September 5, 2019
Abandoned eggs
My mated cockatiels had been sitting on their clutch of 6 and when their nesting spot had been cleaned and eggs were put back female want sit on them…please help me to know what’s wrong
Question:
Answer:
Hi Loriann,
You can’t clean the nest box when your birds have eggs. This disrupts them too much and makes them feel like their environment is not safe. You should only clean out the nest box between clutches. Whether a clutch fails or they do hatch chicks, a pair needs to be rested for a few months before they try again. If she has been off of these eggs for more than a day, then go ahead and throw the eggs away, take the nest box down, and let her rest. Breeding birds need privacy and minimal human activity around the cage. You should only be around at feeding time and to check on them quickly and then leave them alone. The nest box does get dirty while they are nesting and raising chicks but this is OK. Cleaning it will cause them to abandon eggs, as you have learned, but they will also abandon chicks if they are disturbed too much.
Thank you for asking Lafeber,
Brenda
