Well, I am just running out of ideas now.

 

My budgies are really hormonal right now. I have lessened their daylight hours, which was pretty easy since it gets dark at 4:30 pm now, to about 10 or 11. I change out perches and toys weekly, and replace them either with different ones and/or attach them to different places so the cages never look the same. They have most of the day as out of cage time, and I am somewhat rationing their intake of greenfoods to every other day instead of every day, so maybe they will think food is not plentiful enough to breed. I am even forgoing my love of warmth and am keeping the house cooler than I would like. The problem is not so much they want to mate with the females yet, although they do flirt with them. The problem is that the boys are so bonded to each other, that one of them is getting his head feathers plucked out. I'm guessing out of frustration. The 'pluckee' is now the only male in one of the cages when they are put in them, but I do not know what else to do to curb that particular behavior. Obviously it does nothing for when they are out. I tried leaving them in the cages more than ususal, and they just bicker and bite at each others feet. Tension was too high so I nixed that idea. **sighs.....It is so noisy here...the warbling never stops...** So far none of the males has the hang of actual mating yet, although they occassionally will try. They are usually spurned by the girls, but the females are also beginning to feed perches and toys and sing to each other, and all their ceres are turning oh so very dark brown. There is nothing in or around their cages that could possibly be construed as a nest box, I have checked. This is the time of year two years ago I had this issue with Rainbow and Skittles...what is it about November and cold and rain that makes them go nuts? You would think shorter and colder days would have the opposite effect. Unfortunately, I can do nothing about the rain.

 

Please, suggestions?

I commiserate with you TOTALLY, what have we done to deserve this, we take good care of our budgies, I am stressed out putting my pair in the cooler, dark room with no fly time and the female is STILL sitting on the addled eggs, at least none of the other birds in the living room are screaming to find out where they are.

Rainbow I'm sorry to hear thi The niose must be sending you crazy

I can't think of anything more than what you have done, other than remove the poor little boy. Freckle was losing her head feathers just above her cere from Pie tapping her beak all the time but after sepertation and a molt they grew back in.

Without the one bird they are trying to 'court' they might spread the love around a bit more too

 

I wonder if it's teh fact you have made them lose some weight that has kicked this mood in as well

Oooh, Nerwen, I hadn't thought about that... The fact that they feel better might very well have something to do with it. But I still need to make sure they don't breed. :glare: And crazy is not the word for it, everyone that comes over asks "what's up with your birds??? Are they always like that?" :fear

 

Phoebe, you sound like it's rough at your place too. :hap:

 

 

Does anyone else have a suggestion or two? Please? Unfortunately I can't move any of them to a different room.

Rainbow, I think you have done everything possible, the only other thing is to seperate them, and you can't do that! :fear :glare: :hap:

So Lin, are you saying I am doomed ??

 

They are all molting now too, so in addition to the noise everywhere I look there are feathers. I even saw a feather float out of one of the heat vents ... That was too weird.

I think you have to face the facts that your budgies are highly sexed! What have you done to them

I can't think of anything that you're not already doing. Sounds very noisy and messy at your house at the moment.

I'm wondering where they're getting their kinky ideas from...

Rainbow would it cuase fighting if you let them out at different times so the males can't get to the girls? If the can't interact then there will be no chance at breeding.

I thought of something!!!! For the last few weeks i've been having trouble with Razzo and Gerri wanting to breed. Gerri has been emptying seed cups and laying eggs (stopped now). So what type of seed cups do you use? The cuppy ones that they could sit in?

Yeah, they can sit in some of them, but they don't unless they are eating and trying to make sure no other budgie can eat from that cup. Do you think I should take them out anyway? Or maybe use them as drinkers instead?

 

Nerwen, I thought about splitting them up into boy cages and girl cages, but then Sunny would be with the boys who plucked his head feathers. What do you think about shortening their daylight hours even further?

Edited November 17, 200519 yr by Rainbow

ohh poor sunny I can solve that problem send him over to me

 

Well it can't hurt to try with the lgiht, if it doesn't work then your no werse off if it does then you know for next time

You want 4 males instead of just one? I have a lovely violet skyblue that will add lovely music to your home. It's constant too, so you can always enjoy it at any time...LOL.

Rainbow, what about fattening them up so they are not so frisky :bluebudgie:

Daz, I'm still getting a few of them down to normal weights!! :

 

They are all still very noisy, the hens are like little buzzsaws on all wooden toys, and the boys are constantly singing and feeding anything in sight, not only other birds but toys and the cage bars. But for once, the twins are getting along with each other...Yay! but they bite at the toes of any other bird that comes close...Boo! I s'pose you have to take the good with the bad. One step forward, two steps back, something like that... :ausb: At least no actual mating that I've seen anyway.

 

I'm still working on it.