Expert: Riley - 3/18/2007

Question
Can you tell me like all of what you know about nesting, mating, and the eggs? I am really excited about this and i am sort of a beginner in this area. I want to get it right.
I have a male and a female.They are 2 months old. How long do i have to wait until they are able to have babies?

Answer
Hey Tara,

Well actually your birds might be too young to mate, however here's how to get prepared. First you need to buy a nesting box and assemble it on the cage. You also need to get a cuttle bone or calcium droplets in the water (however if you do get calcium droplets the water will need to be changed more often in case of algae). I usually offer my birds celery or parsley as a treat and for vitamins. I started off by putting wood shavings in the nesting box, but she just ripped them out and I later discovered that birds would rather just used the down from their wings and bedding.
It make take a while for the female to show interest in the nesting box, and then even longer to mate, but it happens. Your female will usually lay her eggs like this: lay one, wait a day, lay one, wait a day, because a new egg needs time to form. It take 18-20 days for an egg to hatch, starting from the day she starts to incubate them. You should only let your female lay 2 clutches (at the most) of eggs a year or it is possible that egg binding could occur. I'm sure you'll have more questions down the road so let me know!

Riley