Egg Laying

[Guest Jocelyn]

We are still looking into getting our grey, there is a female in our area. She is 7 and has laid eggs in the past. I hear egg laying can be dangerous for them. Is that a bird we should avoid?

[Dave007]

That type of question has a couple of answers. First off, I assume that the bird was doing this with the former owner. The reason that birds will lay mltiple amounts of clutches is that when a bird does this, the owner immediately removes the eggs as they come out. That's no good because it only causes the hen to start the process all over again (quickly) and eventually a new clutch appears. When bird does lays eggs like yours does, the bird must be given an area where she can incubate the eggs even though the eggs aren't any good. Approximately 25 to 30 days later the hen will tire of sitting/incubating on the infertile eggs and will either puh them sway or ignore them. That's a process that slows down the urge to lay eggs in the future. Usually breeding season passes and the bird knows this and the desire to mate goes away.

The other situation is about birds who constantly lay eggs all the time. That type of behavior is known as chronic. That type of behavior weakens a bird and can possibly lead to egg binding and a large loss of calcium which greys need. If the bird is doing that, a vet is neded and an exam is needed and the vet determines what the problem is. What you didn't say was what catagory this bird falls into and the only way to find out is by speaking to the previous owners. If you've never had a grey before, think hard about what you wanna do. Many people will tell you that they own birds with many problems and haven't had any problems but those people aren't you.

PS---the pevious owners may have been constantly rubbing and petting the bird's sexual areas and that can cause egg laying especially with an adult bird which a 7 yr old bird is--an adult. 6yrs and older is when a bird becomes sexually mature.

 

Chronic egg laying definitely requires a vet visit.

Edited September 18, 2012 by Dave007

[Guest Jocelyn]

Thanks so much Dave, I have not contacted the owners yet, I just saw their add and saw they mentioned they knew it was a female because she had begun laying eggs. So that is pretty normal of them then?

Maybe I should ask how many eggs and go from there?

[Dave007]

Thanks so much Dave, I have not contacted the owners yet, I just saw their add and saw they mentioned they knew it was a female because she had begun laying eggs. So that is pretty normal of them then?

Maybe I should ask how many eggs and go from there?

 

well, that sounds quite different than before. They probably didn't know the sex of the bird before putting it up for sale and laying eggs will settle that question. Many buyers wanna know if the bird is either male or female and they just proved it to you.

 

You should ask about how many eggs

You should ask if the bird was around any other bird which may have stimulated her

You should ask her if the bird has been doing this frequently and if they say yes, ask about the amount of clutches she's had.

The bird may be one that's overproductive or easily stimulated.

 

There are birds that do lay eggs during mating season even if there's no male around and that applies to all species.

Believe it or not, even males have been known to lay eggs. Most of them are older than the age of 18 yrs old and it doesn't happen often.

If the bird has been doing this all the time, I can only say that you should read my original answer to you. You need to make up your own mind. Others don't know you and neither do I. Don't be swayed into changing your mind one way or another. Make yourself happy.

Edited September 19, 2012 by Dave007

[Guest Jocelyn]

Good information! They said she has laid 3 eggs in total, all in the past year. No other birds around so from the sounds of things this is not something that should eliminate her from the running...

[judygram]

Dave has given you some good suggestions for things to ask about before deciding to take this grey and only you know if you can handle it or not, please find out all you can so you can make the best decision for you and the bird.

[Guest Jocelyn]

Agreed this particular family said we can meet the bird a few times to see if we click before making a decision.