Help! My female cockatiel just laid an
egg
(and I don't even have a male
cockatiel)
by NCS Member and Online Pet Consultant
Mary Beth
Voelker
November 1997
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Copyright Notice & Disclaimer
Statement
What should I do?
Tiels are notorious single layers. They are opportunistic breeders who,
rather than waiting for a specific breeding season breed any time that
conditions favor raising a family successfully. In our efforts to take
very good care of our birds we provide them with consistently excellent
conditions. Many times their instincts kick in and they "decide" that the
thing to do when you live in paradise is breed. Even hens without mates
will feel the instinct to lay eggs when the environment is wonderful
though their eggs will not hatch. There are several steps involved in
controlling this problem.
- reduce the light to 10 hours or less per day.
- If she is mating with a toy, food dish, part of the cage, etc. and
the item is removable, remove it.
- If possible change her environment. That is -- move the cage to a
different location, rearrange all the perches, dishes, etc. Change all
the toys. OR temporarily house her in a spare cage.
- Cut back on the availability of bathing water.
- Do not let the bird access dark, enclosed spaces.
- Make sure calcium (mineral blocks or cuttlebone) is available so her
calcium deposits do not become depleted.
These measures are
intended to either fool the bird into thinking that its winter and thus
not breeding season or to make her feel that the cage no longer is a
secure nesting site. For most birds they work but there are always a
stubborn few who continue to lay.
If you already have eggs it is better to let the hen sit on them rather
than removing them. It is instinctive for a bird to replace the eggs that
were "destroyed by predators" until she has a full clutch. She may go on
and on laying until she depletes her calcium and ruins her health. I have
a bird who was given to me on breeder loan because despite all these
measures, including allowing her to sit on the eggs, she laid 20 eggs over
the course of a summer and was endangering her health.
A more extreme measure is a visit to an avian vet for a "birth control"
shot. Even this doesn't always work and is not proven to be completely
safe -- you have to trade off the damage continual egg-laying is doing
against the risks of the treatment. If the shot fails or you decide not to
take the risk you usually end up having to find the determined lady a home
in a breeding situation if you are not wanting to buy her a mate and go
into breeding yourself.
One final option would be to have your avian veterinarian do a
hysterectomy on your hen. This is both very costly and risky to your bird
(any major surgery is seen as risky).
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