I friend of mine asked me and i do not know the answer...if anyone can help please...
Pair was mating and working the nest but cock escaped. the question now is: Will the hen proceed with laying eggs or will she stop all activities?
He has replaced the cock with another but since (about 1 week) the hen has not gone back in the nest at all.
If she was to go ahead with this new cock, will chicks be as the escapee father or the new cock?
What shall i tell him to do?
This Q. is interesting as it can happen to anyone during breeding season.
thanks all
LOST COCK - Will the HEN LAY EGGS??
Moderator: Mods
You would have to be very very lucky and get the timing just right for the hen to be able to successfully lay and hatch the eggs (if indeed she was starting to form the eggs).
Birds arent stupid, and cock birds that have not bred with the hen, will most likely destroy the eggs she lays. Rarely will a strange cock bird look after eggs he knows arent his... especially with a new hen.
If she does go down from the original cock's young, without mating with the new cock first, I doubt the eggs will survive. If the cock happens to be on the ball and mate with the hen first, and you see there are eggs really really soon after (a week or two) then you can be sure its due to the previous male.
Usually after such an incident, even though IRN are quite adaptable, I would hold very little hope of anything happening clutch wise for the hen this year.
Sorry to hear about the loss... have been using air-locked aviaries for a while now... any way to stop the bird escaping is the responsible way of keeping them.
Everyone who cant afford to set up a permanent air-lock should make one from a few lengths of shade cloth and some metal pegs or something... not hard to rig up an easy, effective "room" so even for just a minute the birds cant get free.
Birds arent stupid, and cock birds that have not bred with the hen, will most likely destroy the eggs she lays. Rarely will a strange cock bird look after eggs he knows arent his... especially with a new hen.
If she does go down from the original cock's young, without mating with the new cock first, I doubt the eggs will survive. If the cock happens to be on the ball and mate with the hen first, and you see there are eggs really really soon after (a week or two) then you can be sure its due to the previous male.
Usually after such an incident, even though IRN are quite adaptable, I would hold very little hope of anything happening clutch wise for the hen this year.
Sorry to hear about the loss... have been using air-locked aviaries for a while now... any way to stop the bird escaping is the responsible way of keeping them.
Everyone who cant afford to set up a permanent air-lock should make one from a few lengths of shade cloth and some metal pegs or something... not hard to rig up an easy, effective "room" so even for just a minute the birds cant get free.