Breeding cockatiels. To do, or not, that is the question.
You all know that I have a small zoo. I also have birds in my blood. My Opa (grandpa) bred cockatiels and budgies. He taught me everything about breeding, and most of the birds I had in my life where from him.
I now have a cockatiel, Marty. She's sort of a rescue, given to us by a guy that works with my husband. She was from a very good breeder, hand raised, very tame. The guy bought her for his son only to find out that his son is allergic to birds. Even then it took him a year before he decided he had to find her a new home. When he did make that decision there was only one person he could think of to give her to. Me (I used to work with him a long time ago, long before hubby did).
So now we have Marty. She's a very rare color, so rare in fact that sexing her was impossible (cockatiels are sexed by their coloring). The breeder had no clue whether Marty was male or female. The co-worker thought she was male since she never laid eggs (birds lay eggs even if they're not bred).
Well we took care of a friends male parrot for 4 days, had him in the same room as Marty, and shortly after he went home, Marty laid her first egg. That was a few years ago.
She now lays eggs every month. Here's the concern. A female bird that's not bred will continue laying eggs, one after the other. The risk is that her uterus can fall out. Literally fall out. The only solution to this is to push the uterus back in, put in a stitch, and hope that it doesn't fall out again. Most times it does, the next time she lays an egg. It's a death sentence.
A bird that is bred lays less eggs, because she's busy rearing her hatchlings. A bird that is bred will lay eggs around 2 times a year, which is a lot better than every month.
So, long story short (okay, not so short) breeding her could save her life. So I'm seriously considering buying a male and breeding my Marty. Not only could this prevent her dying, but she'd have a mate, a friend, and frankly, I have so many animals that I really don't get to spend the one on one time with them that I'd like, so this would really be a great thing for her.
The problem is, I'm scared. I do know a lot about breeding, used to breed finches, but I've never actually bred a cockatiel. They're not as easy as finches. I'm afraid to make a mistake, I'm afraid of losing my Marty, and honestly, once we get the male I know I'll love him too, and when the babies hatch, I may not be able to get myself to find them homes. I could end up with more birds than I'm prepared to have.
I need a few tips. Anyone out there that's bred cockatiels? Any advice? I do know the basics, but putting what I know into practice, is a bit scary. Also, finding a male is proving to be a lot harder than I thought it would be. I'd like a rescue if at all possible.
Any tips would be appreciated. Sorry for rambling.