# We have an egg!!!! :D



## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

Hey guys!!! 

So we have an egg.... how exciting!!! Our 'tiels are gonna be parents 

Bit of background: Rocky (11) and Bella (1) are our two cockatiels. I've had Rocky a loooong time, since he was just a ball of feathers. We recently dealt with a feather plucking problem with him, but a vet checkup confirmed that he is healthy, its just habitual. In saying that though, he won't stop doing it  So we've just left him be. He seems his normal old self behaviour wise, despite the bald patches on his chest!

Rocky and Bella were introduced a few months ago (initially to keep Rocky company after his male mate passed away, it was an added bonus to find out that she was a girl!) and have gotten along like a house on fire... it wasn't long till we started catching them 'in the act' :lol: Both were moved outside into an aviary once winter finished, and the weather warmed up. I decided to buy a nestbox for the both of them, since they are both sexually active - being that Rocky is getting on in age, I have been thrilled over the concept of having some baby Rockies to outlive him and continue on his legacy 

Rocky took to the nestbox almost immediately, claimed it as his own and made himself comfortable. He worked hard to get it all setup the way he wanted it! It wasn't long until Bella started showing an interest as well, popping in and out regularly.

Anyway, it seems things have progressed... I noticed a few days ago that Rocky was spending a LOT of time in the nestbox. He'll be in there nearly ALL DAY, unless we call him out! Then, yesterday, I noticed Bella showing particular enthusiasm for their calcium block and cuttlebone.... upping calcium intake. I put two and two together, and got very suspicious. Entered the aviary, where Rocky came out of the box, got defensive and tried to attack me :lol: Then both he AND Bella disappeared into the nestbox together. I opened the lid, both were crouched in there, looking up at me.... and I spotted a little white egg poking out from underneath Bella. 

Very exciting moment for me  

Anyway, both of them are being VERY parental over this one egg right now!! Rocky is spending the majority of time in there, sitting on it. If he leaves the nestbox, she immediately goes in. I have upped their fruit and veg intake, making sure they also have fresh food, water and calcium available.

As this is Rocky's first time as a parent (he has previously had one female mate, but she never laid any eggs, despite them copulating regularly - probably because they were in a bird cage, not an aviary) I would really appreciate any input into what happens from this stage onwards? 

What is the best I can do for them to ensure they have healthy, happy babies?

I have been reading up like crazy over the past couple of days, apparently more eggs may/will be on the way every couple of days, is this corret? And when is the earliest that I can candle them to see if any are viable?

I've also been reading up on problems to watch out for - egg binding, also what to do in the event of having to hand-rear babies (I completed a course on caring for Australian birds many years ago, so really just needed the refresher!) 

Any advice would appreciated for this one very excited 'nan', being that this is the very first time Rocky has had the opportunity to become a dad - despite the 11 years of cockatiel ownership and experience, this is an area that is all very new to me


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

Ok, seems I posted a little too soon... just wandered out to check the nestbox again (first time since yesterday arvo) and there's another egg in there!

We now have 2 eggs 

Wonder if they are fertile?? Oh, this is so exciting!


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

in about 5-7 days from sitting you can check the eggs for fertility 

what bedding are you using in the nestbox? just asking


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## Debbie05 (Feb 9, 2010)

Congrats!!!! Wait 5 days and candle the eggs to see if they are fertile.


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## RexiesMuM (Sep 7, 2011)

Congrats so exciting !


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

DallyTsuka said:


> what bedding are you using in the nestbox? just asking


Hi Dally,

We had been using straw (same as their chicken neighbours) but I've since learnt that this isn't as suitable as I had initially thought. So I'll be heading into town this afternoon to get something more suitable from the pet store... I've heard sawdust is best?

What would you recommend?


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## xoxsarahxox (Dec 13, 2010)

Congrats on the eggs! I hope they are fertile! Aspen shavings or pine shavings are the best beddings I have heard.


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## 4birdsNC (Dec 4, 2010)

I would not get sawdust! Pine or aspen shavings are best. Congrats on the eggs. About every two days she can produce and egg. Most teils lay 4 to 8 eggs. Get a small flashlight, a pen light is best, and just touch the egg with the light end. The egg will glow with reddish streaks in it, if it is fertile. Would love to see pictures of the prospective parents. Good luck!


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Pine or aspen wood shavings, not sawdust. Sawdust is an inhalation hazard. 

In the US these shavings can be found in pet stores, usually in the small animal (rodent) department. I don't know what brands are available in Oz, but over here Kaytee is a nice clean brand. Some brands have lots of sawdust in them which is bad. Stay away from cedar, it's too aromatic for birds.


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

4birdsNC said:


> Would love to see pictures of the prospective parents. Good luck!


Sure  Here's a couple taken on the day they were moved out into their new aviary home!

This is Rocky:









And here's Bella: 









Proud parents-to-be 









Oh, I should probably add that yeah, that is indeed a cardboard kettle box nestbox you can see in the background of those pics lol  I put it in there just to see if they had any initial interest in using it. Rocky started exploring it almost straight away, so the next day I replaced it with a proper wooden one from the pet shop 

Thanks for all the advice so far on egg laying and candling (and nesting material)! I'll most certainly keep you all updated on their progress 

I'm just very happy that the new house we moved into came with an unused aviary... it has been a blessing in disguise for these two!! Rocky has never known himself to now be living in a nice big 'mansion' compared to the bird cage he used to reside in over the past 10 years


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

Ok, thanks again on the advice for nesting material... will definitely avoid the sawdust and get shavings instead - hopefully they will stock the ones you have mentioned in our local stores here! I may have to check the supermarkets, too.

Cheers


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## xoxsarahxox (Dec 13, 2010)

Your birds are gorgeous!!


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

xoxsarahxox said:


> Your birds are gorgeous!!


Why thank you  I know Rocky considers himself to be quite the stud lol 

I love the pic in your sig of Aero and Cupid, they are so cute  Beautiful colours!


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## Debbie05 (Feb 9, 2010)

Your Rocky looks just like my Spike. He just had some very pretty babies. They are between 2 and 3 weeks old. They even had a suprise, a lutino.


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

Ok, so I got hold of a bag of pine shavings from the pet store this afternoon, and when I got home, I relocated both tiels temporarily into their old cage (whilst still in the aviary) so that I could access the nestbox without being attacked.

I took out the straw and replaced it with the shavings, made a little hollow where it was before, and gently put the eggs back in.

Problem is, now it looks like both cockatiels are rejecting the nestbox? They went in and out a few times, but now both are roosting outside.

After sitting around outside and noticing this behaviour for a while, I went back in and re-added some straw to the inside of the nestbox (similar to how it originally was, except the eggs are now sitting on the soft pile of shavings in the hollow, instead of on the hard wooden bottom) but it doesn't seem to have changed their minds. They haven't returned to sitting on the eggs since before I changed the bedding, they just remain outside 

Its now 7.30pm and I went out to check on them, and they are both still roosting outside, cuddled up in a corner of the aviary where they don't usually sit 

Did I screw things up by changing the bedding? I have a really bad gut feeling now that I should have just left things be


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## fuzzipurr (Aug 17, 2011)

They are beautiful, good luck with the eggs.


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## 4birdsNC (Dec 4, 2010)

They may go back in... she should still have eggs to lay. But You should have just added a little wood shavings at a time while they were in the box. That way nothing serious had changed.


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## lperry82 (Aug 2, 2010)

Oh wow they are so adorable


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

4birdsNC said:


> They may go back in... she should still have eggs to lay. But You should have just added a little wood shavings at a time while they were in the box. That way nothing serious had changed.


Thanks 4birds, I kinda wish I had did that now :/ 

The good news is that I just went out to check and Rocky is back in the nestbox this morning  I couldn't have been happier to see this, believe me!!! 

I still wonder though if they both spent the entire night outside, though? When I checked on them before bed, they were both sitting outside still :blink:

Would those 2 eggs be still ok after being left unsat on overnight, if they didn't go back in till this morning? Or can I expect them to be unviable now?


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## DyArianna (Aug 7, 2011)

Don't hold out hope yet. Most birds don't sit constantly until about the 2nd or 3rd egg.. so they might just set up camp here yet. Keeping fingers crossed for you!


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

DyArianna said:


> Don't hold out hope yet. Most birds don't sit constantly until about the 2nd or 3rd egg.. so they might just set up camp here yet. Keeping fingers crossed for you!


Thanks DyArianna, definitely fingers crossed! I'll keep you all updated 

And thank you to everyone who has given me advice sofar, I really appreciate it!


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

Went for a wander into the aviary this morning.... 3 eggs in the nestbox   

And I also noticed that they have adjusted the bedding to their liking, which is good... they have hollowed out the opposite corner this time round. At least the eggs are no longer on the hard bottom of the box, and are sitting on a soft pile shavings


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## morla (Aug 15, 2011)

Oh! Congrats! That is very exciting!


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## DyArianna (Aug 7, 2011)

Well that's good news! Hopefully things pan out. Keep us posted.


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

Just another update 

I candled the eggs this morning, and it looks like the one of them is definitely fertile  I am guessing it is the one laid on Saturday (5 days ago) as the other two (3 days ago, 1 day ago) are still clear, and its probably still too early to tell!

But yeah, one of them definitely has the red veins inside it (attached to a tiny red blob), along with what looks like a clear bubble at one end.

So at least one baby Rocky on the way  Yahoo!!!

ETA: Thought I'd share a pic


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## Debbie05 (Feb 9, 2010)

Well that is great news. Hope all goes well. Good luck.


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

Ok so Bella has laid 3 eggs sofar... 1 on Saturday, 1 on Monday, and 1 on Wednesday. 

She was expected to lay again this morning (Friday) but she hasn't - its just the 3 eggs still. 

So does that mean that's it for this clutch? Or is the 'every other day' for egg laying just an average (ie. there may be longer gaps between eggs)?


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## RexiesMuM (Sep 7, 2011)

She could lay later then normal but they tend lay around the same time every other day , Keep an eye on her if she doesn't lay anymore she could be egg bound or she could be done laying .The average clutch is 2 to 8 eggs


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## DyArianna (Aug 7, 2011)

lol I start to get confused for a few minutes with everyone on here being in different parts of the world. My Hetty had one clutch this last summer where she went 3 days and then laid the last egg. The rest of her clutches were right on schedule though. She could very well be done though.. just keep an eye on her. She will still have rather largish poops because of holding it when she goes in the nest box for any length of time. It's a very eggciting time. I check the nest box once a day even though I soooo want to look in every time I pass by. lol


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## GoRockyGo (Jul 27, 2011)

Oh Dy, I can completely relate to that! I keep wanting to check, but they get cranky with me when I go poking around, so I tend to only leave it to once a day. Its very exciting, isn't it  

I checked the nest again this morning.... still 3 eggs. So unless there's any latecomers on the way, I am guessing this is it!! Mumma Bella is looking well, I'm keeping a close eye on her as suggested (thanks!) in case she's having any problems.

I also candled the eggs again just before, and all three are showing signs of activity in them    So a smaller but fully viable clutch, which is great news!

The first one was laid last Saturday, so going by that date, it should be due to hatch around November 12th, with the other two over the following days 

Stay tuned for more updates as things develop (literally, haha) and thanks for the ongoing advice and support!! xx


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## DyArianna (Aug 7, 2011)

There are a few things you can do in the meantime. Make sure you continue with a great diet for mom and dad because once these babies are born they will eat 2 to 3 times their normal amount of food. If you are used to changing food/water once a day.. expect to do it about 3 times a day. Also make sure you have everything you need in case you have to hand feed a baby from the get go. This includes the brooder, food, everything. There are many different factors involved so you have to be prepared for anything. 

You have 3 eggs.. and 3 weeks.. roughly. I don't wish to sound harsh.. but there are many factors at play in their development and such. You might have none hatch.. you might have 1.. you might have all 3. 

It is a very exciting and exasperating experience. Keep us updated as things progress. I have another clutch in the nest box myself. This time I have done much better with keeping my nose out. lol We'll see what happens.


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## RexiesMuM (Sep 7, 2011)

Congrats !!! 3 viable thats fantastic !


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