Thursday, October 29, 2009

Don’t lay an egg!

There are several triggers to egg laying in cockatiels - possibly the most important being daylight hours. If the bird detects a lengthening of the daylight hours then this will trigger her to start laying eggs. You can help suppress this by keeping your bird covered or in a shaded/darkened room for at least 12 hours a day. Also, since your bird is more inclined to lay eggs when feeling safe and secure, she may feel less comfortable if there are frequent but subtle changes to her habitat, such as moving her cage furniture around. It is quite common for cockatiels to lay eggs. They will normally lay a clutch of 3-5 eggs at 48 hour intervals and then depending on how maternal the bird is feeling they will normally incubate them for one to three weeks before accepting they are not going to hatch. Make sure that she has a good supply of calcium as well as protein, vitamins and minerals to replace those that have gone into the egg production and ensure that she gets plenty of exercise between hatches to keep her fit.