my budgie just laid an egg???

[kym]

ok... i have a serious question here... i got a budgie from the animal shelter.. it was young.. under 4 months.. they told me it was a male.. this was about 6 months ago.. so he (she?) is approx. 10 - 12 months old.. today i went to clean his cage... and found an EGG!!??!! what the hell?? he/she (lol) hasnt been in contact with another budgie at all.. so i wonder how in the world this can happen? is my budgie ok? is it most certainly a female now? i noticed lately that marley (my budgies name) was ripping up the newspaper in the bottom of the cage.. i wondered why this what happening but thought that maybe it was just behavioural changes... and i noticed it would be more agressive when i tried to feed and water... also the budgie didnt want much social time which marley totally usually loves...
HELP
i have no idea what to look for or even do to help my budgie at this time.. i dont want to clean out the cage until i get conformation from here on if this is a good idea or what? lol
i am in total shock! here i thought he was a dude!

1st - Female birds do not need a male to lay an egg - this is how we get eggs that we eat - No male around - those eggs get gathered and sold to stores.. Male around = Baby chicks

2nd- if she's around a year - that's when they normally hit maturity and start going in to what is known as "breeding condition" Normally the cere (fleshy part above the beak where the nostrils are) will turn tan then dark chocolate brown BUT this is not always the case some stay white

3rd - the newspaper tearing up is called "nesting behavior" they'll tear paper up, kick seeds out of a dish use toys that are able to be used as nests - like Happy huts, those acrylic block toys they're supposed to go in and out of, Some have used coconut shell toys as a nest

You'll need to do a few things to get her out of "breeding mode/condition" Make her day light hours shorter - meaning cover her cage earlier and un cover it later in the morning so she thinks its "winter" this usually helps stop them from laying

Another thing that usually helps is rearranging the cage, everything from where the perches are located along with the direction they're in Like if they all go from front to back switch some to go caddy corner and or from side to side, Along with rearranging all the toys

if you have a grate at the bottom of your cage Don't put paper on top of it , just put the paper in the tray under it , if you don't have a grate See if maybe you can find one that will fit - or get a cage that has one.

I hope that helps you out

you can relax it's normal

[kym]

omg.. thank you so very much... i was so stressed.. is it possible that she will lay more than one egg? shes getting on my hand.. and kinda cuddling into my hand and has some odd stance and is cooing.. she never coos.. its weird to me to call her a her.. i was calling him a him all this time... lol
i thank you so much for your advice.. i am doing all of the things right now as well as posting a schedule for the cover so that everyone is aware that i am not being mean about keeping 'her' covered up for longer.. do you think that 12 hrs a day of dark is too much or too little or just right? i am sorry to harass you with what may seem silly questions but.. i really really really love my bird.. and i dont want to make this worse on her.... shes molting as well now on the top of her head i notice.. is there any special foods to help this along?
also.. does she have pain when she lays eggs? like a giving birth pain?

it's okay we're here to help

What she is doing to your hand is Masturbating with it - you need to deter her from doing that - tell her firmly no and place her some where else, On a play gym, on the couch beside you on a arm of a chair etc. and then wait ("ignore" her for a moment and then try again if she continues to masturbate with your hand you have to do it over again. until she realizes you're not her mate and you don't want her to do that


she may lay more eggs - Some will lay a full clutch she may not or she may not.


Opps forgot to answer the 12 hr question - 12 hrs should be fine - try that for a week and see how things go you may have to do it until she's out of condition - is her cere tan/brown? that makes it easier to know when they're in an out of condition

I have to cover my older female Quaker up at 8pm and i uncover her at 8am because she is constanstly molesting her toys, perches, cages, even stuff that isn't hers


the only time they're in Pain during egg laying is if she'd be egg bound (i'm pretty sure that would put them in pain)

as for the molting - extra baths /showers help that - i have not found a single food to help there are ones that say they do but they never worked for mine

[BubusMommy]

LOL.. wow so did u end up taking the egg out?
i read that the females can lay eggs whenever they feel like it usually during the colder months... but if the condition doesnt allow them to.. meaning they dont have a nest or nesting material they usually dont try to lay eggs..
however i did see a video on youtube.com where this guys budgie layed an egg while jumping from perch to perch and it fell down to the bottom of the cage!!

you can buy her some millets, budgie treats, or "moulting seed mix" u can buy a small can at your local pet store... its mostly the fatter seeds/oat groat seeds that help while moulting i believe..

[Goldielover]

Yes, your bird may lay several. My Midge laid four this year. Most of the time she doesn't bother with nesting material - its just "bombs away" from whatever perch she happens to be sitting on at the time. I've seen her do this several times. If they are unbroken, she may try sitting them for a while. My bird is a yellow recessive pied, and doesn't seem to get the really dark cere, but does go slightly darker, and a bit crusty looking. Make sure she has access to a cuttlebone and mineral block - she will need the extra calcium and minerals. Midge always goes to town on the cuttlebone at that time. I think many have had that "little surprise" about what sex their budgie actually is. Sexing youngsters isn't always easy, and is often the subject of debate on this forum when pictures are posted. At least you've chosen a name that isn't that out of place for a female.

[kym]

no... its not the butt wagging ... she just stood still and kinda laid on my hand in like she was in pain kinda...i read about the butt wagging and knew better than to let it happen more than the one time! at first i thought it was funny! and then i read up on it (with help from this forum also) i realized that it was mastrubating.. and.. that.. is kinda creepy the people who LET their birds do that, knowing what it is even! ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!
this was more of a comforting cuddle and she was still... so i wondered if she was experiencing pain and looking for a little comfort?
also.. i know you are prolly sick of my alsos but i havta ask..
is there any noise that they make when this is happening? like extreme chatter? or any patterns that are indicative of egg laying?

I've never noticed any of my birds make a noise when they laid a egg

my Quaker laid one sat. she's in a cage off to my left but still fairly close to me I was sitting here playing on the computer and watching t.v and i heard a clinking in her cage, I looked over and she was pretty much playing soccer with the egg she just laid - at first I didn't realize what it was - until i looked closer and saw it she was running back and forth on the cage floor hitting it with her beak (amazingly enough she didn't break it)

[Goldielover]

Midge has a strange long drawn out sound she makes when an egg is on its way. Difficult to describe - its almost like a cry, but it isn't really loud or anything like that. Quite different from her normal chirps and chatter. We've learned to recognize it over the years (Midge is at least five).

[kym]

another also.. marley.. will NOT bath herself.. i have to mist her with water.. she HATES water.. she refuses to go in it and will fly around the house until we put the water away.. is there any tricks to help this situation?
i am feeding her treats and millet almost steadily.. lol.. i spoil her a little.. i just assumed they needed the treat thingy (the block that you put on the cage that has all the little seeds and honey and stuff in it) AND the millet holder thing full of millet all the time.. when its gone i replace it.. when her food is empty i fill it.. when she has no water of course i fill that too.. she isnt really into toys.. she would rather play with my jewelery or the dog.. its a sight to see.. an american bulldog with this budgie on her head... and the dog whines because she knows she cant knock the bird off or away without getting into trouble! i should post a picture.. thank you all SO VERY MUCH... my budgies happiness is very important to me.. i really love her.. shes an awesome pet.. like a million times better than a cat! LOL