Birds do it...

February 11, 2008 11:42 AM

ParekeetFilter: Well, now I know that my birds (Buster and Keaton) are male and female. Having caught them getting it on a few times recently, I'm wondering what to expect! Internets don't help much, surprisingly. More after the jump...

So I got these two birds this past summer. Last week my girlfriend and I caught them mating a few times. I have never had birds before, much less parakeets, so I am clueless about what to expect. Do I assume that they'll lay eggs? Should I put some nesting material in the cage? If so, what sort? How many eggs to expect? I don't really want more birdies, but I don't know what I can do to stop them. I know -- I should call the pet store and ask. But I have too much respect for the bird-brains here...

posted by Guy_Inamonkeysuit to pets & animals (15 answers total)

My aunt has birds (budgies in this case), and if you don't let them have a nest, they will still lay them, but the eggs will fall to the ground. Just clean out the cage weekly to take care of the eggs.
posted by mrzarquon at 11:54 AM on February 11, 2008

Thanks, mrzarquon -- this won't freak them out? I don't want them to get all agitated about the broken eggs.
posted by Guy_Inamonkeysuit at 11:59 AM on February 11, 2008

(No helpful reply, just had to say what great names!)
posted by ceri richard at 12:04 PM on February 11, 2008

Just because they're mating, doesn't mean they are male and female. Do you have other evidence?
posted by beniamino at 12:06 PM on February 11, 2008 [1 favorite]

Parakeets are randy birds and are always up to mate with parakeets of the opposite sex and the same sex as well as mirrors, perches, toys, and your finger (ugh. Don't ask). Even with the correct bits matched up, their mating usually doesn't produce eggs.

If you want to encourage them to have chicks, you could get them a breeding box, which is a wood box with a hole in one side. Note that these boxes are sized for aviaries and don't usually fit inside standard bird cages. A cardboard box will also work, though your birds will chew it to bits and possibly chew the bottom off while the eggs/chicks are still inside ('keets not being the brightest birds). Additionally you can offer them nesting materials such as aspen shavings or Carefresh (both of which are more commonly known as the stuff you put at the bottom of a hamster cage); the male will do most of the work in setting up the nest.

Egg-laying takes quite a toll on female birds, so if you haven't already, you should improve her diet beyond dried seed. They like greens, fruits and veggies (buy organic, they are super sensitive to pesticides), and egg yolk. Make diet changes slowly as big sudden changes will give them a massive (and life-threatening) case of the trots. Make sure she's got ample access to sources of calcium. You'll also want to keep an eye out for the symptoms of egg binding.

Years ago I had a female parakeet who repeatedly laid eggs on the floor of her cage despite my efforts to discourage her. Most of her eggs were infertile and removing them just triggered more egg laying. One of them eventually hatched, to my great surprise, and she and her mate raised it right there in the open. Parakeets feed their young via regurgitation of partially digested food so it's not like mama bird needs to go hunt down earthworms to bring back to the nest. Within two months, the baby keet was full-sized and trying to mate with his parents.
posted by jamaro at 12:37 PM on February 11, 2008

We used to have a pair of fake eggs (found some the right size at a craft store) we would slip into our doves nest and remove the real ones to avoid any baby doves. It kept them busy/they won't lay new ones for a while but they do catch on eventually, so remove them and start the cycle again. Good luck
posted by estronaut at 12:38 PM on February 11, 2008

A friend has parakeets that mate very frequently. He gives them nesting materials and they seem to be really excited about making nests and taking care of the eggs. He averages one clutch of 2-3 eggs every year, and the clutch hatched viable babies once (out of about 7 clutches so far). So, from anecdotal evidence, it doesn't seem like you'll need to prepare for lots of babies all the time, even if you encourage the mating & nesting & taking care of the eggs.
posted by holyrood at 12:47 PM on February 11, 2008

When I was in college my girlfriend kept her parakeets cage at my place. Those birds mated like rabbits until the female (I guess) got worn out and pecked the male to death. If you want baby birds, get a plastic nesting box that fits over the cage door. That's all you'll need, the birds will do the rest. We gave the babies to a pet store. Bird enthusiasts are also happy to take them because they like getting the birds as soon as they fledge so that can be hand trained.
posted by COD at 12:53 PM on February 11, 2008

Hmm, I didn't think that they might be girly-birds, beniamino. Not that there's anything wrong with that! And no, I don't want little birdies, jamaro and COD, so I hope that this goes no further than them having it off once in a while.

I guess I don't have to prepare for being a grandfather just yet... whew!
posted by Guy_Inamonkeysuit at 1:30 PM on February 11, 2008

I would get some advice from an avian vet, as well. The most important thing will be for the female to have a proper diet, as jamaro says. Seed is a horrible diet for any captive bird, as it's far higher in fat than they can possibly burn, since they don't spend their entire day flying around the jungle looking for food. For a female that's trying to produce an egg, the diet needs to have the right balance of calcium and other vitamins/minerals. If the bird doesn't have enough calcium on board to create the eggshell, she won't be able to lay the egg and it will "bind", i.e. get stuck in her cloaca, and rupture, will usually leads to death.

Not trying to be alarmist at all here, just don't want you to lose your pets! I've got two parrots and they get a daily diet of fruits and vegetables in the morning, with pasta/rice/beans fresh cooked for them at night. They have access to dried veggies and pellets whenever they want them and for treats they get banana chips, wasabi peas... stuff like that. No nuts or seeds for them, since they have high cholesterol, but lots of birds don't have that problem. Still, seed shouldn't be a staple of a captive bird's diet, but a special treat.
posted by Pantengliopoli at 1:38 PM on February 11, 2008

Thanks, Pantengliopoli -- I appreciate that! I like my pets and want to keep them healthy.
posted by Guy_Inamonkeysuit at 1:52 PM on February 11, 2008

As for what to do with unwanted eggs, i have two words for you: Tiny Omelettes.
posted by BobbyDigital at 1:52 PM on February 11, 2008 [4 favorites]

Tiny Omelettes

Hah! Yeah, we had quite a hilarious go-round about this. The birds would have pecked us to death if they'd known what we were saying.

We made them a nice breakfast of brown rice and banana and egg but they weren't paying much attention to it as of when I left for work this morning. Maybe they were stunned by the sudden change of diet. Anyway, thanks to you all for educating me about my lively pets.
posted by Guy_Inamonkeysuit at 5:49 AM on February 12, 2008

Jamaro mentions it above as well, but if it's a dramatic change in diet, you may have to transition them slowly. Keep offering the new food, keep it fresh, give them lots of variety to find what they like, but give them some of what they're used to as well if they don't seem to be eating. Good luck!
posted by Pantengliopoli at 7:33 AM on February 12, 2008

In agreeance with Jamaro - I had parakeets who lived in solitude and would hump everything in the cage (a lasting memory for a young girl!). We even had fake birds that we put in the case (I remember them being solid plastic, from the pet store) and they would go to town with those. They're just saucy little birds, so yours may not be male/female... so don't go warming up that tiny omelette pan just yet! ;-)
posted by giddygirlie at 6:29 PM on February 23, 2008