# Mom is ignoring egg



## Bambi (Jun 26, 2012)

Hi everyone, 

I have a question yesterday Friday 4/14/17 my 1 yr old albino tiel Beautiful just laid her 1st egg. I also have another tiel that has laid an egg and she and her partner have been in their nest keep their egg warm this whole time. Yesterday Beautiful and her partner were in their nest keeping their egg warm but today both her and her partner have been out the whole time and have not been inside the nest all day. Is this normal or did the mom abandon her egg? Should I give it some more time so she can get used to it, they are 1st time parents? Also both males have been fighting should I separate the couples?

Any feedback is really appreciated. :wf pied:


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## chefontheloose (Dec 11, 2016)

Bambi said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> I have a question yesterday Friday 4/14/17 my 1 yr old albino tiel Beautiful just laid her 1st egg. I also have another tiel that has laid an egg and she and her partner have been in their nest keep their egg warm this whole time. Yesterday Beautiful and her partner were in their nest keeping their egg warm but today both her and her partner have been out the whole time and have not been inside the nest all day. Is this normal or did the mom abandon her egg? Should I give it some more time so she can get used to it, they are 1st time parents? Also both males have been fighting should I separate the couples?
> 
> Any feedback is really appreciated. :wf pied:


She won't sit on the eggs until she has 2 or 3 eggs laid. Then she'll start nesting. 

Sent from my GT-I9507 using Tapatalk


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## roxy culver (May 27, 2010)

> She won't sit on the eggs until she has 2 or 3 eggs laid. Then she'll start nesting.


That actually depends on the bird. Some new breeders have no idea what they're doing. Keep an eye on them to make sure they start sitting after the 2nd egg is laid (the two babies will hatch very close together). You might have to foster the eggs to your other pair and help with feeding if they don't sit properly.


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## EllenD (Oct 9, 2016)

In my experience breeding cockatiels and budgies, most birds will lay 2-3 eggs before they sit on them, while some birds will start sitting on their first egg right after laying it, though that is not usually the norm. My budgie breeders over the years, both English and American, rarely ever sat on their eggs until they laid at least 2 or 3, while my cockatiels were usually the same, though the couple of birds that I remember sitting on their first laid egg were cockatiels. That being said, during their very first clutch, the birds that sat on their first egg right after laying it ALWAYS sat on their first egg laid in EVERY clutch. So as already mentioned it definitely goes by individual birds, and however they do it seems to be how they'll do it every time they lay a clutch.

Also, if it's the very first clutch laid for a pair they may be a little "scatterbrained" about what they are doing, lol. Just like the very first clutch for a pair may have most or all of the eggs infertile because they haven't quite gotten the hang of "things" yet, they also may not get it together until they have laid two or three eggs, and then they realize they need to do their thing. 

Just watch both clutches, it's nice that you have two separate pairs laying clutches simultaneously so you can compare what is going on and their timing. I'd say if that hen lays another egg and doesn't start sitting on them at that point (by the end of the day she lays the second egg, make sure you give her some time to eat, drink, poop, etc. after laying it before you take her eggs away) you may want to consider fostering them to the other pair that is sitting on her clutch.

"Dance like nobody's watching..."


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## ParrotletsRock (Oct 8, 2013)

I will add if the pairs are fighting then yes they should be separated.


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## abeabi (Apr 5, 2017)

I would separate the pairs as well


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