Expert: Chrys Meatyard - 1/12/2007

Question
Hi Chrys!
It's James--2 of my budgies eggs were due to hatch a couple days ago! They still haven't hatched but i know that all 5 eggs are fertile--is there something wrong or am i just being impatient? And is it unusual for the male to be broofding because mine is and the female allows him in the nest box--plus she isn't leaving the nest box to relieve herself. ok i think thats it--Thankyou!!
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Hi Chrys! I have a weird question---my budgie did lay eggs a few weeks ago and the first one should hatch on tuesday--but she pooped on her eggs---are they going to be contminated--i tried to clean with a damp cloth--very carefully of course--are the eggs contaminated or going to die??

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Hi again,
As you know i was trying to breed my budgies but i wasn't sure of the gender of the pied budgie. Well i've managed to pair up my blue male budgie with my my female normal green budgie--They are definatly pair boded. They preen eachother, the male feeds her and they seem inseperable. She has been going in and out of the next box more and more frequently and i was wondering if this means that babies are on way! I Must know!! also i was wondering if there is any idication i can use to tell whether or not she's carrying eggs (I.E., trouble flying, etc.)
Thanks,
James
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My Pied budgie has faint violet-blue cere with some white. my vet specializes in cats, dogs and birds. i figured that if it was female it would have already had a fight with my female budgie. don't female budgies fight?
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Hi,i hate to ask another question so soon. I am positive that i have a male/female pair. I thought that my pied budgie was female and i thought it would have babies because it was with my other male and they fed eachother and preened eachother, etc. My vet told me that the pied one was male. I adopted a female---i am positive its a female--it has a brown,rough cere---the pied budgie seems to acknowledge the new bird but he still feeds the other male still.the other male doesn't like the female. how long will it take for him to pair bond with the female, and is it unusual for him to so attached to other bird?
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Hi, James.  Thanks for posting!

They may never pair bond if they are all in the same cage.  If you want the new female and the pied to pair-bond, you'll need to put them in a cage by themselves, away from the other male.  Be aware that bonds between birds can be very strong, so this may take some time.  In fact, most birds bond with 1 bird for life.  Also, breaking this bond could result in the other bird being depressed, etc., as a result of losing the mate.  This will go away with time.    

What color cere does the pied have?  Perhaps this pied is female and the vet is wrong.  Is this an avian veterinarian you took your bird to (cat/dog vet wasn't trained in aves)?

Chrys
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Hi again, James.

Not all female budgies fight with each other.  In fact, some get along quite well together.  However, when you throw in males, nesting boxes, eggs, babies, etc., their attitudes can change quickly.  And some females only get attitude problems with certain females and they are fine with others.

Pied budgies are difficult to sex visually.  The faint violet blue cere with some white could go either way.  An experienced budgie person could possibly predict the sex of this bird by behavior.  You could also have the pied DNA sexed for about $20.  You can do this procedure at home yourself...it is quite easy.  Send the sample to the lab and wait for the results in about a week.  Find Avian Biotech Lab on the internet for more information about free testing kits and how to perform the test at home.  

Chrys
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Hi, James.

This is good news!  If she's going in/out of the nesting box, eggs are most likely on the way!  Congratulations.

When a bird is preparing to lay eggs, her reproductive system is enlarged.  Therefore, you may see bulging at the vent (cloaca).  Other than this, you will not know your bird is ready to lay.  The egg shell itself is the last thing to develop around the embryo just before the egg is laid.  Thus, you will not see any tummy bulging or anything like this.  If your bird is about to lay eggs, don't let her out of her cage to fly.  She needs to stay inside her cage so no eggs break inside her body, fall to the ground, etc.

Chrys
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Hi, James.

I can't say for sure if these eggs will hatch.  I've seen eggs hatch successfully that are covered with birdie poo, and I've seen eggs not hatch that are covered with poo.  I'd say just wait a few more days and you'll know for sure!

Chrys

Answer
Hi again, James.

How do you know the eggs are fertile?  Are you sure of the expected hatching date (18 days after the female started incubating the eggs)?  Perhaps the first 2 embryos died in their shell and aren't going to hatch.  Sometimes babies die inside their shell before they even hatch.  You need to leave any eggs right where they are until the female abandons eggs on her own or any eggs hatch.  

I don't know what "broofding" is so I can't answer that question.  Please explain what "broofding" means.  

The female should be leaving the nesting box to defecate.  This must be why the eggs had birdie poo on them.  This isn't normal.  Next time, you'll need to check eggs regularly and remove any poo from the eggs as soon as you see it on them.  Or perhaps there's something amiss in your setup, etc., causing the female to defecate inside the nesting box.

Chrys