# Egg laying



## Merlin (Jan 17, 2012)

It has been ages since I have been on here, but I need some information. 

When I got Merlin I was told it was a male, someone on here said that it was actually a female based on her colouring....well I have 100% proof that Merlin is a She as she laid an egg!!!!

Merlin is an only cockatiel. I realize that they can lay eggs without a male, so this didnt shock me to much. She has laid 2 eggs, and it has been 3 days since she laid the 2nd one. She also doesnt seem to have any interest in the eggs. One is on the bottom of the cage and the other is in her coconut shell swing that we use for treats (so up in the air). 

I do not believe she is egg bound as she is acting normal, climbing around her cage as normal and quite vocal with me as usual. She is a strict seed eater (much to my dismay), so I have added a vitamin supplement to her water as per the vets recomendation. 

I am wondering, is she only going to lay the 2 eggs? Can I remove them as she seems to have no interest in them? 
She started laying last week, the day before her cage cleaning day...because I wasnt sure exactly how upset she would get if I cleaned her cage, I have put it off...now she is not living in disgusting conditions, but she is due for a cage cleaning...so can I clean it, or do I need to leave her alone while she is in the nesting stage? 

Any information would be much appreciated.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

You can clean the cage, but put the eggs back when you're done. Some birds will start sitting after several eggs have been laid, so you want to make sure that she's finished and has ignored the eggs for a full week before you remove them.

We have a sticky on hormone control and dealing with unwanted egg laying at http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=32330 The information will be helpful.


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## Merlin (Jan 17, 2012)

Great, thanks so much. Lots of great info I will be trying out starting tomorrow!


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## MeanDonnaJean (Dec 3, 2011)

I was in this same situation myself a couple of months (?) ago Merlin, so I know exactly how ya feel. My lone year old female began showin' all the classic signs of "nesting" and before I knew it BAM!....she had laid an egg inside her "snuggle hut" (which, prior to that day she had NEVER stepped foot neither IN or even ON the **** thing. It was only a couple of weeks before then that she started constantly wantin' to play "peek-a-boo" in it with me...and THAT shoulda been my FIRST sign that sumthin' wasn't "rite" with her). A few days later she started stayin' inside the hut **** near all day & nite long and that's when I saw egg #2. Egg #3 wasn't too far behind. She sat on those darn things for two-plus weeks straight....until one day she just up'd 'n came struttin' outta the hut and was back to her ol' silly self again. I removed the eggs from the hut and even removed the hut from the cage, but I did keep the eggs hangin' around as a kinda "trophy" for about a week afterwards. I couldn't help myself, they were just so darn.....cute!  (well, all except 1 which _was_ kinda deformed...but that was some kinda strange "fluke" thing that happened). 

Anyway, since then I haven't had any problems with her, and I refuse to put that darn hut back in her cage for the long haul. But now I know.....if ever she wants to start playin' hide 'n seek again in ANYTHING, I _may_ be in for another BIG surprise


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

> all except 1 which was kinda deformed.


This is not a good sign - she might have laid a soft-shelled egg which indicates a calcium deficiency. Calcium deficiency can lead to egg binding and other egg-related problems which are potentially fatal, so it's best to start working on her calcium intake and also her vitamin D levels. 

Here is some information on soft-shelled eggs from srtiels' photo album at http://s525.photobucket.com/albums/...birds/Eggs and Reproductive system/?start=all :




























Here are some stickies on calcium deficiency and sources of vitamin D3:
http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=19866
http://talkcockatiels.com/showthread.php?t=27549

And from http://www.littlefeatheredbuddies.com/info/nutrition-tieldiet.html#breeders :

"A liquid calcium product made specifically for birds may be helpful. There are several different brands (Calcivet is the best known) but they all seem to have the same formula: Liquid Calcium Borogluconate 33g/L with Vitamin D3 (2500 Lu/L) and Magnesium (MG ++7) 2g/L. It's good to have liquid calcium on hand when your birds are breeding; it can prevent calcium deficiency in your hen if she doesn't have access to other good sources of calcium and vitamin D, and a drop of liquid calcium placed directly in the beak will sometimes relieve egg binding. This type of calcium is very easily absorbed by the body. It's possible to overdose on calcium however, so liquid calcium should be used with caution. "

Going off topic for a moment: I know you're a good writer because you are diligent about punctuation and your spelling and grammar is good when you choose to write that way. I don't want to offend you, but if you don't mind, could you write in standard English except for occasional moments of humor? The "hills of West Virginia" writing style is obviously a conscious choice but it makes your posts harder to read. Thank you, and BTW I'm related to the Hatfields (as in "Hatfields and McCoys) so "hillbilly" isn't exactly alien territory to me. I just prefer standard English unless I'm reading Huckleberry Finn or something like that.


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