Ask Lafeber

Why are first clutches infertile?

I saw your explanation for what to do about an infertile clutch but I can’t find much info on why that happens in the first place. Thanks!

Hi,

It’s not that first clutches are always infertile, but first clutches almost always fail for different reasons. Sometimes it’s because the eggs are infertile, and this happen with an inexperienced pair, a pair that really isn’t bonded, or one or both birds is infertile. Other reasons a first clutch fails are usually due to the parents not being experienced, but sometimes it can be that the pair is inexperienced and too young. Inexperienced or young pairs often fail to incubate the eggs properly, they break the eggs accidentally or on purpose, they eat the eggs, or the chicks hatch and they don’t feed them, overfeed them, don’t feed them enough, or stop feeding them after a day or two. All of these mistakes are much more likely if the pair is too young, and they are more likely to form bad habits like breaking the eggs on purpose or eating the eggs, or neglecting or killing the chicks. These habits tend to stick and the birds are ruined for breeding. So it’s always best to start with a fully mature pair. Keep in mind that most parrots can lay eggs long before they are ready to be a breeder. Cockatiels, Parakeets & lovebirds should be at least 2 years old, small conures do best at 3-4, and so on – the larger the bird, the older it needs to be to breed reliably.

Thank you for asking Lafeber,

Brenda