Parents killed first hatchling

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sections
Posts: 23
Joined: Sun Sep 04, 2011 7:15 pm
Location: Brisbane

Parents killed first hatchling

Post by sections »

Hey guys just a quick question. My first egg hatched last night but with in about a hour one of the parents had kill it and ripped it apart. I'm just wondering why this may have happened, it is the females first clutch. I believe it was the male that killed it as he was in the box and as soon as he came out it was dead and then he did not go back in. I have removed him from the cage. When I removed the other eggs to clean the box the female got very upset. Once cleaned i put the eggs and box back in and she went straight to sitting on them again. One egg is not fertile as there is no growth in it and it is due to hatch in the next to days the other was also heavier. Is there any thing I can do to prevent the next one being killed if it was the female that killed the last one?
rod038
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Joined: Fri Jun 18, 2010 3:07 pm

Re: Parents killed first hatchling

Post by rod038 »

If the Cock was in the nest box then it could of been him, but it could of also been the hen. I had 2 first year Hens do this last year and killed all babies either strait away or after a few days. I got rid of one Hen and the other I gave a second chance to this year with a different Cock to make sure it was her and she did it again with the first chick the morning it had hatched. I now know she cannot be trusted to raise her chicks. I took her remaining eggs and gave them to another Hen and she hatched them out but unfortunately they died with the cold weather we have been having.
If you are sure it was the Cock then you could leave her with the eggs and let her raise them after they hatch. If unsure you could remove them and give them to another hen if available or remove and keep them warm yourself and try and handraise. This would be very hard at that age though.
Some breeders told me it wouldnt be the Hen and would be the Cock but I know that the Hen will do this and if it is proven to be her then I wouldnt use her again unless you can foster out her eggs.
sections
Posts: 23
Joined: Sun Sep 04, 2011 7:15 pm
Location: Brisbane

Re: Parents killed first hatchling

Post by sections »

Thanks Rod I have removed the cock and put him in spare cage. He heard the hatchling chirping and went in the box when he can out it was dead. He did not go back in the box after that. What concerns me is that it was not just killed it was torn apart to tiny pieces, is that normal when they kill a hatchling.
rod038
Posts: 436
Joined: Fri Jun 18, 2010 3:07 pm

Re: Parents killed first hatchling

Post by rod038 »

Mine were all torn apart too. Unrecognisable as chicks.
sections
Posts: 23
Joined: Sun Sep 04, 2011 7:15 pm
Location: Brisbane

Re: Parents killed first hatchling

Post by sections »

Well good news my second egg hatched 5 days ago now and is doing really well mum is very protective. The cock bird is in another cage and not happy about the sounds of the chick in the main cage. Every time it makes noise e gets worked up and wants out of his cage. i have bought him a new friend though so that should keep him happy.
julie
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Re: Parents killed first hatchling

Post by julie »

Is the hen doing ok feeding them by herself? I have a single hen who has laid and is very protective of her clutch and was thinking about swapping one of her infertile eggs for a fertile one from the pair I have but im worried she wont be able to feed it by herself. she was a fantastic mother last year but her partner died.
jimmyjack
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Re: Parents killed first hatchling

Post by jimmyjack »

Is this a regular occurance with ringnecks?

My iggy currently has four eggs, not sure how old she is, but it is her first time laying. The father is 8yrs old and has produced 4 clutches with another hen - their first clutch were killed by parents, not sure who but all latter clutches we not killed.

however, since its her first time, their first time together and he potentially has killed chicks in the past, should i be concerned/worried/taking action to prevent it from occuring?
sections
Posts: 23
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Location: Brisbane

Re: Parents killed first hatchling

Post by sections »

@Julie Yes she is doing fine by herself. The little one is a week old now and grows noticeably by the day in saying that she only has one to look after. Male killed the first and 3rd egg is not fertile.

@Jimmyjack From all the reading ive done into it it would appear that its not to uncommon for parents to kill the young. Has your male had any successful clutches that the babies did not get killed and was it with the same female? I suspected my male was to blame as he is very protective of the female but not so much the eggs. Both my birds are tame and if i give the female scratches or cuddles the male will almost attack me if he can but pays no attention to the nest. He also heard the chick squawk for the first time and rushed in the nest. there was allot of scratching around. Once the chick was dead he came out the nest and payed no attention to it again.
jimmyjack
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Re: Parents killed first hatchling

Post by jimmyjack »

so my eggs have hatched, we had four, dad (ike) killed one on the day they hatched before we could seperate him. It was him as the way i found out theyd hatched was seeing him emerge from the nest with the baby in his mouth and drop it (dead on arrival by the time i ran up there). not sure if he would have kept on killing, but dont want to take that chance. its a bit of extra hard work for mum (iggy) but she seems to be doing okay. its quite relaxed an most of her time is in the nest - only ducks out for a quick feed.

however, i've looked at the babies, all hatched on the wednesday. one is about half the size of the other two, and its crop is smaller with much less food (this may be due to it being a smaller size) but im worrying that she might not be able to feed all three properly, and i dont want to lose another one. Im waiting until wednesday (another 3 days) to see how things go. it did have some food in the crop but if its still much smaller, and still doesnt look as though its being fed enough, should i:

a) hope for the best

b) take the little one out and hand rear

c) take all three out and hand rear

d) some other great idea that i havent thought of :D

thanking you!
julie
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Re: Parents killed first hatchling

Post by julie »

I had the same issue last year, I was taking the little one out giving it a feed and then putting it back in for mum. If she is byherself i would probably top the rest up occassionally too to help the hen out.
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