# Cockatiel laid eggs inside and outside nesting box



## glo59 (Mar 24, 2010)

Hi everyone, I am new to this site and need to find some information but first let me tell you a little about myself and my birds. I have had my female for about 8 years and the male for 2 years. The male we had before got loose and flew away and my female appeared to be lonely so we got her a friend. My question is about my female. She has laid eggs in the nesting box and about a week later she laid an egg in the cage and again today there was another egg. Do I put these eggs in the nesting box? She has laid eggs in the past and they have hatched but she has never laid her eggs both in the nesting box and the cage and I am not sure why she would do this. Anyone have any answers for me on this I would greatly appreciat it. Thanks


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Is either parent bird sitting on any of the eggs? If they're only sitting in one location, that's their chosen nest and all the eggs with a reasonable chance of hatching can be placed there. If they're sitting in two locations that's more of a dilemma, but it's probably best to put all the viable eggs in the nest box. 

I think freshly-laid eggs stay viable for about a week without incubation, so it's probably too late for any egg that's more than a week old and hasn't been incubated. Once incubation begins the eggs have to be kept warm constantly, so any eggs that were incubated but then left for hours to get cold aren't likely to be any good.

How many eggs are there all together? If she already had a full clutch in the nest box, she may be starting a second nest for the most recent eggs.


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## glo59 (Mar 24, 2010)

Yes, both birds are sitting on the eggs. She laid 5 eggs in the nesting box and so far 2 outside the box in the cage. The latest one was laid yesterday I believe so it is ok to put the egg she laid yesterday in the nesting box?


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

Yes, it's probably a good idea to put the egg in the nestbox. The typical clutch size is 4 to 6 eggs but 7 or even 8 isn't unheard of. I hope she's done laying now and isn't going for a double clutch.


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## glo59 (Mar 24, 2010)

I thought that the eggs on the bottom of the cage were new eggs she laid but tonight I had a chance to look in the nesting box and she had 5 eggs in there before and now I found only one. I am beginning to think that the 2 eggs on the bottom of the cage she discarded out of the nesting box and as for the other two there are the shells of eggs in the nesting box. Could it be that she knew the eggs that were possibly discarded were not good and the other two in the nest as well? Both birds are sitting on the one remaining egg in the nesting box. Hopeful we will have at least one baby this time.


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## tielfan (Aug 31, 2008)

The parents could have tossed unwanted eggs out of the nest, but I'd expect them to crack when they hit the bottom of the cage. Are the two "new" eggs damaged?

It's not normal for parents to break eggs in the nest, although accidents can happen if the parents get frightened, and there are some birds who break and eat their own eggs. Is it possible that the chicks hatched but didn't survive, and the parents buried them in the nestbox litter?


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