My friend's cockatiel laid an egg but has not been with the male to her knowledge. the cockatiel was ignoring the egg for a few days now, so when she cleaned the cage, she removed the egg. the cockatiel went berzerk, so she put the egg back in the bottom of the cage where she had found it. now the bird is pushing the egg around in the bottom of the cage constantly. why?
2007-03-26 11:55:30 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Birds
Female birds can lay eggs without a male. The eggs won't be fertile so let her sit on it and when you clean the cage and nest put the egg back. She didn't lay it on the bottom of the cage did she ? If so She may never lay another one or she may keep on laying. You could provide a nest { use a box, like a shoebox, on the narrow end cut a door big enough for the bird to fit in, shred white paper towels and place in the box then place the egg on the paper towels } An important thing to remember, every time a bird lays an egg it takes all the calicum out of the mothers body, so you'll have to be sure to have a cuttle bone in the cage next to the food dish and offer her plenty of veggie and hard boiled eggs. Be sure you give her varieties of different foods, seeds, pelleted foods and plenty of fresh water.Good luck
2007-03-26 12:20:36 · answer #1 · answered by pet lover 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Since she wasn't with a male cockatiel, the egg is infertile. However, her maternal instincts are still present. This is what is making her pay attention to it. This is actually a good thing. It shows she would be a good mother if she had been bred. Eventually she'll realize nothing is going to happen. She'll lose interest. Our cockatiel used to lay eggs like this all the time. When I gave her to a friend of mine who bred her, Gueneviere was a super mom to her little ones. He still has her grandchildren.
2007-03-26 12:07:22 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If your cockatiel hasn't been with a male the egg is infertile meaning there will not be a baby hatching from the egg.
If this was her first egg she is just being a protective mother because she doesn't know thee egg is fertile or not.
Your friend needs to remove the egg because it will rot.
The female is prone to become egg bound meaning her egg wont come out of her because she cant pass the egg so it is important to either get her a mate or take her to the vet to be checked out.
2007-03-26 12:13:45 · answer #3 · answered by musicpeacemaker@prodigy.net 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I have cockatiels too. They are both female. They lay eggs, but they don't hatch b/c there are no males. Tell your friend not to worry about the eggs and to remove them whenever she cleans the cage.
2007-03-26 12:02:28 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Basically you have to have a male to have a fertile egg........so it doesnt have a baby in it......its like buying a store bought egg.........the bird doesnt know any better........she is just doing what a mother bird would do. Mother birds roll the eggs over to switch sides to keep them warm........we always just took the eggs out. Get a little white ball to stick in there or something. Maybe she will not notice.......maybe! She might have realized that the egg is useless too.
2007-03-26 12:07:19 · answer #5 · answered by Belou_Eyes 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
All female birds can lay eggs without them being fertilised by a male and they still have the nesting instinct which is what she is doing with the egg.
2007-03-26 12:02:53 · answer #6 · answered by stevehart53 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Have her take the egg out, there is no chance of it being fertile. The hen could make herself very ill trying to take care of the egg. When you have a pair they take turns with the egg so both have a chance to eat, drink and eliminate. Single cockatiels have been known to starve themselves in taking care of the nest.
She is pushing it around trying to find a "safe" place for it. Since there is no nest box, she has no safe place but may continue to look until she is exhausted.
2007-03-26 12:10:04 · answer #7 · answered by Shalvia 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋
well from my knowledge of birds..some female birds tend to lay placebo eggs..so they dont need to have been with a male bird to lay them..it isnt fertilized but the bird will act like it is..when you touch some birds eggs they tend peck you because they are trying to protect their eggs..normal behaviour for the bird to roll it round trying to find a safe place to place it so tht you wont touch it again..thats all ive got for now..
2007-03-26 12:04:48 · answer #8 · answered by sinful vampyra 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Whatever you do, DO NOT REMOVE THE EGGS until she is done sitting on them!!! If they are removed, she will just continue to lay more and deplete her system of calcium, thus causing her to become eggbound. If that happens she will die if not promptly seen by a vet.
Make sure that she is getting pleanty of calcium in her diet to replace what she is loosing by making the eggs.
2007-03-26 14:18:12 · answer #9 · answered by Christie D 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Maternal instincts let her have it till it becomes fragile and cracks shell get over it
2007-03-26 12:00:50 · answer #10 · answered by jigadee 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋