the more smoothly the whole process will go for you.

Thanks you guys for really quick responses.

 

I will first thing tomorrow morning remove 2nd cock and nest box.

 

I remember reading to put a hen in with a few cocks just for a few days and in that time she should take a liking to a cock. Then you put your pair into a seperate breeding cabinet. I will try to find where I read it tomorrow as my phone won't let me search.

 

Her cere has still not turned dark brown yet, how long are hens usually in condition for?

 

Thanks Kaitlyn

I remember reading to put a hen in with a few cocks just for a few days and in that time she should take a liking to a cock. Then you put your pair into a seperate breeding cabinet.

 

 

Well, that would be the difference, in red. You wouldn't be letting the hen do her choosing in a breeding cage with a nest box. It would be in a large flight cage, in more like a community setting. More diffuse, and less chance for aggression. Although you still probably wouldn't want to leave a lone hen with a bunch of males for more than a few days.

Hi there's a lot of rubbish on the web. Lucky you asked on here. Now you'll get some sensible advice.

 

Yours B.J.

Right, now everything makes alot more sense.

 

When I read your post all I kept thinking was I'm sure that I did it because I read it. I then began to really worry. Thanks again for posting back so quickly, had me quite worried I'd made a horrible mistake. Thankfully no harm done, I obviously need to read a little more carefully.

 

Would you suggest I put pair back in flight or leave them paired in breeding cabinet?

I think based on your description of her cere just starting to turn brown, that you could leave them in the breeding cage for now, and see if it works out. Give them a chance to bond and start mating before you put the box back on. I have heard of hens that are so eager to lay, that they skip the mating part and go right into the box. (Your hen doesnt seem that eager, but then again, if she isn't interested in the male, you don't want her trying to do it all without him! )

 

 

If you see signs of them courting, and you want to give them access to the box, then I'd wait another week to ten days to see if she starts laying. If there is no sign of her being interested at all after that, then I would reevaluate at that time.

 

 

You mentioned before (unless I've gotten you mixed up with a different person) that they refuse to eat vegetables. If you haven't already been beefing up their diet prior to putting them down to breed, you should definitely be putting greens, carrots, egg biscuit mix, soft food, and things like that in their cage, so they can start getting used to them. This is actually something that should be done ahead of time, so that they are already physically fit to breed. And without this type of diet, it could be one reason why you aren't seeing much action.

 

 

An abundance of food, and abundance of water, and longer daylight hours are triggers for birds to go into breeding condition. So trying all those things (and I like to play a CD of water sounds, too) could help, but it may take some time. Which, depending on how long you've owned them, they may need anyway for settling in. That's one reason why I asked how large the breeding cage is. If it's large enough to live in long term, then you can do all this while they are in there, but maybe not add the box until you think they are ready. If it's a small breeding cage, and they don't settle right down to breeding this time around, then yes, move them out to the large cage, and give them several months on an upgraded diet.

I did have issues in the beginning with there diet, but now they are all good. They started eating properly November. So they have had 3months at least of healthy diet.

 

They really enjoy little homemade treats.

 

I got them in September's, so 6months to settle in. I tried breeding them in the beginning, but obviously being told to wait and do research. So for the past few moths I have read heaps on this forum, a few books and joined a budgie club. I thought I was ready, so when my hen started coming into condition. I added the nest box. (keep in mind my hen and cock were already paired off) 2weeks later no sign of bonding and no interest in the nest box so I went looking for answers. That is when I read about multiple cocks, I thought it was worth a try as maybe she doesn't like the cock I have chosen. 1week yesturday and still no signs of bonding or interest in the nest box. Hence my question.

 

As of today her cere is still brown and not yet dark chocolate colour, so I have removed one cock. Leaving original pair. I have also removed nest box. If I see any courting I will put the nest box back, but I think I have stuffed up this time round.

 

Thanks for all your help Finnie and Bj.

 

Kaitlyn

Medium brown cere is the colour you want not dark chocolate. Once it gets too dark and wrinkly its at the stage where it peels off to reveal the white blue underneath of a hen not in condition .

I'm pretty sure I got you mixed up with someone else where I read their breeding birds won't eat any veggies, sorry.

 

 

I don't think you've stuffed up. It sounds like you've been doing all the right things (up to the multiple cocks part) and your pair just hasn't cooperated this time around. That happens. Especially if it's the birds first time breeding. I went through the same thing with the first pairs I put down. They were even courting and everything, but they wouldn't go anywhere near their nest boxes. I tried again a couple of months later, and it all worked out fine. Although I think it helped that I bought an experienced cock and was able to put down three pairs instead of two, and the maiden ones got encouraged by the experienced guy who knew what he was doing. But who knows, maybe that wasn't necessary, and they would have done fine that next time anyway.

 

 

So if your hen hasn't gotten to the darker brown stage yet, then maybe she will work it out now, and if not, she probably will next time.

In advance this comment is not bringing good news.

 

Today my problems really started, the cock I left in with Amy I found yesterday day stuck on his favourite toy upside down (toy has been chucked). As I was out all day I have no idea how long he was there. Thankfully he was still alive, flapping and scared. I helped him free and checked him over. He was a little off balance for a minute and then fluffed up regaining his balance. He had a little bit of a poopy bum, which I cleaned. I watched him for the next few hours, he seemed okay.

 

This morning I checked and he again seemed fine, no poopy bum, balance was 100%.

 

Then at lunch time I went back to check again before I went out and he was face down where his favourite toy used to be. My poor little boy Leonard.

 

It is remarkable the amount of tears I have cried for my poor little friend. He is my first budgie to pass away since I have started and he will always be remembered as a happy little boy who loved his toy :'(

So sorry about your Leonard Kaitlyn, not wishing to sound harsh but if you are trying to breed, why would you need toys in cage?

 

I think that would be a distraction to the pair. I would have the nest box food, water and breeding pair, then let nature do the rest. Good luck with it and let us know how things go.

Just remember for every negative thing that happens, there is a lesson in there somewhere.

Edited March 23, 201213 yr by robyn

Thanks robyn, like I said it was his favourite toy and when he was moved from the flight to the breeding cage he always sat in the corner viewing his toy from a distance if any bird went near it he screached at them.

 

I made a judgement call and gave him his little rope toy. He was then happy.

I'm sorry for your loss. You mentioned it was a rope toy. Did it have loose threads for him to get stuck on? The problem is that even when we check toys over for safety, sometimes we can miss things. I once had a bird get its leg ring caught on an s-hook that a toy was hanging from. It never ocurred to me that the S part was a little bit open, or that the silly bird would have it's leg way at the top where the toy was hooked on. (Yup, they do that, they perch and sleep up there.)

 

 

That bird got injured, but it survived. But it taught me to examine all the hooks and things that my toys hang from, and now I don't use anything that a leg ring can slip over. But there will likely still be the odd shaped toy or gadget that presents a danger that we just don't forsee.

 

 

 

As for toys in the breeding cage, I always put them in. Mostly that's so they will already be in place when the chicks fledge, and then they can play with them. But I also figure it gives the cock something to do when the hen is incubating. It's not like he has to feed her every waking moment. I figure they can get bored. I also make sure each breeding cage has a swing.

 

 

 

But I almost wonder. If your cock was so attached to that toy, maybe that interfered with him and the hen breeding?

 

 

 

Anyway, I'm sorry he died. I hope you are feeling a little better now.