PLS HELP!!! I THINK SHES DYING 😢

[BishoLeo96]

my female bird has been all of a sudden been shredding paper and been doing this odd behavior. today i saw she was laying down like this. i did not see any abnormalities in her poop either. pls help me, shes my baby and im so worried. she’s eating and drinking normally too. 🥺

 

[Keet_Krazy]

Is she otherwise active, flying around, etc? Do you have other budgies?
I am not there in person, but what you're describing sounds like a nesty budgie to me, she may be getting ready to lay an egg.

 

[BishoLeo96]

Is she otherwise active, flying around, etc? Do you have other budgies?
I am not there in person, but what you're describing sounds like a nesty budgie to me, she may be getting ready to lay an egg.

yeah she’s doing everything normally, there is one male bird. they are a pair.

 

[Keet_Krazy]

yeah she’s doing everything normally, there is one male bird. they are a pair.

If she's normal other then shredding and lying around, I'd believe she is nesty.
I'd personally remove the paper for now, monitor her closely in case she has any other changes in behaviour or health. If she starts sitting "puffed up" and sickly you need to get to a vet ASAP, egg binding can cause death.
What's her diet like? Does she eat any pellets? If she does have an egg she will need that calcium.

 

[BishoLeo96]

If she's normal other then shredding and lying around, I'd believe she is nesty.
I'd personally remove the paper for now, monitor her closely in case she has any other changes in behaviour or health. If she starts sitting "puffed up" and sickly you need to get to a vet ASAP, egg binding can cause death.
What's her diet like? Does she eat any pellets? If she does have an egg she will need that calcium.

would you recommend a nesting box? and she eats her normal “wild harvest” parakeet food. i also put some vitamin powder (Lafebers Avi-era vitamin powder) on top of their food. she also likes to eat the millet sticks.

 

[Keet_Krazy]

would you recommend a nesting box? and she eats her normal “wild harvest” parakeet food. i also put some vitamin powder (Lafebers Avi-era vitamin powder) on top of their food. she also likes to eat the millet sticks.

Personally, No.
I do everything I can to stop the eggs.
If she hasn't yet developed the egg, you want to try disrupting her. Remove the paper, so she doesn't have any nest materials. Rearrange the cage a bit so she's "not comfortable enough" to lay. Sometimes moving the cage to a different location in the house can help. Increases the amount of sleep they get will try to trick her into thinking it's not breeding season.

 

[BishoLeo96]

Personally, No.
I do everything I can to stop the eggs.
If she hasn't yet developed the egg, you want to try disrupting her. Remove the paper, so she doesn't have any nest materials. Rearrange the cage a bit so she's "not comfortable enough" to lay. Sometimes moving the cage to a different location in the house can help. Increases the amount of sleep they get will try to trick her into thinking it's not breeding season.

if she nests does she have a higher chance to pass away? because if thats true then i dont want her to nest. i can move her to a new place. but what if the egg is inside her belly ? would that be a complication?

 

[Keet_Krazy]

if she nests does she have a higher chance to pass away? because if thats true then i dont want her to nest. i can move her to a new place. but what if the egg is inside her belly ? would that be a complication?

If she nests she might try to lay more then one egg, which increases chances of egg binding.
If she has a developed egg and is healthy, she should lay it just fine whether she has a nest or not.
If it worries you too much you don't have to move her, just take away the paper and monitor her.

 

[DonnaBudgie]

my female bird has been all of a sudden been shredding paper and been doing this odd behavior. today i saw she was laying down like this. i did not see any abnormalities in her poop either. pls help me, shes my baby and im so worried. she’s eating and drinking normally too. 🥺View attachment 47767

Looks like nesting behavior to me. Watch for possible eggs

 

[DonnaBudgie]

Looks like nesting behavior to me. Watch for possible eggs

I hope you have removed the male if they were sharing a cage.

 

[Keet_Krazy]

I hope you have removed the male if they were sharing a cage.

I personally don't feel this is necessary, I have never removed any of my boys just because one of the girls is nesty.

 

[BishoLeo96]

Looks like nesting behavior to me. Watch for possible eggs

ill keep you guys posted

 

[DonnaBudgie]

I personally don't feel this is necessary, I have never removed any of my boys just because one of the girls is nesty.

I disagree. At least separate them until her breeding cycle is broken. She doesn't even have a nest box and she's wanting to breed. And with the male in the cage the eggs may be fertile too. If you want to stop the laying putting dummy eggs in place of any eggs she lays-lay one, add two until there are six eggs- and she will probably stop thinking she has a full clutch.

 

[Keet_Krazy]

I keep a list handy of how to prevent egg laying, but am unable to share the whole thing here. So will share the key points. The original list is written by a retired budgie breeder.
Reduce Daylight.
To about 8 hours.
Do not overfeed.
Re-arrange the cage regularly.
Remove potential nests.
Happy huts, coconuts etc.
Do not pet on the back/wings.
Separate males and females.
This is in regards to preventing breeding. I don't separate my boys and girls and haven't had an egg in almost 4 years, despite having multiple nesty girls.

And if your bird does lay an egg, remove and discard it. Budgies do not need a fake egg, they cannot count and will stop once they've laid their limit.
If for some reason you feel they must have an egg after laying, you can boil the egg (Immediately after it's laid!) let it cool and give it back.

 

[DonnaBudgie]

I keep a list handy of how to prevent egg laying, but am unable to share the whole thing here. So will share the key points. The original list is written by a retired budgie breeder.
Reduce Daylight.
To about 8 hours.
Do not overfeed.
Re-arrange the cage regularly.
Remove potential nests.
Happy huts, coconuts etc.
Do not pet on the back/wings.
Separate males and females.
This is in regards to preventing breeding. I don't separate my boys and girls and haven't had an egg in almost 4 years, despite having multiple nesty girls.

And if your bird does lay an egg, remove and discard it. Budgies do not need a fake egg, they cannot count and will stop once they've laid their limit.
If for some reason you feel they must have an egg after laying, you can boil the egg (Immediately after it's laid!) let it cool and give it back.

I have had a lot of difficulty getting my female English to stop laying eggs. If I keep her with a male she lays eggs. She almost died twice from complications from egg laying and her CAV, her breeder, and my breeder friends have all told me not to keep her with a male. None of your advice has been effective in stopping her. Her breeder insisted that her males and females live in same gender flight cages unless she pairs them up for breeding. Another breeder friend of mine does the same. My avian vet agrees. However, I don't go that extreme. I have two male female cagemate pairs that have never shown any signs of breeding behavior in three years and I have no intention of separating them unless unless they do but once a female starts laying eggs it becomes difficult to stop her if she shares a cage with a compatible eager male.

 

[Keet_Krazy]

I have had a lot of difficulty getting my female English to stop laying eggs. If I keep her with a male she lays eggs. She almost died twice from complications from egg laying and her CAV, her breeder, and my breeder friends have all told me not to keep her with a male. None of your advice has been effective in stopping her. Her breeder insisted that her males and females live in same gender flight cages unless she pairs them up for breeding. Another breeder friend of mine does the same. My avian vet agrees. However, I don't go that extreme. I have two male female cagemate pairs that have never shown any signs of breeding behavior in three years and I have no intention of separating them unless unless they do but once a female starts laying eggs it becomes difficult to stop her if she shares a cage with a compatible eager male.

I am sorry that you have trouble with your girl, that just goes to show how individual each budgie is. Your budgie is also an ex-breeder right?
I shared that list to help the OP in their situation. That list was written (In more detail) by a very experienced and knowledgeable breeder, so I trust that the information is sound enough for most budgies in most circumstances.

 

[DonnaBudgie]

Much of the information you have presented is good general advice but you are dismissing the most important point- separating the males and females. One a hen starts breeding (laying eggs) it's difficult to stop her if she remains with the male. Budgies housed together will lay and raise clutch after clutch, wearing themselves out, until separated. The information I rely on is from my CAV, very experienced breeders that I know personally and from my extensive reading on the topic from internationally renowned breeders, as well as from my education and experience as a biological scientist and from breeding budgies and trying to STOP their breeding (laying eggs is breeding behavior).
If you provide a healthy mature female budgie with a good balanced diet, plenty of exercise, a large, comfortable cage, adequate daylight, AND an eager compatible male she is likely to want to breed. She may begin laying eggs on the bare cage bottom, in the food dish, or anywhere else she finds adequate inside or outside her cage. She doesn't require "nesting material" as budgies do not build nests- the bare bottom of a plain wooden nest box is perfect- mine remove any bedding I provide- but other locations "will do" if she's determined. The OP's budgie is clearly exhibiting breeding behavior and appears willing to her eggs on the floor of the cage, especially if she's inexperienced. Taking away the paper she's been shredding isn't likely to stop her at this point, neither will depriving her of a healthy diet (calcium deficiency leads to egg binding), fewer daylight hours (mine have bred in winter), not touching her (I don't pet any of my potentially "breeder" hens), or rearranging her cage (tried that, too). If you remove the eggs as she lays them she will likely continue to lay them, depleting her calcium reserves. Best to addle them (shaking them hard will do it- no need to boil them) and let her brood them or replace them with dummy eggs and add more dummy eggs daily so she sees a full clutch and stops. My CAV explained in great detail how a hen budgie's reproductive tract works and why dummy eggs are helpful in stopping egg laying. Hens ovulate every two days while laying and the sperm are waiting up near the ovary to fertilize the ovum after its released. It takes about two days for the fertilized (or unfertilized) egg to travel through the reproductive tract developing into an "egg" as it goes. Once a hen senses she has a full clutch she will stop ovulating and begin intensive brooding. A hen can only sit on six or seven eggs unless she very large.

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I hate to see OP's female budgie get into an endless cycle of egg-laying which can lead to egg binding and severe osteoporosis. I only hope for what's best for her female budgie- not winning a contest about who's right.

 

[Keet_Krazy]

I hate to see OP's female budgie get into an endless cycle of egg-laying which can lead to egg binding and severe osteoporosis. I only hope for what's best for her female budgie- not winning a contest about who's right.

I also hope for the best for OP's budgie.
From what I am currently gathering anything further I say will be disregarded by you, so I am not going to bother.
But first I NEVER said to deprive them of food! I in fact made it clear she needs plenty of calcium.
And guess what? I have a relentless broody hen, I can't use food bowls and more I have to be so careful about any toy she may try to use as a nest. She has made it very clear she would lay on the floor, but she hasn't. I haven't ever had an egg from her, and I wouldn't even consider removing her mate. In fact I caught them mating just the other day and the only thing I've done about it is rearrange the cage.
OP, I hope you and your little one get through this and she doesn't end up laying, I'll be following along for updates.