Inbreeding among lovebirds??

[JadeB]

Lupe and Rico had five babies. Lupe escaped and my neighbor adopted three of the babies. Rico is now living with two of the babies and has taken to one of them as his favorite. He usually pairs off with Chiquito and chases Taco away from their perch. Do I need to worry about Rico trying to mate with his offspring??

 

[weco]

Yes, birds will mate with their offspring when they are confined in caged situations. Normally breeding pairs will run off offspring that don't leave the nest on their own, even getting aggressive when they want to breed again.....

Although there is a debate among veterinarians about letting siblings and/or parents & offspring breed, a lot of hobby breeders pass off interbred chicks without advising new owners of the bird's lineage, a situation that can cause genetic problems down the road...but then, these hobby breeders generally don't keep records either, so lineage pretty much becomes an unknown factor.....

 

[JadeB]

Weco, thanks for your reply. Chiquito was born in August, so if I don't want that to happen, how much time do I have?

 

[weco]

Depending on the bird, lovebirds are sexually mature at 8-12 months of age.....

 

[SilverSage]

please separate your birds so you do not produce inbred babies.