Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hello i just got a new pair of tiels the breeder said that they have mated but i already have another pair of tiels in the aviary will this distract them? they are fighting a little bit.
also i heared the male sing to his mate today but she never sang back does the female usually sing back or not? the breeder also gave us one of the nest boxes that were in his avairy wiht the birds but they dont go inside at all all they do is sit on top of it is that normal?

sorry im just full of questions!! please reply soon

I dont breed cockatiels but I do breed budgies, I can't say from experience but I'll try to help.

have another pair of tiels in the aviary will this distract them? they are fighting a little bit.
1) since you say you have them with another pair you will need atleast 6 boxes, several feet away from eachother otherwise you can end up with nasty fights and dead birds.

does the female usually sing back or not?
2) I can't say if she should sing back, but hens aren't as vocal as males.

if they've already mated it's likely she wont lay in a box for you, before mating a nest site would have been selected but since she's no longer with the previous owner she really has no place to lay(in her mind), this could cause her to become egg bound due to stress.

first there other pair of teils in there are not a breeding pair due to there young age.

i was reading that the female tiel does not sing back so yes she didnt sing back.

the reason i mentioned the breeder was becuase he had sold another pair before the ones that i got and the buyers rang him up when i was there and told him that they are extremely happy becuase they have laid eggs and sitting on them.

and before they rang he told me that i should give them at least 2-3 weeks and i should have eggs in my boxes.

i have 4 boxes in that aviry and there is only 1 breeding pair.

i was alos just wondering why do you tihnk that they just sit ontop of the next box instead of going inside? it is like the male is gaurding it he dosnt like the other 2 tiels going on it only his mate

they will check out every box and every other place they see that might be a good nest site, that includes standing ontop of it, they want to make sure it is the right one before anything else, I'm sure the hen has been in atleast 2 of them atleast once, just give them time if they are sexually mature they will certainly breed.

yes thank you for your reply.
that is what i thought i thought that she would have been in the box but i have never seen her in one i am at school from 9-4 so it might be possible that she goes in them whilst im at school i was wondering do they go in at any time or when ever they feel like it? they are sexual mature, becuase the other day i was listning to the male sing it is wonderfull.

im keeping my fingers crossed just a little worry that i never see her or him in any of the boxes?

but thanks for your help!!

hey i got god new i asked my mum after i ready your post and she said today whilst i was at school that her and my dad who had the day off were watching the male enter one of the boxes several times!! is that a good sign?

I'm assuming he was encouraging the hen to go inside the box, I'm not sure with tiels but budgies hens make the ultimate choice as to which box they use, I can't remember if tiels share incubation or who chooses the box, although any box activity is a good sign.

well i do no that both of the parents incubate the eggs sometimes they take half each, this morinign when i woke up i saw him chewing at the whole and the perch just underneath the hole is that a good sighn, i am pretty sure that the male chooses the box that he likes and fixes it up to make sure it is safe then the female will go in and and either give it the ok or try again. but i have not see the female go in the box i see her sit ontop of it thought

chewing the hole is a good sign, usually when they start chewing the box they also start going inside of it and scratch/chew.

yep well it must have been a good sighn cause guess what!

THEY LAYED AN EGG!! i was so happy!

how long do u think i should wait before i candle the eggs? or do u think i should just wait and see if they hatch?
do u no how long they take to hatch?

thats great, just keep her calcium level up so she doesn't get soft shelled eggs and become egg bound.
gestation for tiels is 18-21 days, I candle budgie eggs at 6 days and usually by that time they have a beating heart, I would guess the same for 'tiel eggs since gestation is about the same(18 days for budgies).
you should mark the eggs so you know which is due to hatch when, I use a pencil to mark my eggs, just dont press to hard on the shell.

i dont tend on marking the eggs im just going to go in every day and write it on a piece of paper as this is my first time and so i dont distrurb the parents, and the eggs.
thank you for all your replies!