Another EGGciting moment.

[pinkdevil]

lol Sorry for the pun , but just had to do it.

Well after a loooooong time, my Lutino hen, Jasper, has finally taken the plunge and laid her first egg yesterday.

Now I haven't seen Jasper "play nice" to her man EVER. Always picking on him, chasing him, putting him in his place at every opportunity she can get......BUT that was until this morning. She was in the nest box heavily guarding, while the male was at the entrance doing his lurv dance as usual. At this time Jasper usually bobs up from the nest box and hunts him away. But this morning I saw him feeding her.
I can't believe it!!! She is now playing nice!!

So now I am wondering if they actually "did it" away from my prying eyes.

All will be revealed in a few weeks I guess.

Yay Jasper.

[bec]

jasper just wanted to surprise you!!

[Recio]

Hi,
My birds "do it" very often early in the morning, when the sun is raising and I have my coffee. Some paires do not "do it" anymore during the day (as far as I know) while there are others which do "do it" as much as ten or more times a day (my vicious birds ...!!!)

Good luck

[Coastal-Birds]

Hi all
A little trick i have learnt is if you cant confirm matings is to early in mornings or 1 hr before night place a treat in there bowl.Whatever you know they both love to get on special occasions works best.
This seems to trigger the cock bird to try and feed the hen and most often then he will do his mating dance and not longer after they will be into the good part.
This method works pretty much 90% of the time with my 100 plus ringnecks so i suggest you give it a try and see what happens.

[pinkdevil]

Thanks Recio.

Cool Coastal-Birds, will have to give that idea a try.
Mind you, Jasper rules the WHOLE aviary. Come tucker time, she is first to be served while the boy is banished to the far back perch until she has finished. Or he is permitted to eat the disgarded leftovers/unfavourites she has thrown on the ground.
Even using 2 containers, she will quickly fly to one and pick out her choice then fly over to the other one and eat the best bits in that.....sigh.

[pinkdevil]

Jasper has called it quits at 4 eggs.

I know it could be a bit early, (have read where it is possible to candle after 4 days of incubation), but I tried to candle her eggs this evening. I don't think she will be having bubbies
I couldn't see any of the little veins that I saw in the green parents eggs.
I will leave her have her eggies though and see what could happen in just over 2 weeks time.

[lewi111]

Fingers crossed she does have bubbies for you.After all you were surprised when she LAID the eggs!!! Maybe she'll surprise you again

[julie]

congratulations.
I have 3 eggs today, hopefully mine will be furtile too. Fingers crossed.

[pinkdevil]

Thanks Greg, I hope she does to after all the hard work she is doing.

Congrats Julie, hopefully yours will be.

[pinkdevil]

According to my rough calculations on when I saw the hen sitting tight in the box, a chick should be ready to hatch tomorrow.

BUT...................

...............................

.....................................

........................................

I got a wonderful surprise with not 1 but TWO chicks this morning!!!

Here is the first photo for the season of my babies!!
(appologies for the pic, was taken on my phone and couldn't wait till I went inside to get the camera )



As you can see, I have 1 IRN chick and an ostrich ring-in

BTW- the ostrich is fine, just a feather covered with a little bit of nesting material leaning up against him.

Looks like Ostrich is the second hatched going by the size. The "first" born looks like it has a good crop of food there.

These belong to my green pair.

*doin' the happy joy dance*

[lewi111]

WOW Congratulations Tasha ----hope the rest hatch for you as well

[pinkdevil]

Thanks Greg.

It was a nice surprise to wake up to that this morning.

I had a feeling something was going on in there as all the birds this morning were making a slightly different noise to normal and were behaving differently. Can't explain how just I know they were lol.
If the other birds did know about the chicks, I wonder how as they are all in different areas.

I don't think the 2 eggs from the other hen will hatch as when I checked the other day, 2 eggs still looked like yolk, no dark colouring like the other 4.

[lewi111]

Ive always said Tasha-----birds (and all animals )are far mor clever than we give them credit for.

[pinkdevil]

I believe that to Greg.

Another chick in the nest this morning, but one, (not sure who), had died.

I am guessing it may have gotten separated somehow during the night/morning and died of cold. It was on the opposite cormer of the nest to where the other eggs and chicks were and had food in it's crop so mumma was feeding it.

[lewi111]

Awwww not, good abouty the dead Chick

But great about the new one

[pinkdevil]

Yeah.

Now I am over paranoid about my chickies.

It is too early when I go to work in the mornings to check as it is still dark and mumma hen still in nest. The only chance I can check is when I get home.

It is really easy to check with her, all I do is put food in the bowl, she comes for a feed, then I check nest.

[pinkdevil]

Another chicky on his way. Heard him pecking in his shell.

[lewi111]

Cool hope he finds his way out ok lol

[pinkdevil]

Yes he did Greg.




Finally after a couple of days peeping and chipping away, entered the world between the hours of 1pm & 2.30pm.

I last checked at 12.45pm and there was a small crack beginning to appear.

I read somewhere that it takes around 2 hours from piping to hatching so guess he wasn't long hatched when I took his picture.

Obviously he is the smallest one of the 3.

The other 2 eggs I am fairly sure are duds but going to leave them there until end of the weekend.

[bec]

"he" is just sooooo cute!!!!

[lewi111]

Cool he did find his way
Congrats Tasha

[pinkdevil]

Thanks peoples.

[pinkdevil]

Well it is official, the other eggs in the greens nest are duds as is all of Jaspers eggs.

[bec]

oh poor jasper

maybe she just did a test run this season

[lewi111]

Damn thats a shame Next season hopefully

[pinkdevil]

With Jaspers egg I don't think they were fertile to begin with as I didn't see the little veins like I did in the greens eggs. So didn't hold out much hope but wishing I missed something.

[julie]

bummer about jaspers eggs. Mine were furtile but I have only one left because they are getting knocked off from the nest

[lewi111]

Hi Julie thats not good------whats causing that?
Takin my lil guy out for hand raising tonight

[bec]

bummer about jaspers eggs. Mine were furtile but I have only one left because they are getting knocked off from the nest

any idea why julie?

[lewi111]

G'day Bec--------got my lil guy in the brooder---------dunno whose more worried---me or him ---- lol

[bec]

i understand greg i was like that with my first one too
but just remember i pulled skeet with no idea what i was doing
& instead of a brooder i had a soup pot & a desk lamp
you will do fine!!!
and the bond between you & your bub will be incredible
the best bit of advice i was given is
you CAN!!!!! do this & if you have trouble you have enough support to be ablre to get the help you need
keep us posted & of course remember to post lots of pics!

[julie]

im not sure what exactly it is taking them but possibly mice, there is no trace of the eggs.