Hi my single 27 year old african gray just lied 2 eggs This is her first-time laying eggs She has been sitting on her eggs for last 18 days where she does eat much less than before. I worry that she gets too weak. I wonder if she is sitting on her eggs for too long if so I Just need to know what to do so she comes out of egg bonding cycle. Thank You
Hi,
It isn’t necessary to let her sit on the eggs, and it can actually encourage egg laying. There is no such thing as egg bonding and birds do not have cycles like mammals. There is egg binding, and this is where the hen can’t lay the egg, and can be fatal. Instead, try making some changes to avoid hormone triggers. We also have webinars on dealing with hormonal Greys.
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 let them roam around, this mimics searching for a nesting site.
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
