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

***

PEACE AND BLESSINGS! 

Bourke Parakeet Babies, Four Different Colors in Same Clutch

Had a request for updated photos of our recent baby Bourkes. We were preparing for my husband's surgery last Monday, hours away from home. Everything is going fine, but he will have at least six weeks before adequately recovering. Being a caregiver takes time and energy away from other endeavors.

The Lutino hen before her feathers were all in.

Sweet little Rubino, my favorite actually.

It's been quiet among most of the birds. Only one pair is currently producing. All others are on vacation until next year. Peaches and Stormy had their very first clutch later than everyone else.

Rubino in front, a Normal, Lutino and Rosy.

This beautiful mixed clutch is a thrill to get. Stormy is a Normal Bourke male who is split. His father is a Lutino and his mother is a Rosy. A grandparent must be a Normal, since he is. Peaches is out of our Rosie and Pretty Boy, both are Rosy Bourkes. Peaches, the mother of this clutch, is an opaline fallow with red eyes.

We're getting feathers here and very alert.

Only one young pair, Peaches and Stormy, have a nest box. All others had their three clutches in Spring and Summer, so will wait until next year.

We're growing up! Dad at door, Mom in center.

Mom in center, standing. Only 3 babies showing, but there are 4.

Here we are at six weeks, fledged and weaned already.
Rubino in front, Lutino and Normal. Rosy below.
Photo taken October 24, 2015.


PEACE & BLESSINGS TO ALL!

 

Bourke Parakeet, Red-Eyed Opaline Fallow Hen on Eggs



Peaches on five eggs, first is due to hatch Labor Day.

Here is the only hen we still have producing. All others had their three clutches for the year. This will be Peaches' first clutch ever. She's two years old, but her mate, Stormy, was only hatched last January. He is feeding her regularly and even going into the box with her already. Most of my male Bourkes wait until the babies are two or more weeks old before they venture into the nest box with their mates and offspring.

 

Because of Stormy's youth, we will watch closely any babies that hatch. There is also the possibility that the eggs won't be fertile, but we witnessed several matings that looked successful to us. We are optimistic. So far, an opportunity to candle the eggs has not occurred. Since it's her first clutch, I'm leaving her alone more than I might otherwise.

 

We will let you know the outcome in a week or two.

As you can see, she changes position while on eggs.

Peaches' mate, a Normal Bourke we named Storm.
His father is a Lutino, so we hope to get interesting babies.

PEACE AND BLESSINGS!

 



Bourke Parakeets: Determining Sex

Nest box being attached in February to begin new season
of breeding, egg laying and raising of young Bourkes.

QUESTION:
On Thu, Apr 16, 2015 at 1:35 AM, David wrote:
Hi Rosie,
I’m trying to sex 2 bourkes. One is the wild type the other being a Rosie.
Hope you may be able to help.
Regards,
David
----------------------------

 

Baby Bourke at 9 days old, ready for banding with
Budgie sized bands. His feet are at maximum length.
Any bigger and he couldn't have been banded.

 

ANSWER:

On Thu, Apr 16, 2015 at 10:53 AM,
Rosie Bird wrote:

Hello David,

Wild types are easy once they are mature. Males have a tiny line of blue feathers over the cere (nostrils). Females don't have that. Males are also slightly brighter in pink and blue areas, with brighter turquoise in shoulders. However, this feature varies between birds. So, the blue line above their cere is the main determining factor.

 

Normal Bourke Parakeet. This is a male. His colors
are slightly brighter than the hen's. Male Bourkes of
the wild variety also have a tiny line of blue feathers
above the cere (nostrils). Difficult to see in this photo.

Normal Bourke hen and chicks.

 

As for Rosies, only their behavior will give them away, short of having them DNA'd. Once mature, males will often display in ways that hens do not. They also seem to sing more and occasionally wolf whistle.

When I'm going to sell young Rosies and am unsure of their sex, I've sometimes sent a tiny blood sample in for DNAing. It requires clipping a toenail slightly short, dabbing a smear of blood on a card, and then dipping the "injured" toe into corn starch to staunch any further bleeding. I resisted doing that for years, but once done, I realized how easy it was and didn't seem to hurt the little birds. I use Health Gene in Canada. It's only $12 and they send a lovely certificate that follows up after an email giving the sex of the bird.  http://www.healthgene.com/avian-dna-testing/

Below is a copy from The Splendid Bourke Bird Blog on BlogSpot. If you go there and enter "Sexing" into the Search Box, you will get lots of posts on this topic. http://thesplendidbourkebirdblog.blogspot.com/

"Male Bourkes throw their shoulders back and flair their wings slightly at the shoulder, standing tall. I call this strutting. You won't see a hen do this and males do it at a very young age.

Hens take longer to behave like hens. If there is a male bird present they squat down and raise their tail, cheeping, (preferably for another Bourke, but I've seen them display for other parakeet varieties when no male Bourke is around). On rare occasions I've seen a male do this in front of a hen who doesn't want to mate...I think he's showing her how. :-) Birds have preferences for their mates too."

Peace and Blessings,

Gail

An Oregon Coast Sunset taken above Larson Slough,
about five miles from our home.

 

PEACE AND BLESSINGS!

 

 

Flame & Fuchsia's Babies on Video

Flame and Fuchsia are parents of three baby Rosy Bourke Parakeets. They're less than two weeks old in this video taken July 3, 2014.

Peace & Blessings to all.

Have a SAFE, Celebratory Fourth of July.

Bourke Parakeets & Others - End of Season Update

I've tried to keep up with questions to rosie.birds@gmail.com, but lately I haven't been posting as often to this blog because my husband had back surgery. He is recovering nicely, but between him and the new puppy, my time is limited. One day I'll gather the newest questions and post them with their answers. However, for now, I want to update everyone on the current state of affairs with my birds this season.

Rosy Bourke parakeet on eggs. This is our sweetest hen,
 called Rosie. Photo taken 9-17-2013.

We've always recommended no more than three clutches a year per pair of birds. And, only two clutches per year for birds that might be stressed in any other way, such as being older, the weather suddenly turning cold, predators nearby causing a panic that could happen again -- anything that might make raising a third clutch difficult for the mated pair.

In spite of that recommendation, one year a young Flame and Fuchsia raised a fourth clutch because I didn't get their nest box removed in a timely manner. Often, I will hand feed a third clutch just to take some of the stress off the parent birds, and in the case of Flame and Fuchsia that year, I did hand feed their last clutch. Hand feeding the last clutch also allows me to remove the nest box before a pair begin mating again and the hen can go back and start laying more eggs.

Bourkes often begin to mate again right away, and a hen may lay eggs for a new clutch before their last clutch of young ones are all eating on their own. This year, in Fuchsia's case, while the last baby of her third clutch was still in the nest box, she laid another clutch of four eggs.

I couldn't hand feed the third clutches of any of our pairs this time because I knew we'd be traveling to a larger city for my husband's surgery. The birds were left alone with plenty of water and extra food for three days and two nights. They did fine, but hand feeding their young was out of the question.

Our oldest hen, Cherry. Her last clutch didn't hatch, so her
nest box has remained clean for this one. It seems unlikely
 these eggs will hatch either as her mate, Rhett, is quite
elderly too. In 1st clutch this year, they raised two.

My hubby usually attaches and removes nest boxes for me. This year, he's unable to remove them, and the nest boxes are still up. That problem can be dealt with by blocking off the entry opening. But, busy me, did not do so.

I also try to clean boxes between clutches and add new pine shavings. Since my birds are all very tame, if needed I can remove eggs for a short time and return them to a clean box. The hens always accept this from me. I'm not recommending it for everyone, however. I simply know my TAME birds will allow this, and I think they appreciate a clean box. The eggs are never away for more than a few minutes and handled carefully.

This post is to let you know how adaptable Bourkes (and probably all birds) can be. The picture below illustrates how they can accept their circumstances. Fuchsia's third clutch of four left the box pretty dirty and I've not been able to remove and clean it. She is using her "dirty" box for a fourth clutch. Cleaning it now will be a challenge since the dried food around her eggs is so hard. I need to decide when to do it...possibly after the babies hatch and I take them out to hand feed. Meanwhile, the box has a slight odor, but the weather is cool and that helps...

I'd never recommend allowing Bourkes to have fourth clutches in the same year, however, sometimes things happen that are beyond our control. These eggs are already laid and I'm not going to throw them away.

Fuchsia's box after raising four babies and starting
another clutch before the nest box was cleaned.
Instead of pine shavings, bottom has dry droppings.

The Lady Gouldian finches have babies again. All their clutches from late last year sold, and when she started laying eggs on the floor, I decided to give them their nest box back. I hear tiny peeps coming from within, Duchess won't move to let me see what's under her, smile. This photo is of a clutch from last year. They are about a week old here.

 

Lady Gouldian finch babies at about one week of age.

Turquoise Lineolated Parakeet.

The pair of Linnies (new to me), are in the nest box. The hen wasn't coming out, so I finally peeked in. She looked like she was brooding and I assumed she had eggs. However, I finally saw her out of the box and rushed over to have a look. No eggs. Disappointed, but still hopeful.


Cobalt blue Lineolated Parakeet. He loves his toys.



Light pink, white faced and red-eyed, opaline fallow Bourke.
This baby is from Rosie and Pretty Boy's third clutch this year.
She should be eating on her own soon. For now, Pretty Boy is
still feeding this daughter and his mate, Rosie, who is on eggs.

We have no breeding Splendids right now. It's all about the Bourke parakeets...my favorites.

Peace and Blessings,
Gail

Finch Film and a Cobalt Blue Linnie

Ten-year-old granddaughter
with Mr. Blue, a cobalt blue
Linneolated parakeet.

It has been a busy summer, so I've blogged less often. Also, still trying to finish my novel, "Cast Me Not Away," for publication. The edits go slowly...

Another photo of her with Mr. Blue.

Our "Sheik" Skoshi, a Peke and Shih-Tzu mix at 5 months.
Skoshi has plenty of toys, but loves this cast-off slipper.

Our two oldest granddaughters spent a week with us last week. Enjoyed sharing the baby Bourkes with them.

Their visit went by too quickly.

Ages 15 and ten with Skoshi, on their way home.
He came back with us and misses their attention.

Below is a link to a Video of our finches via You Tube. All their youngsters from last year completed their molts and are beautiful. I had to separate this pair to prevent them from continuing to mate and lay eggs. During that time the hen molted, and the cock partially did so, but stopped. He has more color than he did last year, but still isn't fully colored out...notice the splotches on his face that still remain.

 

They were separated for eight months and I took pity on them and let them be together again even though he still hasn't finished a complete molt. Maybe in another year. Smile.

 

Lady Gouldian finch pair minutes after their nest box was returned for the year.

 

 

Peace and Blessings.

Raising Bourke Parakeets, a Question on Eggs



QUESTION:

I have been looking through your blog but can't find info about when a bird lays too many eggs and I don't want to breed her. It's too soon after the first clutch when she went right back to laying. I removed some of them but now that she keeps going I just keep them in the cage. I wanted her to take a break, I don't believe in over-breeding. So I left the eggs on the bottom of the cage thinking she'd realize no nest, no eggs. Well she sits on them a lot now. I don't even know if they are fertile but I doubt anything would hatch because they've been rolling around on the floor of the cage. My question is, what should I do? There are four eggs (three previous ones had been removed). Should I just put up a nest box and put the eggs inside? Thank for your help! I have been feeding her cuttle bone, eggs with shells and marine sand for calcium. -- Melissa

p.s. the two babies from the first clutch are doing great! They are 4 months old and have their own cage now.

Both are Rosy Bourkes, but notice the color difference.
Some would call the lighter one a "pink" Bourke.

 ANSWER:

Hello Melissa,

 

Yes, I'd give her the nest box back.

 

 

Bourkes typically go right back and have a second clutch and often a third. There is no rest period in between like with some birds. They have all their clutches one right after the other.

 

It's normal for Bourke hens to lay more eggs when you take the others away. That is more physical stress to a hen than being able to sit on the clutch.

 

Young birds may even want a fourth clutch, but that's too many (although Fuchsia did get away with a 4th clutch one year and it didn't hurt her any). However, two clutches is the minimum, not one. Your poor little hen is doing such a good job. I feel sorry for her trying to sit on eggs on the floor.

 

With my oldest hen, I only allowed her two clutches last year and she was willing to quit when the nest box came down. However, with a young healthy hen, three clutches is fine.

 

People who raise canaries will sometimes replace eggs with plastic ones to let them brood so they won't lay more eggs. I suppose that could be done with any bird. However, Rosy Bourkes seem to be in demand just about everywhere, so you shouldn't have a problem finding homes for any youngsters you don't want to keep.

 

If you are adamant you don't want your hen to breed again, you'd need to remove the male in the spring and summer. However, single hens will sometimes lay anyway. The eggs simply aren't fertile.

 

Restricting light helps too. Long days promote the urge to breed, so artificial lights in the house after dark stimulates breeding desires too. When days are short, you can move her to a dark room. Or, in the early evening of summer days try light darkening drapes over all windows in their room to shut out light (but not all day long!).

 

Good luck. She sounds like a sweet bird who is a very good mama. I'd let her have three clutches a year, one right after the other. If she's getting plenty of calcium she should be okay.

------------------------

Update on my own Rosy Bourkes

 as of today...

 

Cherry, my oldest bird, was the last to lay her four eggs.

Fuchsia is my most prolific. She laid five eggs.
Her first egg hatched yesterday, so second will probably
hatch tomorrow as Bourkes usually hatch every other day.

Rosie's first egg hatched today. Notice the piece of shell?

 

Peace and Blessings.

 

 

 
 

Raising Lady Gouldian Finches

Mr. & Mrs. Lady Gouldian Finch

I take for granted how much I've learned about parakeets, especially Bourkes, Splendids and Budgies. Even some of the smaller finches have lived in our home. Gouldians, however, are a new treat and I realize how little I know about them. Thankfully, it's readers like you who fill in the gaps for me.

Three eggs so far.

This pair of Lady Gouldian finches obviously wanted a nest box, but I resisted since they aren't fully colored yet. However, the hen laid an egg on the floor of their cage last Thursday. So, a nest box went up right away. We didn't have nesting material for finches, but the little male diligently kept tearing newspaper up from the floor of their cage. I removed shredded paper from the paper shredder and gave it to them until I can get to town and pick up something better. It's been fun watching him transfer the slips of paper to their nest box.

Su Yin kindly shared the following information on Gouldians. Thank you Su!  

Male entering nest. Hen in front.

"Sometimes when these guys are ready, they are ready. I would just make sure the hen gets plenty of calcium and vitamin D supplements and give them a bit more protein with eggfood since she's laying. No need to increase too much until chicks are hatched, but if they are still actively molting, then I usually give them plenty of protein supplement. If they haven't been molting, it's possible they are stuck in molt - sometimes stress such as moving to a new home when they are still juveniles can lead to stuck in molt, but they should molt out next year.

[For nesting material] "I usually use dried soft hay/grass - orchard grass is fine, burmuda grass if good, coconut fiber is fine. I suppose shredded newspaper will work. Basically you just want to make sure the nest is cup shaped with a nice bottom so the eggs don't roll around too much and don't get broken on a hard bottom.

"You usually won't catch gouldians mating outside the nest box, so your eggs may very well be fertile - the hens usually sit overnight with the male taking turns during the day. Most pairs won't really sit tight until at least the 3rd egg has been laid though some start earlier and some later. I usually monitor to make sure if the male starts sitting during the day that the hen stays in the nestbox at night. sometimes the male gets over eager and starts sitting during the day while the hen hasn't started yet - this will kill the embryos. If this happens, you can take the real eggs out and put in fake eggs and then replace after both birds sit tightly. About 1 week after both birds start to sit tight, I would candle the eggs to see if they are fertile. Otherwise I tend to leave them alone until hatching time to make sure the babies are fed. Young gouldian couples sometimes can take a couple tries to get things right, but some are good parents to start."

Good luck with them,
Su

They've both been going in and out of this nest box.
Sometimes together, and sometimes one at a time.

Thank you! I will keep all of you posted on their progress.  Peace & Blessings.

NEST BOX CLEANING BETWEEN CLUTCHES

Pretty Boy at left with his pink-eyed youngster on right.

I’ve written about cleaning and replacing nest boxes before breeding season. However, I haven’t written about keeping them clean between clutches.

Most of my hens are meticulously clean while on eggs. They leave the box to defecate. However, after babies hatch and begin to grow, nest boxes start to become soiled. Two babies in a nest aren’t bad, but four can make the boxes pretty dirty.

When that happens, I temporarily remove the half-grown baby Bourkes, and place them in a safe, confined place. A large butter tub lined with a paper towel works perfectly for this. Old pine shavings are removed and fresh ones added. I press them down before returning the babies to their box.

Notice how dirty and crusty the pine shavings have gotten.
Three babies beginning to feather, but not ready to leave box.

My Bourkes live indoors and are very familiar with all of us, so cleaning out boxes with babies still in them is not a problem. If you have birds in an aviary, and they aren’t used to you coming and going, consider whether removing the youngsters is wise or not. I doubt a Bourke would ever abandon their nest because of a short-term cleaning, but there is a slight risk with birds that aren’t used to people.

Although I don’t always clean out boxes that have babies in them … unless they’re very dirty … between clutches, I always do. New babies are better off in a clean box. The photos with this post are of Rosie’s box. Currently, her second clutch of three is still in the cage with her and her mate. They’re being parent fed and learning to eat on their own, but not ready to leave home yet.

A photo of old shavings completely turned over by hen.
Loose and no longer crusty, but gray after previous use.

Rosie, on the other hand, is more than ready to start a new clutch. I had planned to remove her nest box, but changed my mind. These pictures illustrate how dirty a box can get, and how she decided to make it useful again. She turned over all the shavings to make the box ready for another clutch. She worked hard to make the formerly crusty, dirty box shavings soft and pliable, albeit old and gray.

Nevertheless, I felt that clean pine shavings are preferable. I set an empty 40 lb. dog food bag on a chair where it was easy to reach and, using a metal ladle, scooped shavings into it. With a sharp knife, I scraped hardened droppings and food off the sides of the box. Then, I vacuumed the interior.

An empty pill bottle blocks entry to nest box.

It might be advisable to remove the boxes to vacuum them. However, my birds are used to hearing the vacuum cleaner. It’s not very noisy as it’s an in-home vac with the motor in the basement. What they hear is loud air flow.

While I cleaned the box Rosie stayed away. She seemed to know what was going on. I did this between clutch one and two. However, before vacuuming, I decided to block the entry hole to be safe. I used an empty pill bottle that fit. Easy to put in and take back out.

Investigating her box after it has been cleaned out.
Windex was used on the sides after scraping off dry food & dirt.
Then the box was aired out. It will be throughlyscrubbed
 before it goes back up for use next year.

Later, satisfied with her box, she's fluffed
(wings out) and ready to lay an egg.

With about an inch of clean pine shavings in the bottom, I packed them down for her. As soon as the pill bottle went away, it didn’t take her long to investigate. She has already formed a “bowl” in the center. She is fluffed and ready to lay an egg, which I expect any day now.

Meanwhile, she and her mate, Pretty Boy, are still doing the deed. I expect all her eggs to be fertile. Smile.  

Link to Previous Post on Nest Box Cleaning

 

Pretty Boy on bowl. His three youngsters in background.
Rosie is out of sight in the nest box.

Peace & Blessings.

REPLACING NEST BOXES FOR BREEDING SEASON

Hello All,

Eight home made parakeet nest boxes after a good cleaning.

Dry and ready to bring inside. Installation was the next day.

I retrieved all our nest boxes from the basement where they’d been stored since last year, shook out a few mouse turds (frown) then brought them up to the laundry room and thoroughly cleaned them with warm sudsy liquid dish detergent. 

After a good rinse, they spent the afternoon on the deck drying in the sun, as the photo illustrates. The sun is beginning to drop on the horizon and the nest boxes, now dry, are about to come indoors. The next day we installed them on cages. An inch or two of pine shavings covers the bottom of our boxes. Bourkes and Splendids like pine shavings (don't use cedar).

Budgies need an indented circle in the bottom of an empty box for their eggs. We're not currently raising Budgies, so all these nest boxes are for Bourkes or Scarlet-chested parakeets.

It’s important to keep an eye on your hens when they’re laying. We’d planned a trip to Chicago during the month of May and I didn’t want our hens laying eggs when I wasn’t at home. This resulted in putting the nest boxes up late this year.



Jewel's new box. It sometimes takes a few days
for birds to investigate a recently installed nest box.
Usually the male checks it out first to be sure it's safe.

 Even though I had someone who would come in each day to provide them with fresh water and food, I wanted to be present during breeding season. If anything unusual were to happen, such as egg-binding, I could recognize and respond to the problem and, hopefully, save a hen’s life. It’s also a good idea to check your nestlings daily. If for some reason a chick isn’t being fed, you can pull the chick and save it with hand feeding.

As you know, having a nest box stimulates the bird’s desire to breed and rear young. Without a nest box, they usually won’t attempt to reproduce. However, like every rule, there are exceptions. One year, I had one female lay her eggs in a food cup in early February.  She has since learned to wait for me to put up a box. I think she realizes that if she waits, one will eventually materialize.

This box slides open on the side, rather than from the top.

Last year Cherry, an older Rosy hen who didn’t lay eggs in 2009, surprised us by raising a total of six youngsters in 2010.  And here I thought she was finished. Apparently not. There was no change of cage or mate  … everything was the same as always. I’m curious to see what she does this year.

Another of my older hens — a Normal named Willow — also appeared to have gone into retirement. Although she raised numerous clutches over the years, in 2009 and 2010 she never glanced at the nest box and turned away her younger mate when he tried to feed her. My husband asked why it was necessary to put a box on their cage.

“You never know,” I said. “Look at Cherry who raised young last year after skipping a year. We’ve nothing to lose. We have the box and it only takes minutes to install it.” Of course, those “lost” minutes were his sacrifice, not mine … Smile.

Clyde outside Bonnie's nest box. 

Peeking inside a newly installed box.

This morning, I looked up from my desk, and Willow was in her nest box!  Will she lay eggs? That is yet to be seen. She was an adult bird when I purchased her a number of years ago, and she isn’t banded. So her age is unknown. If hens live a healthy long life, they eventually quit laying.

Some breeders sell off their older, non-productive birds. I don’t do that. If they’ve done well for me, they deserve a pleasant retirement in the home where they’ve become familiar and comfortable.

Peace & Blessings.
May your birds bring you joy.