jsl@ihlpm.ATT.COM (00771a-Levy) (06/07/89)
I raise English budgies and would like to pose a question to other breeders. I have some females who are particularly aggressive towards their offspring when the fledgling is about 4 weeks of age and the mother is about to lay a new clutch. These females go so far as to savage and kill a chick and so have to be removed from the breeding cage. The father is then forced to complete the raising of the chicks. The question is: can anything be done to prevent such behavior and do you feel such females should not be bred? I have other females who don't seem to mind older chicks walking all over their new clutch. This problem is very upsetting and mysterious. I tried going to a larger breeding cage (2' x 1' x 1') with no results. Thanks for any help, Janet Levy
carl@nemesys.UUCP (Carl Eichert) (06/08/89)
In article <3633@ihlpm.ATT.COM> jsl@ihlpm.UUCP (Levy,J.) writes: >I have some females who are particularly >aggressive towards their offspring when the fledgling is about >4 weeks of age and the mother is about to lay a new clutch. >These females go so far as to savage and kill a chick and so >have to be removed from the breeding cage. I have a couple of references for you. While they are not specific to English Budgies, both make claims about the intolerance of the hen toward the chicks when she wants to start a new clutch. For example (from "Budgerigars" by George A. Radtke): Some hens that have started a new clutch after their young leave the nest become very aggressive against their young, biting and injuring them dangerously. This is why it is advisible to separate the young birds from their parents within two to three days and put them into a small cage with a feeding cup directly in front of them. Most of the birds will adapt easily and the younger ones are often fed by their older brothers and sisters. One might also put older, unattached males with them in the same cagem and they will take over the feeding. This way you can eliminate a lot of losses. Essentially the same thing is said in "The New Parakeet Handbook" by Immanuel Birmelin and Annette Wolter. My personal feeling is that the hens simply don't "understand" why they can breed so often and go a bit crazy. In the wild, the hens breed much more infrequently based on availability of food, etc. Carl J. Eichert uunet!ladcgw!nemesys!carl -- Carl Eichert ...!uunet!ladcgw!nemesys!carl carl@ladc.bull.com Carl-Eichert%l66a@ladc.bull.com Phone: (213) 530-1092