Pairing two lovebirds, one old and one new

Hey Mike...It me again. The lovebirds have been together in the same cage for over a week now and they are doing great! they preen eachother and are almost always together. but of course the slight bickering still continues. I was wondering when I could put the nest box on the cage for them...and would I need to prepare the nest box in any way or will they do ALL the work themselves???

 

Hi, Glad to hear things are going well, I wouldn't put the nest box in just yet as they will need a month or 2 just to make sure they are going to be ok.

When you do put a nest box in make sure it is one for lovebirds the dimension should around 25cm high , 20 cm wide and 15 cm deep. The box should be constructed out of timber at least 2 cm thick.
A 5cm hole near the top so they can get in and out, They will need perch of around 7cm placed just below the hole,

Nesting material can be anything from shredded paper, Driy grass, spray millet, the male will shred these up tuck them under his wings and carry them back to the nest where the female will build the nest.. Make sure they have nesting material right through from mating right through to the chicks leaving the nest as the female will want to keep cleaning her nest.

Hope this helps.
Mike

 

Hey Mike,
Me again. I grew a little impatient......and after two weeks I put the nestbox on :lol: but everything is going good. No fighting or territorial aggression. I just wanted to know something. When/How will I know when they start copulation? I cant see them when they go into the nestbox. And so far from what I know they have not copulated, even outside the nestbox.

Also, should I be worried that they still sleep together outside the nestbox?? And they really have not begun building the nest either. There are twigs and paper at the bottom of the cage but they seem to ignore it.

Sorry for the rapid fire questions. Just a little curious, anxious, and impatient I guess. Thanks for all your help!

 

Hi, its ok about all the questions its the only way to find things out and learn.

Putting the nest box in after 2 weeks and no aggression shows they are happy together especially if they both go in together.

They will start to mate when she is ready and having a nest box there will help the bredding behaviour to kick in, Try and tie the twigs and other nesting materiel with a litte string and hang it near the nest but not too close see if this starts them nesting.

Things to offer them are fresh fruit and vegtables everyday, millet spray, add a cuttlefish bone to the inside of the cage as this will givethe female extra calcium for when she is laying eggs. I used to add a dish of egg food like EMP or CeDe egg food, you just put a dish from the petstore that you can hook onto the bars inside the cage and this usually triggers breeding.

I also used the egg food when i hand raised my cockatiels.
Once they have mated which usually you will catch the male on the females back, she will spend more and more time in the nest as she gets ready to lay her eggs. Once she has laid eggs she will spend her time incubating them and the male will feed her and only sleep in the nest on a night then he will leave in the morning.

Give them a dish of water or bird bath so they can have a soak and so she can add moisture to the nest.

It can take between 2-4 months for them to be settled enough to breed so don't lose hope, they are not the easiest of birds to breed.

Hope i have helped
Mike

 

Alright sounds good! Ill keep you posted...as always. and again THANKS!

 

Hey Mike, I have a question for you regarding the mutation on a lovebird I acquired. Im not sure whether it has a violet factor, and whether it is an american white, or another mutation. if you could give me your email address so I can send you some pictures of the bird that would be great.
THANKS!

 

Hi my email address is michaelsmith2008@o2.co.uk

I will try and help identify it if i can

mike

 

I replied to your email.
It looks like a White-faced Blue Australian Cinnamon Pied or a Lutino Blue
Opaline Pied, they come from the green species, as far as i am aware there
is no violet factor but a blue factor instead.
So chances are the offspring of this bird could be, pied, blue, green,
yellow or pied.

Sorry i could not be of more help

Mike

 

I am almost 100% sure that it is a White-faced Blue Australian Cinnamon Pied

Mike

 

ohhh yes, im so sorry i thought i responded. Thanks a lot Mike I got the same answer from another person who told me it was a whitefaced american cinnamon. Although the other person did tell me that a violet factor was in play. so im not sure about the violet anymore because i got two diff answers hahaha. Thanks a lot though

 

sorry correction: Austrailian

 

Hows things going, have they started using the nest box yet?

Mike

 

yea they are! the girl likes to keep the nest with not as much paper and twigs as i thought she would. the floor is only lightly covered.

and she stays in there the majority of the time. and sleeps in it at night. the male occasionally goes in, and stays for about 2-5 min. then leaves and stays outside. he sleeps outside too.

I havent witnessed them copulate but im guessing they may have started?? no eggs just yet. its been about a month since the nest box has been on.

 

Thats great sounds like they have bonded and she is becoming broody so chances of eggs coming soon is high.
When she is in the nest for most of the time and the male sits outside and feeds her through the opening then eggs will be on the way.

I really hope it works out for you can't wait to hear she has started laying

Mike

 

i know, im really anxious! hopefully its soon, but I will definitely let you know about any new developments and when she starts laying.

Kevin

 

she laid her first egg today! not sure if its fertilized, it may be a dud, but ill see in a couple of days if she keeps laying then ill know for sure that she is on eggs.

 

she laid her second egg on the 18th of septemeber (two days after the first). She hasnt laid one since. Is it possible to have a two egg clutch??

 

Hi sorry i not been online. Yes theycan have a 2 egg clutch, If they have not hatched then they are unfertilised eggs as its been 31 days since the 2nd egg.

Incubation is 23days for lovebird eggs.
you can either remove the eggs or leave them with her for another couple of weeks then remove them.

Now she is starting to lay eggs shows that she is content so hopefully the next clutch should be fertile.

Again sorry i not been online

Mike

 

The cycle continued. Impatiently I put them both in SMEGAL'S cage. They got along fine in here, as a matter of fact Timba ate and drank Smegals food with no attack from smegal....

 

Hi, Glad everything is still going well.
Lovebirds can be hard to breed as some females just don't want to lay eggs or the male just isn't tough enough for the female so she won't allow him to mate.

I would just keep an eye on them give them things like Dark leafy greens as they are a rich source of vitamin C, K, E, and B, as well as iron, calcium, and fiber which promotes fertility and breeding.