Your pet birds are a big part of your own family. They are not just ordinary pets but are actually beloved family members that you should take care of and properly provide the love, support, and affection they need to stay healthy and happy. But it might be an interesting thought of allowing your pet birds to actually start their own family as well.
The fact about this matter is that every bird owner has actually entertained the idea of allowing their beloved pets to have a family of their own so that you can have a bigger family of birds right in the comfort of your own home. That is why it is important for you as a pet bird owner to know what to do and to consider a lot more things before you decide to entertain the idea of starting a new bird family.
The four main components of successfully breeding pet birds
Before you decide if you really want your pet birds to breed and start a new family, here are some tips you need:
Time
Time is the most important component if you want to successfully breed pet birds. If you cannot provide the time you need to invest in breeding your birds, then you should not even think about doing so. Make sure to provide enough time because you are not only taking care of two birds here, but you are also putting in a lot of time in making sure they breed properly and that the produce healthy offspring.
Money
Taking care of two birds will already cost you money, but you should also expect the need to shell out more cash if you want to be able to successfully breed your birds. That means spending money on essential tools and equipment while also purchasing special types of food and vitamins and minerals required to keep your birds healthy enough for the breeding process to be successful.
Effort and dedication
When you are breeding pet birds, you are required to put in the necessary effort and dedication needed to get your birds ready for breeding. You have to be dedicated enough to pursue an endeavor that isn’t the easiest thing to do as breeding birds can be quite difficult if you do not know what you are doing. Moreover, because of how breeding birds can be tricky, you have to put in the effort needed to ensure that the birds are taken care of properly and that you are doing things right.
Knowledge
Finally, before you decide if you want to breed your birds or not, you have to equip yourself with the knowledge required to be successful in this endeavor. That means that you should put in the necessary time and work to read about breeding birds and to actually try to learn enthusiastically so that you minimize your mistakes and improve your chances of successfully breeding your pet birds. Read books, check online, and ask experts.
Breeding your birds
Make sure you have the right pair
When you finally decided that you are breeding your pet birds, you need to do first is to make sure that you have the right pair for breeding. That means that the birds should be compatible with another and are actually comfortable as a pair. This also includes the need for your birds to be sexually mature enough for breeding. Males should be at least a year and a half old, but it depends on the species of bird. Meanwhile, females should also be at least 18 months old, but you may want to wait for them to reach two years of age to avoid any problems. And if you want them to develop healthy offspring, it is best to ensure that they are not related as this can lead to health problems.
Make sure the birds are healthy
It is important for you to make sure that both of the birds you are breeding are actually of good health. Check the signs of what makes a bird healthy. Happy and active birds are usually healthy. It is also important for you to check the birds’ weight. You do not want your birds to be underweight or overweight.
Lighting and feeding
Prepare at least 10 hours and at most 12 hours of natural light because birds need a decent amount of light if you want them to breed properly. Most species of birds can breed at any time of the year as long as there is enough light. Make sure that the light is abundant enough for your birds.
Also, during this preparatory stage, feed your birds well but not too much. It is important that the birds are eating well right before they start breeding. Ideally, you have to make sure that the birds are eating a balanced type of diet that contains all of the vitamins and minerals they need to produce healthy offspring. This is most important for females because of how they require the additional nutrients for egg production and to make sure that they are healthy enough to survive the stress of the entire breeding process.
Place the birds in a large breeding cage
Invest in a large breeding cage that provides more than enough space for the two birds. The cage should be at least 6 feet long, 3 feet wide, and 3 feet high, but it can depend on how big your birds are. Just be sure that the cages are spacious enough for your birds, or else they won’t be able to have the space they need to get to know one another a few weeks before you provide them with a nesting box for the eggs. Also, the cage should be placed in a quiet part of the house to provide the peace that the birds require to breed properly.
Add a nesting box
After two weeks of getting to know one another, the birds will require a nesting box in the cage. The box should be available for purchase in most bird pet stores and should come in all sorts of different materials and sizes. It is important that you consider the type of nesting box you are using because birds often prefer wood over metal or plastic. Meanwhile, the size of the nesting box should be large enough to contain the female and all of its eggs.
The actual mating process
When the birds are now ready to breed, you have to observe what the male is doing. It will most likely be chewing on the nesting box to adjust its size and shape, depending on what they require. He may even try to make some sort of bedding until he believes that the nesting box is ready to accommodate the female. After that, he will now allow the female to freely enter the box
The male will start to do a mating dance when it is time for them to mate. The dance includes dancing and singing as the male will try to impress the female. When the dance is successful, you will see the bird grooming each other. Finally, when the female is already ready for the male, she will crouch down to allow the male to mate with her.
Brooding
If the mating process was successful, the female might need about two weeks to lay the eggs. After laying the eggs, the male and the female will take turns brooding the eggs. But the male will most likely try to feed the female from time to time while the latter focuses on laying eggs and brooding them. The entire incubation period takes at least three weeks, depending on the species of the birds. You have to leave the birds and the nest alone during this period.
