Female question and another

[ubecrew610]

When i rescued my bird they said they think she is a female but has never even made an attempted at an egg, does this mean she is a male, or at the age of 4 just not mature?

 

I only ask because i know some one who wants to give up his bird a male that is six months old and i really on have room for one cage, so i would like to see if they would get along, and not fight, but i dont want any little babies, or even the chance of mine becoming egg bound or any thing.

 

If both birds get along really well, and my self and soon to be wife spend alot of time with them are there any drawbacks to having them in the same cage.

[BMustee]

Yes there is. For one the chance of these birds getting along to the point of being able to share a cage is slim to none. Most birds that can be kept in the same cage are littermates or have been raised together from only weeks old. If you were to get the other grey and just stick it in your 4 year olds cage she could and probably would attack the baby. Second, a 4-year-old grey is not going to be sexually mature yet but soon will. Just because she has not laid an egg does not say what sex she is. Lets say you got the other bird, regardless of the sexes of both if they bonded they probably would not bond to you the way a single bird would. Some birds like Hyacinth and Buffon's macaws are known to be more open to human companionship even with a bonded partner bird but greys are not known for this so if they were to bond you would not be someone they would want to spend their time with.

 

The rule of thumb is if you want more than one bird you need more than one cage.

[ubecrew610]

but back to the whole egg thing. If i keep her alone, will i ever need to woory about her lying an egg. her becoming egg bound really scares me?

[danmcq]

She could start laying eggs at anytime or maybe never if she is a female once she has reached sexual maturity.

[Tari]

My female is almost 9 years old and has never laid an eye.

Extra calcium in her diet well help but you yes she can get egg bound.

Of the 60 pairs of birds out where I work there is only one bird that sometimes get eggs bound. So the odds are she never will.

[BMustee]

Once a bird passes it's first egg the chances are slim it will ever be egg bound. I myself lost a female Star Finch to egg binding...it was her first egg ever. I wouldn't worry too much about it if your not breeding her because some birds won't lay eggs just to lay them. Like Tari said, some extra calcium could help and feed her a well-rounded diet.

 

The signs of egg binding are sitting fluffed up and looking like they are trying to poop/push a lot. If you notice that she is fluffed, not as energetic and isn't pooping anymore that is when you need to go to an avian vet ASAP! They are trained to get the egg out safely.

[judygram]

Thanks, BMustee for your advice on females and laying eggs and egg binding, you know your stuff and we are grateful for your knowledge. I have a female too and I don't look forward to possibly seeing an egg laid by her or the possibility of her being egg bound but you gave me the warning signs to look for and karma is coming your way for sure.

[BMustee]

No problem B). I'm always nervous about my breeder finches health and anything I have learned that helps anyone else I want to get out there. Too bad I had to learn about egg binding the hard way but hopfully from my loss I help other birds. I'm always freaking out right before my finches lay eggs because right before a normal egg lay they will look fluffed and have a "pushy" look to their vents, but as long as they are pooping and active they're good. I always watch them very close...even the ones that have had previous clutches...because of that one time.

 

Right back at ya' with the karma!

[kiwibarb12]

One thing you might also consider is that egg laying doesn't always happen with onset of sexual maturity. Beckett waited until he was eleven to lay her first eggs, and became egg bound. TG my vet was able to save her, but things didn't look too good for a while (broken shell inside her, too high to pull out)

 

Now I look sideways everytime she gets a little hormonal. She pretty much sighs ever time I check her vent for the feel of an egg. She thinks its undignified, but that I am just a bit on the weird side- you know, bird molester- but since I am the source for cashews, she puts up with it.

[BMustee]

{Feel-good-0002006E}

 

You gotta do what you gotta do!

[judygram]

You got that right and we do have to do some disgusting things sometimes.

 

 

{Feel-good-0002006E}