IndianRingNeck.com

Hey guys,
Nope, I don't have one.
Our wonderful moderator asked an egg question yesterday, I'm sure some one will have some advice or comforting words for her since she dedicates so much energy to this forum!

ellieelectrons wrote:Since I haven't had any responses yet, thought I'd try to reframe my question.

If you have a bird who is showing signs of wanting to lay eggs (eg. hanging out in the nestbox, mating, territorial aggression), how long is it generally before she should start laying eggs? If eggs are not laid, what are the signs I should look for re egg binding or other reproductive problems?

I realise that I may be having an early panic here but I'd appreciate any advice.

Ellie.

Her thread is http://www.indianringneck.com/forum/vie ... =1&t=25332 and has more details than quote.


Thanks everyone, xox from Nila.

Hi Ellie and Claire, I usually know when an egg is imminent by the carriage of the hen. Her wings are slightly lower and she appears somewhat swollen just below the rump. She will usually be in the nest most of the day. Egg binding usually occurs with first timers when the weather is cooler.

Thanks! How's your season going btw?

Pretty good so far, 39 chicks and 18 eggs still to go. AGM of the Avicultural Society tonight so everyone stays away! Is Ellie looking to breed her two?

Thanks for the information! No, I'm not looking to breed, just looking to satisfy her nesting behaviour.


Ellie.

Chienderace wrote:Pretty good so far, 39 chicks and 18 eggs still to go. AGM of the Avicultural Society tonight so everyone stays away! Is Ellie looking to breed her two?

Cool. We will have to make a trip down to see your babies when they have got some feathers and start looking cute.
I couldn't make it to the AGM... I had to stay home to sing my parrots their bedtime lullaby.

Thanks Claire for the post, that was very kind of you

Ellie.

We got egg number 1 this morning so I can stop worrying now.

Ellie.

Ellie, i'm curious.
Are you breeding your birds for potentially lucrative reasons or just letting them what they were born to do, catering to mother nature.

I'm not asking because I have some judgement waiting for an ambush. I'm just.. curious

Hi Donovan

I'm not _trying_ to breed them at all. I limit their diet each year based on my vet's recommendations to try to prevent breeding behaviour but for the last three years I have not been able to prevent it. I'm also careful with day lengths and taken various other measures to combat breeding behaviours. I've outlined our journey in this thread:
http://www.indianringneck.com/forum/vie ... =2&t=14905

Two years ago I gave them a nestbox after some serious biting incidents and a chewed threw electrical cable and a tripped safety switch. She laid 5 eggs and none hatched. Last year I had a few aggressive biting incidents but didn't give a nestbox and we had no eggs. This year I had to go away for work during breeding season and gave permission for the people looking after her to give a nestbox if they were concerned about her nesting behaviour. They did, so I didn't take it away when we brought her home. We may shake / boil / freeze the eggs but we haven't decided yet. I'm not sure if I'll be able to do it as I'm soft hearted and there's the added issue of whether she'll let us near them!

So, yes, it's a Mother Nature thing. However in the wild birds won't always breed every year and I do try to set up an environment conducive to that but I haven't really succeeded yet. Hope that makes sense.

Ellie.

Here's a few things that may help motivate you to boil those eggs or order some fakes
What will Mr Ellie say about keeping more Janeys once they hatch and are cute and little and innocent and good homes are so hard to find? Think of all the irns you see on the prc adoptions page and remember they are the lucky ones.
What will you do if Janey isn't so good at looking after them or there's a little Nila that needs hand rearing?
Do you really want a couple extra months of Janey protecting the cage while the little ones grow? (If this doesn't put you off, tell Mr Ellie that you are going away for a weekend and he will have to deal with her. I'm sure that will harden his heart).

And the other factor that puts me and Dave off breeding Sapphire, are the parents the best possible pet quality birds? We aren't convinced that she has the right temperament, even though she is a fairly sweet and easy to handle bird. There are probably better candidates out there.

what puts me off of the idea of raising birds is finding homes for them. I was at a flea market last week and saw a woman and 3 little kids walking out of the pet area with 3 budgies in a cage. And I thought "do you even know what you're doing or did you just think it would be cool to have some birds" Will they research everything and do their homework?.. or will they get tired of the birds and get rid of them ... or "set them free"

I can't imagine having to find a home for birds because i would be inclined to screen people. I did that just with kittens a couple years ago.