ive got a white and blue pied hen that is not brown above the beak atall, i think that means she is out of condition, it that right? will she still breed? and what do u do to get her back in condion again? why do they go like that?

 

any help would be great.

Well, you possibly could get her back in breeding condition, but it is too hot in Australia at the moment to breed. It might be best to wait until next spring, or else you may find you lose babies from the heat

Lin interesting points put forward at tonights Budgie Meeting.

1. Budgies (wild) only breed when there is good food and water.
   
2. Good food and water is always found around the monsoon season
   
3. When is the monsoon season in Australia.........Summer
   

I was talking to a bloke tonight that breeds winners in the nationals. I asked him when he bred his birds because I had just stopped for the season. He said they his bird breed when they want to. Interesting.

I asked how he knew when his birds wanted to breed? He told me he hangs a part of a branch with holes dug into it, in the flights and when he sees a hen constantly going to it he knows that she wishes to breed.

 

He suggests that it is not the heat that causes the trouble but the change in temperature. Cold to hot and back to cold. He has 48 breeding cages but only uses 40. 8 are kept for other reasons. He breeding room is large and is well insulated.

 

Well some people have money

Oh, wouldn't you love to have an insulated bird house! Then you could do like that bloke does. I feel so sorry for my birds in their metal aviaries, poor things. I'm going to buy one of those brush fences, and put it on the roof. Hopefully it will reduce the heat, and when I put the sprinkler on it should stay cooler for longer (one of the tips I picked up on the weekend)

ive got to admit my bird room is insulated and what a differance it makes -5 the other night and the minimum temp in the bird house was 6 degrees

thanks for all the help everyone, i wish i had an insulated bird house but cant aford it. ive only got a small bird house with a tin roof, would that have been the reason for one of of my chicks that dieing today? it was about 3 weeks old the oldest of 4. what does everyone else with a similar setup do to keep it cooler?

 

i was thinking of lifting the roof at the back a little bit and chocking it up a bit, to try to let a bit of a breese through maybee that would work what do you think?

 

what else could i try??

 

ps. why do chicks seem to get to about 3 weeks old before they die if they die from the heat?

I'm home during the day, so I put the sprinkler on top of the aviary and let it run til it cools down. If no one is home at your place, maybe some shadecloth?

Shade coth might work or even simply a fan to give a breeze to the birds.

 

why do chicks seem to get to about 3 weeks old before they die if they die from the heat?

It might be becuase at that age they have all or most of they feathers but still spend the whole time in the nest box.

I have an out of season girl. I bought her 'in season' then the brown started chipping off. I had a big panic over it, everyone (or more then 3 ppl) told me what was happening. I had never had a budgie that did this. I chalked it up to a not-so-pleasant ride home on the train.

Her cere's not entirely brown again yet, but i'm not going to rush her. She's in my big black cage, with cuttlefish, seed, wheatgrass that's eaten faster then i can grow it and plenty of water.

 

As for the babies dying - feathers, dark warm place and a tin roof all create problems. Walk into a tin shed on a sunny 25degree day, I bet you'll come out sweating. Wipe a wet towel over the roof a few times and keep air moving through the cage. Mine get watered with a spray bottle too on really awful days.