Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My tiel keeps laying eggs. Today she laid her 5th egg. I have no nest box and don't plan on breeding them anytime soon, so what should I do? I don't want to breed them because they are still under a year old and I don't want anything to happen to my female. I have caught her and the male laying on the eggs at times. She's also a little more protective and hisses at me when I get near (something she never did in the past). My main concern is my female tiel. I don't want all this egg laying to affect her health in any way. So if I can stop her from laying until shes ready, how do I do it? Thank you for any help.

Well its pretty difficult to get a female to stop laying eggs. Particularly when she is with a partner. Some things you can try is limitting the amount of light she gets to about 10 to 12 hours a day. Its good you don't have a breeding box as this will just encourage her to lay more.

If you are concerned that these eggs are live and you don't want to raise chicks right now you can either replace them with wooden eggs (about the same size) or you could freeze them and then put them back. Its important to replace them because the hen will continue to lay eggs if she sees any missing in order to replace them. They are compelled to complete their clutch so to speak.

Its important to make sure your hen is getting a complete diet with extra calcium.

Rearranging the cage regularly can help disrupt the laying `mood.` Move perches and toys, and move the physical location of the cage around the room from time to time, if possible. Definately cut back on the day light by covering the cage earlier in the evening. Don`t provide any nesting materials or allow access to any cave-like places in the house, like under sheets, between pillows, or inside cupboards.