bonded pair of lutinos now under my care

[oldguy]

I've been caring for a bonded pair of lutinos for more than a year through the local SPCA and finally had to adopt them to keep them from being sent to a "rescue in the basement warehouse of an Army/Navy surplus store, Where the owners were going to rescue 28 finches into a 2 ft by 3 ft "flight cage". I told them "...OVER MY DEAD BODY !!!"..

During their last reproductive cycle the ringnecks, Sunny and Shy Anne, had been fostered out to someone who could no longer bear to see them caged and therefore would not adopt them.

So I have no experience with their specific reproductive behavior, only with that of Amazons, conures, quakers, finches and canaries. I've posed a specific behavioral question in teh breeding forum.

When the cruelty case was resolved to the point where the shelter was frantic to rid itself of the 80 bird liability, all 30 of the birds who were either not adopted by their foster homes or were never fostered, came to me, so I could take the necessary time to find them the best homes.

They've all been moved up to the largest cages I could afford and as money becomes available, I bump them up another notch, in turn.

The best I've done so far, was to place 10 Java finches and 5 Zebras at The Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center in Virginia Beach where they are now flying free above the heads of 3 Komodo dragons in a 900 sq ft space.

It was tough to say good bye to them, but I told them "this is the best I can do for you".

One of the two injured conures has survived. Her partner, Foot Loose, had lost most of each toe and if anyone had ever told Fancy Free that she had no legs, she wasn't listening, so well she gets around on her knees. We made the wrong presumption about her when in last year's breeding cycle she was feeding Foot Loose. Turned out it wasn't the male feeding the female, but the stronger frantically feeding the weaker to keep her failing partner alive.

I guess I'm writing a book, huh? I'll stop.

[ellieelectrons]

Hi

Thanks for sharing your story. Brought a tear to my eye.

I'm glad you were able to take all of the birds in.

Sounds like the finches will be happy in that big enclosure with the komodo!

Ellie.

[oldguy]

I appreciate your support, Ellie.

[Melika]

I was sad you stopped writing. The conures' story sounded fascinating.

A belated welcome to the board.

[oldguy]

Thank you, Melika. Y'now, Fancy Free and Foot Loose broke all our hearts with their courage and adaptability. Foot Loose, during the last breeding cycle at this time last year began to be lethargic and confused, rocking his head back most of the day and not eating much or passing poop, Fancy Free was frantic to feed him. But after a couple of days of worsening health, I found him dead on the cage floor.

Necropsy was inconclusive but strongly suggestive of psittacosis from the specific type of lesion in the liver sections, so all the birds were given profilactic doxycycline.

This is why I immediately panicked when Sunny, the ringneck, began to sit with his head tipped back. And why I immediately started him on doxy, which the vet finally confirmed was correct thing to do under the circumstances. Stress is one of the things which can activate latent chlanydia and probably what triggered it in Foot Loose in the conures' breeding cycle. And that's what's going on with Sunny and Shy Anne right now. Their first copulation was yesterday, bless their hearts. (While I have provided a large nesting box which they have recognized as such and explored without caution, I have a no breed policy, so they will be allowed to go throught the nesting and laying, but the eggs will be stolen by their evil roommate, once Shy Anne has stopped laying. This will be stressful for her, but less so than adding the burden of raising the young and then their kidnap and condemnation to lives ion confinement. If I were in their natural habitat, of course, Sunny and Shy Anne would be released, after quarrantine... I'll get of the soap box now).

But of course, Sunny is dancing around like a little stud -- cock-a-doodle-doo, if you please -- has good weight and musculature all other bloodwork is normal to insignificantly off normal. Actually, he's beegging me for a shower-bath, as I write this !!

So it's a puzzle. So I have to get more information on his symptoms, from people who have seen them, particularly in ringnecks. The vets, who have not seen this, will torture him to death with tests to make up for their lack of knowledge about it.

Sunny can't be the only bird in the world who has encountered this problem.

Gotta sign off for now: SUNNY GETS HIS SHOWER !! ok, buddy, here we go...

[Melika]

Sorry I cannot help with Sunny's current issue. I do hope you find the cause, and even better that it is nothing serious.

But I have a neat tip for eggs. It sounded as if you meant to take them away as soon as she stopped laying her clutch. Instead, you have to render the eggs inviable and she will sit on them until she becomes bored and then when she stops sitting you can remove the box and all. If you just take the clutch away while she is still sitting, she will likely try to replace the eggs. Not sure about up where you are, but even leaving the box on will encourage a second try at breeding where I live.
One friend places the egg in the freezer for a few hours and then puts it back under the mom. Some hardboil the eggs, some just shake the egg (basically scrambling in the shell). Others replace the egg entirely with a fake one.

[oldguy]

With my Amazons and with Heckle and Jeckle, the bickering quakers, I do as you have suggested: I take them one at a time, number them and refrigerate for 2 days and then trade them off. It results in one more egg than a normal clutch being laid. And then they lose interest as you say. This is my intent with Shy Anne as well, but it just seemed simpler to summarize it as I did.

Nicky and Willi, the Amazons, begat their son Snare Drum who lives with his dad, since Willi died 2 years ago. Willi destroyed one of the three eggs in Snare Drum's clutch and the other didn't hatch. The next year I took the eggs one by one and she just kept laying until she was on her 15th and I just panicked. I was terrified she would just use herself up. Someone told me that she was counting, trying to get to 4. And sure enough, she stopped at four. As smart as they are, I don't really think she was counting in the way that we understand such a concept. I would guess its more about pressure against the abdomen signaling to the reproductive system to stop. The literature says that canaries will stop at 4 or 5 even if you take them one by one, but someone who was carring for them on my days off, moved all the nests and water and seed dishes one day and they all started to lay all over again.

Do you know the pattern with ringnecks?

[Melika]

All the hookbills I have known have a set number they intend to lay and stop at that number, replacing if needed.

[oldguy]

OK. "replacing as needed" suggests that taking them before they've reached that number will keep them laying. Well, Sunny and Shy Anne are now copulating like mad. He's being very attentive. They're spending time in the nest box. I'll keep you posted. Thanks so much for all your responses. Be well.