Egg laying

[Duffo]

Hi,

just asking out of curiosity, has any one had their SINGLE female bird lay an egg without the mating :confused: ? Thanks:whistle:

[Bubblelady]

Oh yes! Plenty of that going on around here :rofl: My single lovie layed a single egg in her life. And of course she got egg bound & that single egg cost me $175.00 :omg:

[Duffo]

Haha cool, I'm suspecting mine's a female... So the egg laying is pretty rare ? I read that they get into terrible moods though. Sry what does egg bound mean ?

[linda040899]

Nope. Egg laying in single hens is not rare! :) What's rare is having a single hen that doesn't lay eggs at some point. Sometimes the "mate" can be a human and the human actually stimulates the hen to lay.

Egg binding is a condition where the hen can't lay her egg without assistance. This is not common, especially if the hen is in good condition (good diet, adequate calcium, proper amount of sleep and exercise) before she begins laying. Basically, the egg acts like a plug and it prevents the hen from eliminating and she will die from build up of toxic waste in her system. If caught quickly enough, most hens can be saved with good vet care. This is not a condition that you should try to handle yourself, regardless of what others will tell you.

[HaleBoppPeachyluv]

My mom has a single hen who lays maybe a clutch a year.... My mom likes to save the eggies because she thinks they're cute. lol

[dieflying]

that's how we get our delicious eggs from the grocery store! :)

still waiting to see if mine is going to lay as well.

[Flapjack]

Everyone, meet Jack :)

I'll bet she holds the Guinness Book of World Records for laying by a single hen!

[Pips mom]

Everyone, meet Jack :)

I'll bet she holds the Guinness Book of World Records for laying by a single hen!

Awww, and don't forget how she fooled you into thinking she was a boy first! :rotfl

[Duffo]

Wow birds are so intriguing :blush: Haha I'll definitely be keeping the egg if mine ever lays one, prob drain out the liquid inside, problem is I really don't know if Burney's a guy/girl :confused: "He" does enjoy biting paper and into balls though but no sign of any shredding or nest building yet. How do I know when my bird is egg bound ? Thanks!

[piousm]

Our little man Gigi nibbles paper into balls, but doesnt shred it. He is quite fooffy and delicate. Our hen Kiki is all business - stomps around, folds paper over with her foot then shreds it like a machine. Gigi then steals the strips from her back, and runs off with it. The hen will bite if you interfere, whereas the boy wont (in our case).

[michael]

........... I'll definitely be keeping the egg if mine ever lays one, prob drain out the liquid inside, problem is I really don't know if Burney's a guy/girl :confused: "He" does enjoy biting paper and into balls though but no sign of any shredding or nest building yet. How do I know when my bird is egg bound ? Thanks!

Hi Duffo. .. First let me say, egg binding is serious business! ... Once an egg is formed you can usually see whats refered to as a normal "torpedo butt". That is, the vent area just under her tail will often become swollen, or in some iffy cases, distended and red. Should the egg for ANY reason become firmly lodged or (immobile), then the hen will no longer be capable of passing waste. Likewise, a symptom of egg binding can be either a total lack of "or near lack of defecate (poops)" while the bird continues to physically lose all her strength. .... By this time, emergency vet intervention is needed.

Please check our forums and the "Lovebird Resource Library" on how to manage lovebird breeding behavior. Also in the resource library under "Breeder husbandry" is the website for DNA sexing..... http://www.avianbiotech.com/SexingCenter.htm .....Arming yourself with as much information early on may help save your lovies life! ... Any question? ....Please ask!............:)

[Duffo]

Mine nibbles them into balls too! He(I assume) pretty much nibbles everything till it's soaked with saliva then drops it and goes on nibbling something else like my fingers :s I've never seen him do the paper folding thing, not yet at least. Well by interfere do you mean snatching the tissue away or trying to get the nibbled item out of it's mouth ? Mine does get pretty nippy/charged if he sees my finger take something that he is interested in lol.

Wow sounds like a scary thing. I read that it only happens a year after the bird is born, is that true ? I'm starting to have doubts that mine's a male because he is sometimes pretty nippy but then again there's no sign of shredding or territorial behaviour yet...

[linda040899]

There is a greater risk of egg binding in hens under 12 months of age but any hen, any age, can become egg bound. The egg is usually larger than the hen can lay without assistance. I've learned that hens in laying condition can get egg bound with any egg of the entire clutch, not just the first one. I've never lost an egg bound hen that I've gotten to my avian vet as soon as I realized that she was egg bound.

[Duffo]

I see, I see ok thank you, will take note of that :)

[Chickobee]

Also, before a hen lays her egg she will have a definite egg bump (torpedo butt) for several days. This is normal. What you will want to watch for is that she is eliminating, which will be less frequent than normal, and her poops will be HUGE. This is also normal and it will definitely get your attention the first time you see this!