Reptile & Amphibian Forums

We have had our male cockatiel (Seth) for about 7 years. Last year we were given a female cockatiel (Cloe). I thought it might be cool if they mated but they didn't seem too interested in it so I gave up on the idea. Well, they did start mating this Spring but I didn't do the nesting box or anything. Now she has laid an egg on the bottom of her cage. There's no nest or nesting materials. Do I just leave it there (they seem to be over it all the time.... but I can't really see that they're sitting on it) or move it or what?

do you want babies? If you do then you should put up a nesting box, and put some aspen shavings inside...with some millets...after they sit on the eggs for about 7 days you can candle the egg to see if it is fertile or not. if you see little veins then it's fertile. But you need to be prepared to handfeed the babies.
Also what kind of diet do you birds have.
Mine get fresh veggie (collard greens), brown rice, whole pasta & bread, yellow yoke of eggs, cereal,oat meal, pellets & mixed seed & many more things...Not all of these are fed to them in the same day...just a variety of things that I feed them...
But espescially when they are breeding it is important that they have alot of soft food available to them to feed to their babies once they hatch..And greens are very very important all the time but espescially when breeding, to keep up the female calcium intake.

A high calcium foods are very important for the mother laying.

Soft foods aren't nesseccary as the parents are quite capable of mushing the foods & offering to the babies themselves. It is natural for them to do this but do offer a good variety of foods. Tiels are grassy, leafy, veggie eaters. They should have a LARGE variety offered every day as well as pellets & seeds. Everything you can find in these sorts of veggies should be offered daily to them. You can offer fruit. Most don't like it, some do & the fruit does need to be limited because they are not natural fruit eaters. Also energy food for the mother. Just a TINY amount of sugar BUT only if she's looking very tired. Laying & sitting can exhorst them easily.