# What if I DON'T candle?



## dshiro2012 (Feb 4, 2013)

Is it bad that I kind of don't want to candle out of fear of dropping an egg since the other one was broken? I just don't want to risk the possibility of losing a fertile egg.

I really wanted to in the beginning...but ever since that egg broke I've been scared to touch them in any way besides to make them. And even then (since I mark the bottom) I'm scared I somehow rolled them wrong and hurt the possibility of them hatching somehow. Am I just being too worried, or is this truly a possibility?

I just don't want them to die and then Patience lay another egg and hurt herself.


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## JaimeS (Nov 28, 2011)

There is no rule saying you have to candle! Most people do it because they want to know if the egg is fertile but if you are okay with waiting to find out then there is no reason you have to candle.

Moving the eggs around a lot or forcefully could cause damage or death but I don't think normal, gentle handling would cause issues. 

Having eggs can surely be stressful!


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## Haimovfids (Sep 19, 2012)

People candle their eggs when they want to know if it is fertile or if the egg is DIS 

You don't have to if you don't want to. Warning curiosity killed the cat here LOL


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## roxy culver (May 27, 2010)

Candling is totally up to you! I do it solely so I can keep an eye on the eggs, I've had eggs that have gotten cracks in them and because I check on them regularly I was able to patch them. Its a personal preference and trust me, I'm always afraid I'm going to drop an egg (which is why I hold it over the box so if I do it falls into the bedding.) You can't turn it wrong to be honest, the parents are turning the eggs all the time.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Candling is completely optional. There's always a risk that an egg will get dropped or damaged somehow, but careful handling usually works pretty well. If you do decide to candle, make sure the parent birds are well out of range because when you have an egg in your hand it's possible for a parent to strike at your hand and accidentally hit the egg instead. I lost an egg that way once. I wasn't trying to candle it at the time, just fixing the arrangement inside the nest, and Shodu suddenly came in and tried to hit my hand. 

When you handle the eggs you obviously want to avoid violent shaking or jarring. But gently turning the egg isn't going to do any harm. The parent birds turn the eggs several times a day (it keeps the embryo from sticking to one side of the shell) and they do it with their beaks because they don't have a nice set of fingers with an opposable thumb to help them. So the handling doesn't have to be super gentle.

Actually the most important principle for egg handling is to wash your hands first. The eggshells are porous and there's a low risk that bacteria from your hands could pass through the shell and harm the embryo.


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## dshiro2012 (Feb 4, 2013)

roxy culver said:


> Candling is totally up to you! I do it solely so I can keep an eye on the eggs, I've had eggs that have gotten cracks in them and because I check on them regularly I was able to patch them. Its a personal preference and trust me, I'm always afraid I'm going to drop an egg (which is why I hold it over the box so if I do it falls into the bedding.) You can't turn it wrong to be honest, the parents are turning the eggs all the time.


Is there a certain number of times a day I can check the nestbox without stressing the parents too much?


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## dshiro2012 (Feb 4, 2013)

tielfan said:


> Candling is completely optional. There's always a risk that an egg will get dropped or damaged somehow, but careful handling usually works pretty well. If you do decide to candle, make sure the parent birds are well out of range because when you have an egg in your hand it's possible for a parent to strike at your hand and accidentally hit the egg instead. I lost an egg that way once. I wasn't trying to candle it at the time, just fixing the arrangement inside the nest, and Shodu suddenly came in and tried to hit my hand.
> 
> When you handle the eggs you obviously want to avoid violent shaking or jarring. But gently turning the egg isn't going to do any harm. The parent birds turn the eggs several times a day (it keeps the embryo from sticking to one side of the shell) and they do it with their beaks because they don't have a nice set of fingers with an opposable thumb to help them. So the handling doesn't have to be super gentle.
> 
> Actually the most important principle for egg handling is to wash your hands first. The eggshells are porous and there's a low risk that bacteria from your hands could pass through the shell and harm the embryo.


Thank you! I always wash my hands, but was so worried because I basically climbed into the cage to open the nest box and didn't want the lid falling down and cracking the egg or me dropping it, so I would use one hand to slightly lift the egg up (still touching the bedding) onto it's point and marking it on the bottom, then I put it back down. Is this ok? I know they turn to keep them from sticking, but wasn't sure if this was ok since I don't know if they just roll them side to side, or if it's possible they turn the over that way. I feel ridiculously stupid. But thanks so much for all your help. Once they reach 2 weeks I'll be good (since that's when I started handfeeding baby and her brothers) so I know what to expect from there, but up until that point I don't want to do anything that could risk hurting them or their parents!


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## Haimovfids (Sep 19, 2012)

I know exactly how you feel
When my birds laid their first egg I told my family about it then they started opening the nest and making noise. 
I was more territorial then the parents and the parents where to the extreme. LOL


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## roxy culver (May 27, 2010)

You can check the box as much as you want but I usually only check it twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

The frequency of nest checking will depend on the temperament of the parents and how easily you can check the eggs. Some parents are more tolerant than others, and you should avoid too much disruption if the parents are badly upset by it. It sounds like your nestbox is inside the cage where it's not easy to check, and if that's correct then it will be safer and less disruptive if you don't check too often.


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## dshiro2012 (Feb 4, 2013)

roxy culver said:


> You can check the box as much as you want but I usually only check it twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening.


OK. So can I also just leave them be after tomorrow if I see they haven't laid another egg? Or would you recommend me checking?


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## dshiro2012 (Feb 4, 2013)

tielfan said:


> The frequency of nest checking will depend on the temperament of the parents and how easily you can check the eggs. Some parents are more tolerant than others, and you should avoid too much disruption if the parents are badly upset by it. It sounds like your nestbox is inside the cage where it's not easy to check, and if that's correct then it will be safer and less disruptive if you don't check too often.


Yeah, that's what I was thinking. I guess I will just check today and tomorrow and just leave them be all-together until closer to 21 days after the first egg was laid. Then I'll start checking if I see any of the eggs starting to hatch. That way I can mark the chick and gather the egg shell to send out to get sexed.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

If the adults do their job correctly, you'll know when an egg has hatched because you'll hear the chick peeping when it's being fed. It's a good idea to monitor the nest more closely around hatching time so you'll know if a baby is having trouble breaking out of the egg and needs hatch assistance, or if a baby has hatched but is NOT being cared for.


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## dshiro2012 (Feb 4, 2013)

tielfan said:


> If the adults do their job correctly, you'll know when an egg has hatched because you'll hear the chick peeping when it's being fed. It's a good idea to monitor the nest more closely around hatching time so you'll know if a baby is having trouble breaking out of the egg and needs hatch assistance, or if a baby has hatched but is NOT being cared for.


How do I know when it mat need assistance?


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

The article at http://www.internationalcockatielresource.com/assisted-hatches-updated.html talks about how to identify problems and what to do about them.


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## dshiro2012 (Feb 4, 2013)

tielfan said:


> The article at http://www.internationalcockatielresource.com/assisted-hatches-updated.html talks about how to identify problems and what to do about them.


Thank you for your help!


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