Ask Lafeber

Is it ok for lovebirds to breed at 10 months

My female is about ten and half months and the male is 1 year last night i walked upon them breeding will it be okay for the female cause these two are the only birds i have

Hi,

They are much too young. Both birds should be 2 years old before you let them share a cage. I would recommend separating them, and definitely do not give either bird a nest box or any type of nest. Young females are at a high risk of complications from laying eggs, including becoming egg bound which is often fatal. Young pairs are usually more interested in mating than caring for eggs. If they manage to hatch any eggs, they tend to be careless with the chicks and allow them to die. They can also develop bad habits like breaking or eating eggs, which ruins them for ever being good breeders. I would keep them separated until they are 2, and make some changes to discourage any egg laying.

Keep in mind that to lay eggs, she needs longer daylight, warmer weather, abundant food, and a quiet, private environment. The 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.

If 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 the head and neck – do not pet a bird 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