Caique sitting on eggs

[Caiquetiels]

My female has been sitting on 3 eggs for almost 2 weeks. Her and her male buddy don't seem to eat or go to the bathroom much. I almost have to force them out to go to the bathroom. Should I be doing this? I had to when I had cockatiel eggs too. The boy seems to sit or lay right by her side. He doesn't lay on the eggs, just watches.

Also, they have been eating Harrison pellets for years now, and ever since the first egg came, they don't want pellets. They are hardly eating fruit/veggies either, but they are eating the smoothies I leave them. They hate veggies but if I mix spinach, broccoli, celery, and carrots with a few grapes and half an apple, they are drinking them.

I've had both for over 12 years, so maybe this is why I can pet both of them. I can pet the female while she is sitting on her eggs, which shocks me. I try to get them out to stretch but they are focused on those eggs.

 

[noodles123]

Are you trying to breed?
Why are they housed together (if not)?
Also, if you aren't trying to breed, remove any shadowy places (huts, tents, boxes etc) from the cage and prevent access outside of the cage..these spaces are hormonal triggers.

 

[Caiquetiels]

I am not ready to breed. I have no helpers if I have to leave this summer to take care of my parents, so she is sitting on 3 fake eggs. I also don't have a nest box as the cage is not equipped for it, and I tried to give her a shoe box and they both rejected it. She is at the bottom of the cage on a washcloth, and the male is right by her side waiting patiently. It's so weird to come home from work and have a clean cage.

Would you know if I should be forcing her to get off the eggs to go to the bathroom? And, do you know why she is hardly eating? Her weight is fine, a few grams over her pre-egg weight, but she won't touch the pellets nor any fruit except grapes and corn. She is drinking the smoothie every day.

 

[noodles123]

why would you try to give her any sort of box if you didn't want her to lay/breed?

 

[noodles123]

If they have eggs in them, they will attempt to lay if they have to (even if there are no good spaces) but if you provide a space, you encourage follicle formation...which leads to egg-laying when no egg-laying would have occurred otherwise.

 

[Caiquetiels]

After she laid 2 eggs, I gave her a box for privacy or comfort, but immediately she took it to the door to toss out of her cage. She is on the bottom of her cage, and I think she is holding her #2 so she doesn't mess up her cage. When I get home, she is coming out of her cage to eat and go to the bathroom.
My main question is, should I be forcing her to go to the bathroom when she doesn't want to leave her eggs? Can she injure herself by holding it? Both of them don't go at night, as their cage is spotless when I wake up, but she doesn't want to move after I wake her up.

 

[noodles123]

Yes, she cam injure herself by holding in her poop too long.

Have they always held it in like that?

What do you mean she doesn't want to move after you wake her up?

 

[Caiquetiels]

I've had them for 12 years, and they never go to the bathroom at night. I wake them up and the paper is spotless. I take them out of the cage and hold them over a garbage can, but the female does not want to get off her eggs in the mornings to eat nor go to the bathroom. She must be because I see evidence when I get home, but it seems like she feels comfortable when I'm home because she'll eat for 2-3 min, run down to sit on eggs, then run up for food, then run back down. I put her smoothie and corn right in front of her so she eats. She's the same weight for the past 10 days.

 

[noodles123]

If this is normal for them, then I guess run with that. I just know that they say it can be bad to train birds to poop in a certain location, as they will tend to hold it in and that can be harmful.

 

[LaManuka]

Oooh great, you got fake eggs

The ONLY problem with fake eggs in my experience is that, because they're indestructible, the hen may sit on them for an inordinate amount of time if she's allowed to. My Lilly would still be sitting on hers from last December if it was up to her, but I gave her about a week after the usual lorikeet hatching time before I dismantled her "nest" (a spot on my couch). I did it first thing in the morning and she looked a little disoriented for a few hours but very quickly went back to normal - well, whatever normal is for her anyway.

Caique eggs generally hatch after about 25 days or so I'd maybe give your hen a little more time after that and then make the decision for her if you need to. From there you may need to look into separate cages for them if you do not wish for this to happen again, and supervise them when they're out of their cages to ensure there's no hanky panky going on. Like many members have reported, this seems to be an especially broody season for lots of hens so this may account for why yours is suddenly interested in reproducing when she has never shown an inclination before.

 

[Caiquetiels]

Oh, I thought they would give up after 25 days. The first one was laid May 20th, and the 3rd one was May 27th. She didn't start sitting until May 27th, so I'm not sure when the "due date" is for the eggs. Do I take all 3 away when it gets close to the 25th day? They both are being so good, just being so attentive. I do not have a 2nd cage, but I've never seen them mate inside their cage. They could, but I've only seen it outside of their cage. I will make sure it is darker in the living room, more sleep, and no petting backs and not spending too much time with them.
Now that I know how they are with eggs, and they think I'm part of their flock, I may consider trying to let them raise babies next year if it happens. The vet said once they start, I may not be able to stop it. If I had a pet store or someone who could have helped me feed the babies this summer, I would have tried it, but if my parents get sick during this pandemic, I need to be able to go home. Thanks for the advice. I think her eggs are supposed to hatch next week, but I have enjoyed them. So quiet, not making a mess, been kind of nice.

 

[LaManuka]

If you can, try to leave the eggs until your hen loses interest of her own accord. That’s a bit more of a challenge with fake eggs since they don’t break, you may have to leave them for a little longer than the regular due date, but when the time comes, yes remove them all and dismantle whatever they’ve been using as a nesting site. It cannot however be guaranteed of course that they won’t go straight back to mating and replacing that clutch now that they are of that mindset. You can also talk to your avian vet about a hormonal implant for your hen. It's not a permanent fix but it may reduce the likelihood of this situation happening again over the next 12 months, give or take.

It’s interesting the change in personality you’ve experienced with your hen becoming much calmer. My poor Lilly is a rampant, bitey, raging mass of hormones right now because I’m trying not to let her lay, but when she does she’s so peaceful and sweet. If I wasn’t so worried about her becoming a chronic egg layer I’d let her go for it - I imagine her current mental torment isn’t doing her much good either!

 

[Caiquetiels]

It breaks my heart that I can't try to let them have the babies. I've watched every video I can find and it seems like so much work if they decided to hurt the babies or not take care of them. My cockatiels were good egg sitters but the female plucked the babies about week 2 and they were bloody, so I took over. I've been wanting a new caique cage after my 23 yr old tiel dies, and I plan on getting a door for a nestbox just in case.
When I took the female to the vet, she recommended not getting the hormone injection because she's in her prime, and the more you give the shot the less effective it is.
The female is normally moody and cranky most of the year. I can pet her, but she plays hard and she can go from being petted to biting the crap out of me in a second. I always thought she'd be aggressive to her eggs, but she is so opposite. She got very cuddly when she was preparing to lay eggs. I can still pet her head while she is on the eggs, but she just wants these guys to hatch. I can tell she's bored. The male was feeding her this am, but I put some food and the smoothie right in front of her and she eats while she is sitting.

 

[Caiquetiels]

LaMunuka, you've been very helpful. I have a few more questions
1. Today is day 27 from the first egg that was laid. The female moved it to the other side of the cage, so she is only on 2 now. Will she eventually push the others aside and stop sitting? She laid the 2nd egg 4 days later, then the 3rd egg 2 days after that.
2. Do you know when caiques should not lay eggs anymore? I cannot find when caiques should stop breeding. They are both 12 1/2 yrs old. I'm thinking this would be cool to try next year but don't know when they are supposed to stop breeding.

 

[noodles123]

Are you referring to some sort of birdy menopause?

Laying eggs is a health risk for females -even in their prime (it takes a lot out of them- fertile or not), but caiques live 40+ years...so yours aren't old..If a human lives to 85, yours would be roughly in 30 (ish) in human years..as far as I know, they are not too old, but I am not a Caique owner, so I am not 500% positive on that.

Have you read about all of the risks that accompany raising chicks from eggs?
It can be expensive and traumatic if things go wrong...sometimes, new parents aren't very good and then the ball is in your court with around-the-clock feedings, brooders, humidity, formula temperatures, sterilization requirements etc. Obviously that doesn't always happen, but if it were me, I would want to know that it could so that I wasn't blind-sided in the event that my adult birds started harming or neglecting their young.

You would also need separate cages for the babies once they are old enough (siblings don't care if they are related when it comes to mating or fighting).
A year is a good amount of time to prepare, but just know that it's way more complicated than it seems to allow your birds to reproduce.

There are also risks like egg binding, prolapse, etc for the female, so diet is important as well.

The fact that she pushed an egg aside is promising. I would keep waiting and assume she will do that with the others as well...but see what others think.

 

[Caiquetiels]

I like that, birdy menopause.
I wasn't prepared for any eggs so I only had a few days to call around to see if anyone could help me if my parents got sick during this pandemic, so I was forced to not let them have real eggs. Breaks my heart, but as grumpy and moody as the female is with me, she has been a pure angel this whole time. The male got aggressive with me around May 1st, stalking me, pecking my neck, but since I cut his wings and she had the eggs, they have both been angels, they are good to each other, they let me clean the cage and touch the eggs, I can pet the female while she is on the eggs. I guess after 12 yrs, they trust me. I think it would be pretty neat to see what happens next year if they do this, but I will try for not encouraging them. No petting back/under wings/ early bed time, don't let them hang out behind blankets. I know the work involved with cockatiels, and I guess caiques are harder.
Thanks so much for your help during this surprise I've had.

 

[Caiquetiels]

Tomorrow is day 27 for my female to be sitting on her eggs. She doesn't seem to be giving up. As of now, she is on bottom or cage in corner, patiently waiting. If she doesn't give up by Wed or Thurs, do I take one away, then another, or remove all 3 at the same time?

 

[LaManuka]

Well, I can only speak for Lilly, but when the time comes with her I remove all eggs and dismantle whatever it is she’s been using as a nesting site. I generally do it in the morning and she spends a few hours looking disoriented as she readjusts to being eggless but seems to get back to normal fairly quickly.

Bear in mind though that Lilly is a single bird with no partner so her reactions may differ from those of your hen. There’s no way to guarantee your hen may not just go straight back to producing another clutch but I guess you’ll cross that bridge when you come to it. At least you’ve got those faux eggs on hand now if she does start laying again.

Birdie menopause - I WISH!!

 

[Caiquetiels]

I googled a lot on how to dismantle a fake nest..........a doctor's website suggested taking one egg away every other day. So, since today is the 27th day since she started laying on all 3, I will remove one, then another Thurs, and the last Sat so I can be home with them to see how they react. Then I have to remember to keep them darker than normal, don't pet their backs, and don't play with them as often. Thank you so much for your advice. I kept a journal in case this happens again.

 

[noodles123]

keep the eggs darker, or birds darker? keeping the birds darker just encourages more of the same... DARKNESS IS NOT GOOD FOR NESTING BIRDS!!It makes them nest more...
yes- DO NOT pet backs and remove all shadowy spaces, but if you read somewhere that your bird's space should be darker, disregard that because that is LITERALLY the opposite of what you need to do.

YOU SHOULD ALSO PLAY WITH THEM MORE-- JUST KEEP IT BRIGHT AND DON'T TOUCH THEM SEXUALLY!!!AHHHHH- CAN'Y BELIEVE A VET SAID THIS. THEY NEED 1. LIGHT, 2. LESS PETTING (AND DEF HEAD AND NECK ONLY), 3. LOTS OF NON-SEXUAL INTERACTION, 4. BEDTIMES AND WAKE-UPS...5. NO SOFT FOOD UNLESS NEEDED FOR HEALTH

I wasn't sure what to say about what you should do with the eggs at this point, but this "vets" advice is so wrong, it isn't even funny...As in, "Doctor, how can I keep my toddler safe?"
"Well, Missy, just hand him a loaded gun and some arsenic! That should keep him safe!"[/U][/I][/B]

Really upsets me that any professional told you this when I could give you the opposite advice AND MEAN IT without a veterinary degree.

he is right about not petting their backs...THAT IS IT!!!