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Question:

December 28, 2022

Budgie not sitting on her eggs


My parakeets I’ve had for 2 years and they finally started breeding. I was excited. I saw 1 egg and then another one 2 days later but since then she has not laid another egg which should have been today. She has 1 in her I can tell. I have checked on them a couple times with food and water and calcium block. The male bird is being very protective of the nesting box. She has not went back in her nest box she is just sitting beside her male or near him the whole time. I’m worried about what about I do? The eggs are still in the nesting box


Answer:

Hi,

If she is having trouble laying the egg, she will be fluffed up and her tail will pump up and down. She may also open her mouth and breathe heavily & her abdomen might be swollen. If she shows any of these signs, you need to take her to an Avian Vet as soon as possible or she will die if she can’t pass the egg. If she seems normal, active, eating and drinking, then most likely she isn’t going to lay more eggs. Sometimes they only lay one or two the first time. The egg takes about 48 hours to develop and be laid, so generally there is no visible way to tell if she has an egg inside her. Often even a Vet cannot feel it, and has to use imaging to see if there is an egg and where it is in the reproductive tract.

Take care,

Brenda

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