working the nest????

[brianlinkles]

I keep hearing this expression, I have a pair of breeder gcc's. I am wondering what exactly happens and what the time line of breeding generally is. My female is staying in the nest box most of the day, in the evening they both sleep in it. Is this what is meant by working the box? Is there a general time line between staying in the box like this and eggs? I have read, talked to breeders however I don't think anything prepares you for actually doing this. I am very familiar with the caring for the babies, feeding etc. It's this waiting that I am wondering about! LOL

 

[weco]

In many cases birds preparing to nest will chew around the opening (sort of personalize it) and some species will pull their breast feathers and/or tear up newspaper/cardboard or other materials to line their nest.....or if they are not the type to line nests, they just go in & spend time there.....In the wild, it is the male that usually scouts out a new nesting site & may even do some "work around the house" before he brings the hen to make the final approval.....

Can't help with a timeline.....while I have had birds nest & lay eggs, I'm not a breeder, so have never really been concerned about time factors...but I can say that if you see your birds making whoopee, it can be up to two weeks before the hen will lay eggs.....