8 eggs, only male sits on them

[milad621]

Hi,

We have a pair of love birds and they are more than 1 year old. We got them last year.
A few days ago we noticed the male is not coming out of the nest. After we checked, there were 5 eggs. We were seeing that it's the male that usually sits on them.
Now we checked and there are 8 eggs.
I have too many questions about the situation.

Why does the male sits on them most of the time?
Does the female know when to stop laying eggs?
Is there a problem if the male started sitting on them too early?
Will the female start sitting on the eggs?
And the most important question, is it better if we take out the eggs and incubate ourselves? In case this young couple have no idea what they're doing

Thanks,

 

[Zara]

Welcome to the Avenue

A few days ago we noticed the male is not coming out of the nest. After we checked, there were 5 eggs

Now we checked and there are 8 eggs.

So in ¨a few¨ days you have 3 eggs. How many days? If it is less that 5/6, I would be thinking you may have two hens.
Did you see the egg bulge on the same bird every time before an egg was laid?

Why does the male sits on them most of the time?

Either, your ¨male¨ is a female, OR your female is inexperienced (which she is at her age regardless) and not interested in the eggs while the male is doing his part to try to continue incubation.

Does the female know when to stop laying eggs?

Yes, but some will lay clutches back to back. It is something to monitor closely. A diary or calendar will be helpful. I like to take photos on my phone and it timestamps them.

Will the female start sitting on the eggs?

Is there are 8 now and she has not sat, I doubt she will.

And the most important question, is it better if we take out the eggs and incubate ourselves?

If you are sure they are a male female pair, they are actively mating, and you are a highly experienced lovebird breeder, then by all means incubate the eggs. Frankly, I don´t think it is worth it. If it is not meant to be, it is not meant to be. Lovebirds are not endangered. These birds are very young and likely not ready yet. Parent raised or co parented birds would be happier, healthier birds.

 

[milad621]

Hi Zara. Tahnks for your response.
They were 5 last Tuesday so 3 eggs in 6 days.
The male is the one that stays on top when they have sex (they were mating a lot recently). Also when we bought they told us the gender and this is the male according to the guy too.
Attaching photos of them and the eggs

So if the female doesn't start sitting on them and the male keeps doing that, the eggs will die?

I am not experienced at all

 

[Zara]

Also when we bought they told us the gender and this is the male according to the guy too.

Did they tell you that one of your birds is a hybrid?

I am not experienced at all

Breeding birds takes a lot of research, time and funds. It is not something to do without any knowledge.

You can take the 3 new eggs, boil them allow them to cool, dot them with a pen and put them back. Then get the first egg laid and candle it to check for life (using a led light) . You can usually get a good reading after a week of sitting on the eggs.
If they are not fertile boil them to and put them back in the box.
Once the bird who is tending the nest stops visiting, remove the box and the coconut and rearrange the whole cage branches, toys, food bowls.

 

[milad621]

Did they tell you that one of your birds is a hybrid?

No they didn't. I guess you mean the red head one is hybrid. He is the male. Can they still make babies?

We're not experienced but would love to try.

What's the point of boiling? Will it kill the baby? Also, we're not sure which one is newer. They rearranged them.

For candling, does iphone flash work? We can do it after a few days

 

[Shezbug]

The point of boiling is to stop the egg developing into a chick and to boil it before it gets to the point where it becomes too late (or cruel) to boil.

I think you will find that different LB's have different behaviours for nesting so making a hybrid can cause mental distress and confusion for the chick of mixed LB parents. Breeding hybrids can also come with health issues for the hybrid birds

 

[Zara]

I guess you mean the red head one is hybrid. He is the male.

The bird with the darker face is hybrid. Any of that darker colour in a Fischeri should be further back and not close to his beak like that. He is Ficscheri x Personatus.
The bird that is only orange is Fischeri, from what I can see.

We're not experienced but would love to try.

I´m sorry, but having no experience and wanting to try is not a good combination.
It is not always so black and white that we can allow birds to breed and they raise their young and are successful. These birds are caged so they only have the resources that we provide, and if we are not providing for the parents, they cannot do their part properly. On top of this, many things can go wrong, and do go wrong more often for captive birds than wild birds. Babies get sick, abandoned, killed. Parents can starve themselves accidentally, get sick or die.

I am not anti breeding at all. But please;
1. Do your research.
2. Don´t breed these two birds (they are not genetically pure) - get a pair of the same species of lovebird
3. Have a good relationship with your vet - when you need them, you will need them fast.
4. Find someone to montor you - a person nearby that you can rely on to help out when your struggling, or have questions, or to show you how to do things, like handfeeding, whch done wrong can kill chicks quickly.
5. Have the correct setup, materials, and equipment; brooder, thermometers, formula, hygrometer, heat pads

What's the point of boiling? Will it kill the baby?

In your three new eggs, there is no chick inside. Just a yolk and some eggwhite - same as the eggs people crack open, cook and eat on toast. There is no life inside just yet and so now is the time to control the eggs. I would not tell you to kill a chick.

Also, we're not sure which one is newer. They rearranged them.

You should be able to tell the newer ones, or at least the newest as it will look different, a little less smooth, the colour will be more ¨clean¨ looking.

For candling, does iphone flash work? We can do it after a few days

You can use the LED light, have it set to ON rather that flash. You can candle the eggs right there in the box put gently putting the light up to the egg.
If all eggs are yellowish and you can see the yolk, boil them all and put them back so they can go through the motions, but about 18-19 days from today, be sure to remove that box and all the eggs if they are still sitting in there. You can remove everything sooner if you notice the nest abandoned - you will see either, no birds visiting or the eggs tossed out of the box, or eggs not in the huddle and are all spread out all over the place.

I will go see if I can find a picture of an egg for you from my phone archive so you know what to look for...

 

[Zara]

Intertile/undeveloped egg - can boil,



Egg insides,



Fertile egg, glows orange red, will have veins,


These are my friends eggs I candled knowing they were all non viable,
Broken egg,

Non viable egg,

DIS,