SLOW TO FEATHER -- AN UNUSUAL BOURKE'S PARAKEET BABY

SPLENDID PARAKEETS SINGING AND BATHING

Comparing Bourke's Parakeets to Splendid Parakeets - Their Differences

Baby Bourke Parakeet's Eye Issue Treated & Cured

Forgive my following rant: I put this video together and entered You Tube to launch it at 9 p.m. on Friday night. For whatever reason, it didn't go up overnight even though I checked it 3 times during the night. It would show 78% then back down to 65%. By morning it showed 92%. Great! Finally. Then it backed down to 78%, doing this all day long. Long story, but at 2:30 p.m. the next day, Saturday, it finally loaded and was up. Also had this kind of trouble with the video before this one too.

Don't know what is wrong. My new computer? Using Windows 10 now? Is it the new wi-fi carrier that bought out Frontier? Is Microsoft sabotaging it since I'm still using Google, and not Bing, and not using their newest version of video editing?  I don't know, but it's getting more difficult to put up videos. Wish I had an answer and could fix it. Sad. Especially sad that it was easier on the OLD computer, and $700 later, things are worse than before. The new set-up was supposed to make everything faster and easier ... wrong.

Question: When Will a Bourke Hen Lay Eggs?

 

I get questions on my YouTube videos nearly every day. Thought this common response is worth sharing on this Blog too, so here it is.

All our birds love these swings.

Bourke's Parakeet hens should be at least a year and a half old before laying eggs (18 months). Some may want to lay as early as one year old, but there is a risk of egg binding in a hen that is too young. Best age for breeding and laying eggs in Bourke's is two years of age. For the first year they are still building their own bones and should not use calcium to lay eggs before they are fully mature.

If your question is about how long after you see them mating will they lay eggs ... I don't know. It can be different for each hen. Even hens without a mate can lay eggs. They won't hatch, of course. It is day length (day light) that triggers egg laying in all birds and fowl. Wild birds lay when it is warmest during spring or summer. As days shorten, they don't raise babies. Our domestic birds are the same way. Even indoor lighting can trigger them to want to lay eggs. It is called circadian rhythm. 

We can control their urge to lay eggs by limiting the amount of light they get to only 8 to 10 hours per day.  Or, to encourage them to lay, provide indoor lighting that lasts at least 14 hours per day.  But, be sure to allow them some night time, at least 8 hours.

It is also important to provide good calcium sources. Cuttlebone is essential. We have two cuttlebones for each pair of our Bourkes. We buy 6 to 8 inch sized cuttlebones, not the tiny ones found in too many pet stores. If you do an online search you will find them. We also provide a white mineral block, but even more important, we add a brown rabbit salt block. These salt blocks have iodine and other trace minerals that are advantageous for birds. Don't worry about the salt. Your birds will only use as much as they need. Keep the salt blocks away from cage wires, however, or they will damage them. We place ours on the floor with newspaper under them, and away from overhead perches. 

As an FYI: Since adding these brown rabbit salt blocks several years ago, we've not had a single egg binding incident. These were recommended to us by a long-time bird breeder who used to travel across the USA and Europe giving speeches about small exotic birds. He knows his stuff, and we're happy to share it with you. They also increased the size and success of our birds' clutches. 

Some recently weaned 2020 Bourke's Parakeets.

PEACE AND BLESSINGS!

Bourke's Parakeet 3rd Clutch Youngsters Ready to Leave Us.

Been a while since I've uploaded a video.  Finally got to do one.  Have many more that need to go up.  Peace and Blessings!

BOURKE'S PARAKEET BABIES FLEDGING -- 14 OF MANY COLORS

How Bourke's Parakeet Parents Feed Their Young

Blossom and Songster's current clutch.

BOURKE'S PARAKEETS, NEWLY HATCHED AND AT 2 WEEKS OF AGE.

Hatchlings from mother birds Blossom, Peaches, Starfire and Rosie shortly after their hatch and again two weeks later.

Bourke's Parakeet Youngsters Available Now

Rosie Bird's latest video. These tame, sweet lovelies are ready for their new homes. For information about them, or about Bourke's Parakeets, write to us at:  rosie.birds@gmail.com 
We are in Coos County, Oregon ... Sorry, we don't ship.

Preparing for Bourke Parakeets' 2nd Clutches -- Cleaning Nest Boxes

After housing 11 babies, three nest boxes need to be cleaned!

Bourke's Parakeets - Our First Clutches Weaned and in Their Own Cages

Our pairs' first clutches of 2020 are weaned and ready for their new homes, all of them sweet and beautiful.

Fledging Bourke's Parakeets - Growing up

Advantages of Co-Feeding Our First Clutches

Songster entering the nest box of his four youngsters.

This year we retired Rosy and Pretty Boy. They are elderly and their clutches from 2018 and 2019 weren't very successful. We might let them have one clutch later in the summer, but will wait and see. So, we have three pairs reproducing at present. Two other pairs we hope will do something in the future.

Because of the pandemic that's currently keeping us all at home, we decided to only co-feed these babies. If, for any reason, we had to be away from home, or were ill, hand feeding would be a problem. Co-feeding is allowing the babies to trust us and become tame without a full-time commitment to feeding them.

Watch the video of our 11 first clutch babies of 2020 on the colored link.

You Tube Video Link, click below

2020 First Clutches of Baby Bourke's Parakeets - Tame and Sweet

PEACE AND BLESSINGS!

Baby Bourke's Parakeets -- Color Speculation & Banding of First Clutches

In Rosie Bird's Latest Video we are banding some of our 11 new baby Bourke's Parakeets.

Nest Box Construction

This post is taken from Chapter 17 of my book,
 "Rosie Bird's Guide to Small Exotic Birds" by Gail A. Lewis

Home to multiple clutches of baby birds, the humble nest box duplicates
the hollows where many varieties of birds nest and reproduce in the wild.

Making a nest box for your birds need not be an overwhelming project. Anyone with basic carpentry skills and a few tools can produce an inexpensive and functional box. The sizes given in this chapter will yield a box suitable for the various Grasskeets discussed in this book. It also works for Linnies and Finches. If you plan to raise larger birds, proportionally increase the dimensions.

Tools You Will Need

A saw capable of cutting plywood.

A 12 inch ruler or tape measure.

Drill with a 3/8 inch bit, 1/8 inch bit, and a 1¾ inch hole cutter.

Piece of 3/8 inch dowel – about six inches.

Rasp to round off corners.

Sandpaper to smooth edges.

Carpenter’s glue, such as Elmer’s Wood Glue.

Clamp(s) to hold pieces together as they dry.

A generous handful of small finish nails.

A hammer to drive those nails.

Pliers and small wire cutters to install nest box.

Each nest box is constructed of a bottom piece made from ¾” exterior plywood. The sides and lid are made of 3/8” plywood.

We asked our friendly local lumberyard to rip a sheet of plywood into nine inch strips lengthwise. Since a sheet of plywood is 48 inches wide, this yields five 9” x 8’ strips and one thin remainder. Save that remainder to use later. If you’re only making a couple of nest boxes, check with your lumber yard to see if they sell half-sheets of plywood.

Here’s a cutting list of pieces needed for a Grasskeet-sized box:

Floor – 9” x 8 1/4” piece cut from ¾” exterior plywood.

Front – 9” wide x 11” high plywood piece with the entrance hole, and a row of four or five small holes, 1/2” down from the top.

Back – 9” wide” x 10” high cut from plywood.

Side A – 9” wide x 9 ¾” high cut from plywood. This ¼” is the lip that the lid will rest on.

Side B – 9” wide x 10” high plywood piece. This will become the hinge side.

Top or Lid – 8” wide x 10” long plywood.

Schematic of the Nest Box

Viewed from above — Lid not shown

All corner joints are glued and nailed
for strength and stability.

Preparing for Assembly:

1. Cut your plywood floor to size.

2. Cut out the plywood pieces from a 9 inch strip of plywood.

3. The front will be mounted against the cage. Determine where you want to place the entry hole. [This will be determined by the location where you intend to remove several bars of the cage so the birds can access it from inside the cage.] It can be centered, or off to either side. Draw a horizontal line across the back (the 9” x 11” piece) about 3 ½ inches down from the top. Draw a vertical line where you want the middle of the entry to be. Where these two lines cross marks the center of the entry hole. Drill a 1¾ inch diameter hole there.

4. Carefully sand and smooth the edges of the entry hole to protect your birds.

5. About ¾ inches below the entry hole, drill a 3/8 inch hole on your vertical line for a perch.

6. Take your six inch dowel and carefully drive it through the hole under the entry. Enlarge the hole slightly if necessary, but not so much that the dowel doesn’t fit tightly. Center the dowel so there’s as much inside as there is outside. This allows a mother bird in the nest to stand on it while the father bird in the cage feeds her from outside the box. You can make this easier by placing one of the cage’s perches adjacent to it.

7. Drill a series of four or five 1/8 inch holes in an evenly-spaced line about ½ inch below the top of the board. They will be used to attach the nest box to the cage.

Creating the hinge:

1. Take the thin leftover strip of plywood and cut a piece equal to the width of the lid. This will be used to form a hinge. The lid is hinged from side-to-side and is attached between the front and back of the cage.

2. Apply glue, clamp the strip tightly, and let it dry.

3. After the glue has dried, use the rasp and sandpaper to round the bottom and top edge of the hinge end. This will allow it to open and close without binding. You’ll also want to round the exterior corners and edge, sanding them smooth. You’ll be lifting the lid often to check the eggs and baby birds...so smooth is nice.

Assembling the Nest Box, Step 1:

1. Lay your floor board floor flat on your work table. It helps to lay the four sides of the Nest Box on the work table around the floor so you can visualize how it comes together.

2. Attach the sides. Apply glue to one side of the base. Put Side A in place and drive several nails along the bottom to reinforce the connection. Remember, the lid will close onto Side A; its placement determines the direction the lid faces. Repeat the process, putting Side B on the opposite side.

Assembling the Nest Box, Step 2:

Attach the front and back. Spread glue along the floor edge and the edges of the piece. Carefully slip it in between the sides you’ve already put on. Nail along the floor and temporarily clamp. Repeat the process with the final piece. Once it’s in place and clamped, drive some nails along the joint where the two sides meet.

Assembling the Nest Box, Step 3:

Install the lid. Put the lid on the box the way it will be installed. The hinge portion should slip in between the front and back sides. Hold in place by pressing down the lip onto Side A, the shorter side, so the lid is level. Mark this position on Side B with a pencil line.

Now turn the box on its side and align the lid with the pencil line. Move it away from Side B creating a tiny gap so it doesn’t rub when opened. Once the lid is properly positioned, drive a 2d (1”) finish nail through each side and into the thin scrap glued to the lid. The nails will act as a hinge allowing you to open and close the box lid.

How to attach the Nest Box to a cage:

Align the nest with the hole you’ve created by removing several sections of the cage’s bars. Feed an 8” plastic cable tie through one of the holes previously drilled across the top of the Nest Box. Loop it around the upper horizontal bar of the cage and tighten. Four or five ties securely hold the box in place.

You can view our nest boxes at the Link Below: 

ROSIE BIRD VIDEOS on You Tube

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PEACE AND BLESSINGS! 

Baby Bourke Parakeets Newly Hatched, and Hatching

Our Sweet Hens are Busy. Eggs are Hatching!

TOYS FOR PARAKEETS, SAFE OR UNSAFE?

ROSIE BIRD'S Latest Video on You Tube

Excited Bourke's and Splendid Parakeets! Nest Boxes are Installed for Sp...

Our sweet, tame Bourke's get their nest boxes for the upcoming year's breeding season. And, we have added a pair of Splendid Parakeets as well...

A Rainbow Bourke Parakeet -- Hen Shows What They Look Like

2020 Nest Boxes are up! Showing two of six.

Night Lights for Pet Birds, Especially Bourke Parakeets

Night Frights can injure pet birds. This is what we do to help protect ours.

Egg Binding Advice

This Bourke hen survived a harrowing experience.