To breed or not to breed?

[LennonPogo]

Hello!
Until just a couple days ago, I thought both of my Quakers were boys. This was until an egg appeared. The Quaker that I now know to be female is 2-3 years, the male is 18 years approximately.
The female has now laid two eggs. I was planning on doing all of the suggested things to discourage her from continuing to lay, but I wanted to learn more about breeding as well.
If I were to provide her with a nesting box and materials, and she successfully hatched some babies, is hand feeding a necessity? If so, for how long?
Also, I know that they typically reach sexual maturity around 2 years. Is there a typical age at which they stop mating? I’m wondering if my senior male is even fertilizing them.

 

[Zara]

Hello Isabella,

Given the egg has already been laid and you´re only just starting your research. I would not continue with allowing the egg to be incubated this time around.

It´s important to do the research and be prepared before the eggs arrive.

For these eggs, take them and boil for a few minutes, mark with a dot using a Sharpie pen and put it back where you found it so your birds can go through the motions with the eggs. In a few weeks remove the eggs and any nest they may have created using toy parts and rearrange the cage, moving toys and perches around.

I’m wondering if my senior male is even fertilizing them.

I don´t think you would get an answer without proving his fertility by hatching an egg.

is hand feeding a necessity? If so, for how long?

For future reference, it is neccessary to know how to hand feed, however it´s only needed if the parents struggle to keep up feeding all the chicks, or if the parents hurt the chicks (plucking, pinching, and other ¨aggressions¨), or if the parents simply stop feeding the babies altogether.
If you were to handfeed, you would have to do so, around the clock until the birds are weaned. The younger the bird is, the more feeds they need. As small chicks, they will need fed through the night, but when they are almost fully feathered and getting older, they can go the night without a feed.
Hand in hand with hand feeding, you would need an incubator set up to house the baby birds in. An unfeathered bird cannot control their own body temperature, so you will need to create a controlled environment where the temp and humidity is a maintained.

If you are serious about breeding, then skip this clutch and prepare for next time. I really don´t know if 18 years old is a good age for breeding, that is a question you will have to search the answer for, as well as the mating question in your original post.
Remember, these are captive birds, not wild, so thinking you can keep those eggs and they will be able to raise the birds by themselves is not fair and can result in an unsuccessful season. Our birds rely on us to oversea the breeding process and keep them all safe.

If you have more questions about your birds and their eggs, please do post them and we´ll do our best to help you