Hi Erin,
I know it is exciting to think about having chicks. However, this is almost no chance that this can have a good outcome. It is highly unlikely the eggs are fertile. I don’t know how much time passed between the mating and the first egg, but if it was more than a few days, the eggs wouldn’t be fertile. Usually it takes a series of mating sessions before the hen starts to lay – one mating session that you described as accidental isn’t enough. And if you stopped them, the mating wouldn’t have been successful anyway. Each egg is formed separately and takes 48 hours to form and be laid. The pair typically mates between eggs to ensure fertility. Probably what looks like fertile eggs to you is wishful thinking. J
A toilet paper nest is not good at all. The toilet paper will begin to disintegrate soon, and it can also start to grow bacteria which will make her sick. A single bird generally can’t hatch and care for chicks by herself. She needs to male to help her. Without the male, it is too much work for her and she can end up dying because her health will deteriorate. She won’t eat enough and will have to use all of her energy to feed chicks. Usually if a male dies while the female is nesting, the female ends up abandoning the eggs or fails to care for the chicks if any hatch. As for sitting on them, she must sit on them around the clock, and can leave them only for a few minutes at a time, to get some food and stretch. She can’t just sit on them some of the time – this is wrong information that you found. So again, the eggs can’t be fertile if she hasn’t been sitting on them constantly.
I know this is all disappointing for you, but the most important thing is her health. The best thing to do is throw the eggs away and make some changes to discourage her from laying eggs again. And unless your mother wants to give her male to you, do not have him around her again as just being around him can trigger her to want to lay eggs. She does not have to mate to lay eggs. If you didn’t see them mate and just assumed they mated because she laid eggs, then most likely they never even mated. A pair usually has to be together for some time and form a bond before they ever mate. If you did get her a male so they can breed, she will no longer be a pet. Once they bond with a male, they become wild and have no more interest in human interaction. So again, I would recommend making these changes to keep her healthy and a happy pet bird.
You need to do all of these things to discourage egg laying. This information applies to the pair. Keep in mind that to lay eggs, she needs longer daylight, warmer weather, abundant food, and a quiet, private environment. Your goal is to reverse these conditions.
Limit her light to 8-10 hours by covering the cage early each evening
Do not give her anything to use as a nest – no bird huts or tents, no box, bowl, etc. If she decides to sit in a food bowl, remove it and replace with smaller cups.
Do not give her anything to shred such as paper or cardboard.
Rearrange the toys in the cage frequently.
Move the cage to a different place in the room. Move the cage about once a week, or whenever she shows signs of nesting – settling on the cage floor for example. This disrupts her idea of having a stable place to lay eggs and raise chicks.
If you feed a lot of fresh foods, stop offering any for a couple of weeks, and then only offer them in small amounts about 2 or 3 times a week. You can resume normal feeding later when the birds aren’t being hormonal.
When she is let out of the cage, do not let her get in any dark cozy places and don’t give her free roam.
When you handle her, limit any petting to only her head and neck – do not pet her on the body. Only a bonded mate is allowed to groom the body. We can’t be a mate, so touching the body is off limits.
If there is no metal floor grate, then do not use any bedding or paper in the cage tray – leave it bare and clean it daily
Thank you for asking Lafeber,
Brenda
