cockatiel help?

Question

My cockatiel layed 2 eggs, I know how to check if their fertile or not but whenever i even put my hand in the cage she gets overprotective and tries to bite me. Even when she's not on the eggs she goes crazy. what should I do?
also i don't know if this is right, but are you supposed to pick up the eggs and shine a flashlight through them and if you see veins or blood vessels their fertile. but i dont know about that because alot of people say even with household pet birds they will reject the egg if it has a human scent on it.and my parents say i should use gloves, is this information right if not can you tell me all or some of the waays to check if the eggs are fertile. what should i do?
sorry about all the spelling and quotation messups.

there is a male, but i keep him in a seperate cage since the female layed her eggs because the female (Oats) really laid 5 eggs and the male (Bunchers) cracked 3 but the female is still sitting on the cracked one because she thinks it isn't cracked. and i can't remove it beacause of what I said above.

she's been siting on her eggs since June 10th

Answer 1

I would like to educate the people who think if you touch a baby bird or its egg that the parent will reject it because of the humane scent. If that be the case then people like me who are professional breeders would never have any baby birds.

This has been a long running myth, but it isn't true.

Birds have the same basic five senses we do: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. However, their senses are a bit different because they are custom-tailored for the birds way of live. Like people, sight and hearing are the two most important senses for birds.

A sense of smell is important for birds.

I am very surprised at Jessica S who also Parrot owner and Avian Biologist in training doesn't know that birds can smell . Some may smell better then others such as Vultures that can smell something that is dead from far away.

Physiologists have records to show that from testing with electrical impulses transmitted through the bird's olfactory nerves, proving that these birds can smell.

The Parents are going to go on the defense if you touch their eggs, it isn't because your scent offends them, its their natural instinct to protect the eggs, and when the chick hatch out, the parents will still continue to act aggressive.

If you need to candle the eggs just use something to keep the parents back away, but be careful how you handle the egg because they are very fragile. You don't want to drop or jar the egg around too much because if there is life inside you could accidentally cause the embryo and the membrane to separate which will kill it.

Why did you separate the male and female? unlike rodents Birds stay together and take turns caring for the eggs and also take turns caring for the chicks. If all the eggs were to hatch it would be too much work for the female alone. She does need her mate in the cage to help her out.

I have had a case where the male was left on his own to hatch out the chicks because my female had died. I ended up helping him out. As each chick turned 10 days old I had to take them away and place them in a brooder then hand feed them.

You do need to get out the cracked egg because once it starts to rot, it will smell bad plus if the female was to eat it then she could get sick.

Please contact me if you need more help . I have raised over 250 baby Cockatiels.
Sapphyre
Certified Avian Specialist
http://www.borrowed-rainbow.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BorrowedRainbowAviary/

Answer 2

Best thing to do is to keep the bird in a very quiet and not too bright place. This will calm the bird down. Don't try to pick up the eggs as this will only get the bird very agitated. You don't need to know if the eggs are fertile or not. Just let nature take it's course. Just keep away from the eggs and keep your bird away from a lot of noise. Place a towel over the cage occasionally even during the day, as this will calm the bird down. Good luck and don't worry.

Answer 3

If there is a male in the cage with your female, there is a chance that the eggs are fertile. If she is the only bird in the cage, they are infertile eggs. You do not have to wear gloves to handle the eggs, but you do need to be sure your hands are clean. It is correct to shine a strong light in a dark room to see if you can find veins or dark matter inside the egg. You hen is definitely on protective mode right now, so you'll have to be very careful not to accidentally hurt her, the eggs, or yourself in the process. Did she have a nest box to lay the eggs in? If not and the eggs are fertile you will need to get her one. If they are not fertile it is important to leave the eggs in there until she gets bored of sitting on them. (A normal clutch is about 5 eggs.) Otherwise she will continue to lay eggs to replace the ones to take out.This can lead to a major calcium deficiency. Also, you will have to watch for any egg binding. This happens when eggs get "stuck" in the bird's tract instead of being laid. This is a serious and fatal condition if the bird does not get help passing the egg soon. If you or your parents have no experience will egg bound birds, I would take her to an AVIAN vet ASAP so he can look her over an help her. Signs of egg binding are often very clear. She'll appear to have a "lump" in her vent area and will often strain herself, lowering her wings. Sometimes a bird will absolutely wear itself out trying to pass and egg and the bird will lose its balance and fall from its perch. I'm not trying to scare you, just trying to tell you what can happen.
If you and your parents are not willing to or wanting to hatch baby cockatiels, there is the option of "addling" the eggs, or shaking them rapidly to prevent the formation of the chick. This is considered unethical by many people and I am not here to be the judge of that, just here to answer your question with as many options as possible. There are many responsibilities that go along with raising birds. If the parents do not feed the chicks (as many first time parents do) the chicks will need to be hand fed. The new birds will need new homes, they are VERY susceptible to upper respiratory infections, especially at a young age and can quickly die. For the future, if you are not intent on raising birds, I would separate your male and female into different cages to prevent them from mating in the future. They do not have to be permanently separated, just when the couple are showing signs of being in a breeding mood. I hope that helped! :)

Answer 4

Just leave the bird alone so she doesn't get stressed out! If there is a male in the cage with her, they may be fertile. You'll know in about 3 weeks. Even if they're not, leave them there anyway so she doesn't keep laying eggs. Go to www.cockatielcottage.net for more breeding info.

Answer 5

Then leave her alone and let her have her own time to sit on her eggs. You will know within 21 days weather or not they are good by them hatching. Leave her alone or she may abandon them all together thus never hatching any of them out. Dont make it so important to you to know if they are good or not, causeing her to give up on all the disruptions. Especially if shes a new mother. You really need to leave her alone for the next month especailly while shes sitting on them and when they are born up to 2 weeks. If you bug her enough when they are born she may bite them in the head killing them because of your interferance. This is her time, let her have it.

Answer 6

i like all styles of cockatiels. I very own the traditional gray ones, albino ones and pied one and a few pied yellow cut up ones. they are all gorgeous of their very own way. I very own 12 cockatiels and have suitable now 10 eggs and 3 toddlers.