"Pregnant" Lorikeet

[shann_rk]

Hi guys,
I have a female rainbow lorikeet who is about 4 years old and hand reared. She has bonded to me and I'm fairly certain she thinks I'm her mate... This normally isn't a problem, she always gets b*tchy and very territorial when its coming into spring but she's never showed any interest in mating etc.
But this season she's started to 'present' to me, especially in the mornings even when I'm not touching her, she just flattens her back and looks at me expectantly (we have a good relationship most of the time, but we're not THAT close, haha). I quite often scratch her head, under her wings or on her belly but she's never exhibited these mating-type behaviours before.
I noticed today that she's got a bulge near her pelvis similar to what I've seen in my budgies which have eggs. I know if she lays they won't be fertile but I'm wondering if anyone might know what may have triggered this (and more specifically how I might avoid it in future)? I haven't changed anything in her diet or the aviary recently (she's become more interested in her 'bed', but thats been there all along) and while its about the right time of year (here in Australia) for breeding, she's never had any interest in it before, I would have thought this would have become an issue before. I'm just concerned because in my experience once they start laying, its difficult to get them to stop and (as far as my budgies are concerned) once they start laying, a whole lot of health problems can follow.
Any advice would be appreciated,
Thanks,
Shannon

 

[Renae]

I would stop scratching her under her wings, and on her belly, and just keep to head scratches.

You should get some false eggs, just in case too, if/when she lays eggs, replace them with the false eggs, and if she happens to incubate them, she will lose interest after 2-3 or so weeks. Don’t remove the eggs if you haven’t got false eggs, she will only replace them with more eggs and the process is draining for them which is why you will also need to give her extra calcium as well.

Some future things you can do too, change the cage around, if possible, move her cage somewhere else, this usually will shake them up a bit to get them out of wanting to mate and etc. Don’t have anything in her cage she can see as a nest (happy hut for example) and outside of the cage. ETA: Try covering her cage for 12-14 hours per night to see if that helps discourage her.

Keep an eye on her, watch for egg binding (Winged Wisdom Pet Bird Magazine - Avian Reproduction - Egg Binding In Breeding and Pet Birds) if you see she has any problems, you need to get her to an Avian Vet asap.

 

[waterfaller1]

Welcome to Avian Avenue Shannon! Great advice from Renae.

 

[Anne & Gang]

welcome Shannon.....you definitely need to get some false eggs just in case one of her current eggs breaks....as she will lay to replace..leave them for about 25-35 days until she appears to abandon..sometimes they don't pay attention to them at first...a paper towel on the grate is good enough...I would recommend that you do not scritch under her wings or belly or the back..head scritches will have to do...12-14 hours night (cover on 3 sides with a night light if you cover)...after she lays and then abandons, change the perches around, her toys, even move the cage...also you should start providing her with extra cuttlebone now...and calci rich foods ......if the eggs are not hard and same size then she is lacking in calcium..good luck!!

 

[Laurul Feather Cat]

Welcome to the Avenue. Your birdie sounds like she is really bonded to you. Just scritch the head and neck and do not touch the body; that is birdie foreplay! You can try and discourage egg laying, but I don't bother. I just try and keep my birds in the best physical condition I can and allow them to go through their normal hormonal behavior. There are things that do help trigger egg laying, but most of them are not in control of us humans. Relax and let nature take its course. Keep an eye out for the symptoms of egg binding, but otherwise just go with the flow.

 

[JLcribber]

Diet and fitness are going to be more important now. Make sure she's getting all her vitamins and minerals and keep her active. If your doing anything to encourage the behavior in the way you handle her you have to quit doing that. Less mate, more teacher.

 

[roxynoodle]

The bulge you are seeing could also be her ovary. It can swell up rather large during the hormonal season. It's not as noticeable on my female conure, but is very noticeable on my Grey.

There is also a hormone shot the vet can give her to help calm her down. My Grey gets it because she has Bornavirus and being hormonal can trigger symptoms of that as well. However, the first shot she gets for the season seems to work better than the second one does.

 

[shann_rk]

Thanks heaps for all your advice I'm going to leave her bed in there for the moment as her cage is outside and it gets fairly cold at night, but I'll definitely invest in some plastic eggs... I've got the budgie ones, but I don't think that'd fool her, haha. I've got cuttle bone in there with her but she's not particularly interested in it, she gets pureed and whole fruit, veg and grass as well as the lori mix and fresh browse, but I might get some calcium tonic just in case. Aaaaaaannnnnnnndddddd I'll stick to head scratches from now on
Thanks again!