Augren and Tuatha

[Guthwulf]

I hadn't really named them until now, but i have my first successful pairing since purchasing budgies in the hope of starting a life long goal to breed these amazing birds.

Augren is a YF2 Skyblue Opaline male split for ino (YAY FOR INO SPLIT!!!)

Tuatha is an Opaline grey female split for blue (cobalt if i remember rightly, i'll check her parentage with the breeder sometime).

So after running around like a headless chicken getting these breeding cages set up, finally one pair has decided they want to use them (don't even get me started on the others, all the females wanted to mate with augren, and none of the other males seem to do more than pretend to be in the mood - so far anyway :P).

Today (November 3, 2008) she has laid egg one!!! She's been in the box about 2 weeks i suppose. Not sure lol. But im over the moon!

Pictures to follow very shortly of parents and egg # 1!! Come along for the ride! Cross your fingers with me and hope we get an albino female!!!

[Zeena]

OMG i'm so excited!! i love following breeding journals!! i really wanna see the chicks now, even though it is still early!! :p

[nev90]

Great news. Congratulations

[Guthwulf]

Here are pictures as promised!

First up, the proud parents Augren (left) and tuatha (right):

http://file045b.bebo.com/2/original/2008/11/03/09/6697130a9323962174o.jpg

This is their first egg :)

http://file045b.bebo.com/2/large/2008/11/03/09/6697130a9323962085l.jpg

More to come in a couple of days maybe :)

[Squeak_Crumble]

Wow!!
Gorgeous birds!!
Stunning!!
Pretty!!
CUTE!!!!!
Hehe sorry but i absolutely luv them both lolz. Congratz!! Will follow this BJ closely!!

[budgie_first_ti]

wow all i can say is wow! is this your very first egg. if so check the breeding section for tips on how to make the most of this special time.

[Guthwulf]

Egg #2 successfully arrived right on cue. Same time of the day (lunchtime) exactly two days after the first, and she is now sitting tight on both. Augren is an eating machine and is popping in quite often to feed her, especially a big feed in the evenings. They sat there kiss/feeding for aaages lol. It was so cute :P

I expect these 2 eggs to both hatch 18 days from now (November 23rd here in New Zealand).
Wonder how many she will lay?? :D

[Taz the devil]

congrats! they are so pretty babies I can't wait to hear and see pictures of future babies, they are really so tweet!

[Guthwulf]

Egg # 3 has arrived and Tuatha is sitting pretty :)

Meanwhile im trying to convince augren to try out some budgie bread i made today. The males in 2 other breeding cages went for it no probs, but augren seems a bit suspicious of it.

Patience...

[Taz the devil]

Do keep us posted! :D:D:D:D:budgie:

[Guthwulf]

Four eggs and counting :)

http://file039b.bebo.com/11/large/2008/11/10/11/6697130a9383227152l.jpg

[Zeena]

yay!! hoepfully they're all fertilized and would turn into beautiful chicks!

[nev90]

The egg on the right looks like it's fertile, the others are too new to tell. Have you marked them?

[Guthwulf]

The egg on the right was actually laid about an hour prior to taking the photo. All the four have been marked gently with pencil. I think if you look closely you can see the "1" mark on the top egg.

Checked today for egg #5, but its a no show. As far as i know this is her first clutch so thats not bad for clutch #1, round #1.

I candled the eggs today while she was out feeding on carrot and being fed by augren. Im just going to check the candling videos on the interent (from another thread) again to double check what i saw against what i 'should' be seeing in fertile eggs.

But the first, second and third egg looked red and veiny to me when i shone the mini mag light on them, whereas the newest egg (only a day or two old) looks different...

If there is no more eggs tomorrow, i will assume she has finished laying and will hope that come november 23rd we have the first one or two chicks.

*crosses fingers*

[Guthwulf]

Woohoo! Went in to feed everyone this morning, change their water and found she had laid her fifth egg either last night or early this morning!!!

Excellent!!!

Hopefully she will stop at 5 or 6, but her mother has about 8-9 per clutch and the breeder said she is his best breeder and an excellent mother, so perhaps my budgie has inherited some of these traits from mum :)

[Zeena]

Wow lucky you! 8-9 would be alot, wow i would feel bad for the mother herself :eek:

[Guthwulf]

Yeah unfortunately there are no other pairs laying right now. Augren has two girlfriends, tuatha and a yellowface 1 violet but unfortunately the yellowface violet hen wont accept any other males, including the yellowface violet one MALE i got just for her to make more violets lol (the two of them actually look almost like twins).

I can't figure out why the rest of the males dont go around chasing the females like augren does, they seem so laid back and its frustrating!!!

As there are no other pairs doing anything (let alone laying) i will let tuatha lay and hatch whatever she can. If she and augren successfully raise 6-8 chicks in round one, i probably wont let them go a second round. Unless i see that they are doing super well and they are not being run down in any way. But there is no counting budgies before they hatch, and even then no guarantees they will live!

Only time will tell :) Im excited though, 3/5 eggs i have candled definately have veins across them, the others are too new to tell but i probably wont candle anymore. (By the way, i havent touched a single egg yet, i candled them in the box with a mag torch while tuatha was feeding, and i marked them gently with a pencil by gliding it a few times over the egg until it made a mark clear enough for me).

[Buzzard queen]

excellent news, I don't have any of my budgies breeding at the moment so I shall follow your thread closely. I too have just bought 2 male violets - but no females have taken any interest in tham at all!!! Can't wait to see your chicks.:budgie:

[Guthwulf]

Seems like egg #5 for whatever reason was a few hours later, moving its lay date to the third day after the 4th egg instead of the 2nd day.

Given that it took a bit longer for egg #5 i assumed she was just taking a bit longer with the last one before settling in for the long wait before hatching.

Apparently, she is her mothers daughter after all - two days after egg #5, we have EGG NUMBER SIX!!!!

Woohoo! What a great effort for her first clutch!! She's doing so well :D:D:D

[BUUZBEE]

congrats.... i hope all goes well with her feeding when they start hatching.... i'll be following this thread :)

[Pitchii☆]

so excited for you :) Go Tuatha!

[Guthwulf]

Looks like she has finished laying at 6 eggs :) Now to just wait until next sunday...

Eggs look fine :) Just going to let things come as they may, im ready to supplement feed if required, or handrear in an absolute emergency. Fingers crossed we get some babies :)

[Snowbudgie12121]

I'm so exited 4 u!!!!:eek:

[caroline23]

Yay! Egg #6! I hope all the eggs are fertile :D

[Guthwulf]

Egg #1 hatched today!!! Had tomorrow down as hatch day for egg #1 & egg #2, but apparently tomorrow was not soon enough for egg#1.

Checked again after leaving them for a couple of hours with their evening soft food and it looks like babies crop is full. Don't know if its normal for it to be full (or partly full) so soon after hatching, but as long as its not harmful then im happy! Crop was definately empty when i first saw baby so mum appears to be very attentive.

Fingers crossed baby #1 survives and egg #2 hatches tomorrow :)

Post pics very soon. I had a great one but it somehow got deleted T_T. Here is one that is not as clear or as good as the first:
http://file046b.bebo.com/5/large/2008/11/22/06/6697130a9474084560l.jpg

[nev90]

Great news. Congratulations. I suppose there is a big celebration in Hamilton

[Guthwulf]

Haha. Well I don't know about a celebration, but I know there is at least one happy person in Hamilton tonight :P

I know this opportunity wont ever come again. I remember seeing my first baby budgie when i was in kindergarten and there was a small aviary with budgies. Thats always stayed firm in my mind, and now is the first and only time I will have my 'first' baby budgie hatch.

I think it will always be an exciting time, seeing how babies turn out. But this is something worth smiling about :)

[nev90]

Does the chick have red eyes? If you cock bird is split for ino about half of the female chicks should be albino

[Guthwulf]

I did'nt realise you could tell so early? I thought it was apparent once they opened their eyes. But if they are albino, are their eyes red even now? Big nobbly things that they are :P They look so gangly at this age hehehe.

[Guthwulf]

Egg #2 is now baby #2 :)

hatched either late last night or early this morning. Baby #1 has food in its crop, but not baby#2. I'll keep an eye on them both :)

http://file046b.bebo.com/19/original/2008/11/22/21/6697130a9478729121o.jpg
http://file046b.bebo.com/19/original/2008/11/22/21/6697130a9478729198o.jpg

[Zeena]

WOW!! they're so tiny! i really hope they both survive and see what they turn into :)

[nev90]

Those 2 both have black eyes you'll see the difference when you get 1 with red eyes

[Keasha_Plus_Me]

I'm following this thread too. Good job, mother hen! (talking to your budgiee :P) and you as well :)

[stacey101]

Congrats! :D

[Guthwulf]

Egg #3 hatched late last night or early this morning. Have photos, but my bluetooth connection is playing up so i'll try and post tomorrow.

Already you can see how much bigger the other two are and they are only about 2 days older!!

http://file046b.bebo.com/1/original/2008/11/25/21/6697130a9503218197o.jpg

[Guthwulf]

My bluetooth hasnt been working so great so i havent been able to update. Egg #4 hatched the day before yesterday, and egg #5 has cracks in it this morning, so i expect it will have hatched by the time i get back from the beach today.

Baby #1 has tiny eye slots and although they aren't fully open, he/she is blinking :D So cool :)
They are getting so strong!! I check each of them every day while mum is feeding to make sure they have no muck caked on their feet or beaks, and its amazing how much bigger/heavier/stronger they are getting. Love it! Update with pics soon!

[Guthwulf]

Here are pics with the four babies. Baby #5 hatched late last night or early this morning, so i'll add pics soon. It's SO MUCH SMALLER!!! The oldest two are way bigger lol.

http://file047b.bebo.com/20/original/2008/11/28/21/6697130a9519915656o.jpg

[Zeena]

Wow! you're so lucky! you must be so excited to see how they turn out!
Keep us posted!

[nev90]

You can tell they're opaline already by the very white down they are getting.

[enicol6]

That is so fantastic and it is her first clutch!!!! The babies look great!! I can't wait to see who they turn in to. The parents are just beautiful :):) I can't believe I just found this thread!

[Guthwulf]

First pics of baby #5. Not the greatest quality as i kept forgetting to take a pic during the morning and evening checks until tonight just before locking up the aviary for budgie bed-time!

Sorry, the pic isnt as clear as it normally is due to the poor evening light.
http://file040b.bebo.com/7/original/2008/11/29/09/6697130a9522429298o.jpg

[Speedy]

Awww :XD: too cute! Thank you for keeping us updated on your precious babies!! I can't wait for the next update!

[Zeena]

Wow, they look so cute and huddled together! Thanx so much for keeping us posted!
I noticed that the crops are full, which means Tuatha is a naturally amazing mother.

[Guthwulf]

WOAH!!! What a spectacular finish!!! Egg#6 started hatching yesterday, and was still making slow progress today. As it was taking longer than the others, i gave it a little assistance and out popped a tiny wee baby onto my hand!!! A RED EYED ALBINO BABY!!! Ironic that the albino i hoped for would be the last baby to hatch, and the first baby i'd helped hatch. I hope like heck it thrives like the rest because i think i may just have a thing for that little lady!!

I was terrified that it would be too fragile and i would hurt it, but it seems to be doing quite well in the nest. I will check tomorrow after work and i expect it will be happily laying around with a full little crop.

Pics tomorrow!!

[Speedy]

Oh Congratulations that is wonderful news :XD:
I think you will have a special connection with baby #6 ;)

[Guthwulf]

Sad news :(

Rest in peace baby #6. I think six is a good name for her. I had a feeling last night that the oldest three chicks were just too big. They are strong and moving around quite a lot, the fifth chick is small but seems to be just big enough to get out of the way or avoid being trampled.

I was at work this morning and called my wife, she said the chick was being trampled and it looked weak and she didnt know what to do as this was her first time feeding them (giving the adults their soft food in the morning that is), let alone knowing what to do in such an emergency. When i got home from work six, my gorgeous albino girl was dead :(

If i had other pairs down i would have switched things up so the clutch sizes were around 3-4 each, as i suspected a large clutch increases the risk of crushing (although it might not alwayhs happen).

So sad. I guess thats part and parcel of being a breeder though :( Wish i had been home in time but whats done is done. Just hope all the rest grow up fine.

[Zeena]

Don't kill yourself over it, at least you still have five other babies that are happy and healthy and are still thriving! This was a successful clutch for first time parents, so losing a baby chick as sad as it is, is sad but so many other things could've went wrong with first time breeding budgies. You should be proud of yourself to have Aurgen and Tuatha take such good care of their chicks as well as each other, and it all goes back to your care for these little souls.
RIP Six and I hope the other five will blossom into beautiful budgies just like the parents.
Keep us posted with pictures :D

[enicol6]

I am so sorry that your little red eyed beauty did not make it. Their is surely heartbreak with breeding. The others are thriving so that is good but it doesn't make it much easier. Even with my 3 chicks they trampled the baby. She had a host of scares but did eventually make it. They are doing the best they can as are you. RIP little Six :(

[nev90]

Sorry the albino didn't make it

[Guthwulf]

Working from midnight to 12pm 6 days this week, so i'll probably not be posting until i finish work on saturday.

All the remaining 5 chicks are thriving, especially the oldest three who seem to be growing in leaps and bounds. They are getting quite downy and should start getting pin feathers soon. I miss the life that could have been, but i know it's in a better place and that with the joys come the sorrows also.

I had better get some sleep for another 12 hour shift *yawn*

[Zeena]

Awww, i can't wait till i see them with their pin feathers, they'll be adorable :D

[Mikey666]

too bad about the albino but sounds like you will have others.Don't worry much

[Guthwulf]

Ok im finished work and have gotten some sleep. Picture time!! It's amazing how fast they are growing now, its so clear in the photos :)

http://file046a.bebo.com/17/original/2008/12/06/02/6697130a9571446158o.jpg

http://file046a.bebo.com/17/original/2008/12/06/02/6697130a9571446191o.jpg

http://file046a.bebo.com/17/original/2008/12/06/02/6697130a9571446220o.jpg

http://file046a.bebo.com/17/original/2008/12/06/02/6697130a9571446242o.jpg

http://file046a.bebo.com/17/original/2008/12/06/02/6697130a9571446328o.jpg

http://file046a.bebo.com/17/original/2008/12/06/02/6697130a9571446385o.jpg

[Cannuck]

They are absolutely adorable!

[enicol6]

Isn't it so crazy how fast it goes!!!!! Beautiful babies you have there. I look forward to seeing them all feathered out (and everywhere in between :))

[nev90]

Looks like they are doing very well. Of course they will all be opaline any way but you can always tell the opalines by the very white down the chicks have

[SpickyDavies]

awh! a pile of aliens, looking cuteee

[Zeena]

So cute!!! can't wait to see them fully grown :D

[rachelle83]

Oh so cute. Hope all continues to go well.

[Guthwulf]

I think one of them is taking after augren. It looks so far as though the first three are yellow face type 2's, as they all have yellow heads but dark feathers. Im not sure if all chicks start this way, or only yellow faces.

However, i suspect one chick is a yellowface blue as it has 2 pin feathers randomly growing on its body, and a number of feathers on its body hidden under its wings that are seafoam green. Or so they appear lol.

Photos to come!

[TipseyTara]

OH MY... after reading this journal now i'm more excited then i was before...

Listen i have enough posts now but i still can make a breeding journal any ideas as to why?

[Guthwulf]

New pics :)

I've been busy, so haven't been updating much. The chicks are thriving day by day and i have had to increase the amount and frequency of soft food given to the parents as they are emptying what i give them far quicker now that the chicks are bigger. It also encourages the morning feed :)

Here is the first and third oldest chicks. I put them together since they are both YF2 Opaline sky blues like dad :)
http://file046b.bebo.com/14/original/2008/12/10/01/6697130a9601463950o.jpg

Here is the second oldest, a YF2 Opaline grey (mix of both parents)
http://file046b.bebo.com/14/original/2008/12/10/01/6697130a9601463920o.jpg

Here is the fourth oldest (or second youngest :P) its an opaline sky blue (no yellow face):
http://file046b.bebo.com/14/original/2008/12/10/01/6697130a9601463978o.jpg

And here is the 5th and youngest chick, im not sure if its grey or blue yet but it's not yellowface. Im hoping it will be grey. Then i will have a normal opaline blue and grey, a yellow face blue and grey, plus one extra yellow face blue for good measure :)
http://file046b.bebo.com/14/original/2008/12/10/01/6697130a9601464006o.jpg

Oh and here is a more recent pic of the oldest chick (a YF2 opaline blue) taken today showing a bit more feather coming out:
http://file046b.bebo.com/15/original/2008/12/10/01/6697130a9601490067o.jpg

[rachelle83]

Arent they just so cute. Can't wait to see them fully feathered!

[Zeena]

Wow they are so cute!! i can't wait to see them feathered too! it's amazing how just a month ago they were still in their eggs :eek:

[Guthwulf]

Im interested to see the first and third chick fully feathered. They are both YF2 opaline blues, but the third chick has a loooot more yellow in its tail. Im curious to see how it ends up.

Im also interested genetically in the results from breeding two opalines. Historically, opalines have been blamed for or associated with flecking. As they (opalines) were considered great hens and great birds for increasing throat spots, the transferral of flecking to almost all mutations soon ensued. So the saying goes "with opalines you inevitably get flecking".

Dad has a small amount of flecking, and i was hoping this would not be present in the chicks. If it is WORSE, then i would be very intrested indeed...

[Guthwulf]

Hey everyone! I've been away on holiday enjoying some of the beaches :)
Here is the current stage of the babies:

Baby #1 - YF2 Opaline sky blue
http://file047b.bebo.com/21/large/2008/12/18/05/6697130a9660834723l.jpg

Baby #2 - YF2 Opaline grey
http://file047b.bebo.com/21/large/2008/12/18/05/6697130a9660834648l.jpg

Baby #3 - YF2 Opaline sky blue
http://file047b.bebo.com/21/large/2008/12/18/05/6697130a9660834828l.jpg

Baby #4 - Opaline sky blue
http://file047b.bebo.com/21/large/2008/12/18/05/6697130a9660834678l.jpg
http://file047b.bebo.com/21/large/2008/12/18/05/6697130a9660834805l.jpg

Baby #5 - Opaline Grey
http://file047b.bebo.com/21/large/2008/12/18/05/6697130a9660834766l.jpg

Hope you enjoyed :)

Will post more later :D

[rachelle83]

Oh, I can't wait to see the YF2 Grey completely feathered. Going to be gorgeous!

[SpickyDavies]

there getting cuterrrr!

[enicol6]

They sure are coming along beautifully!!!! Congratulations on such a beautiful clutch :)

[Cannuck]

They are beautiful!

[Guthwulf]

Oh, I can't wait to see the YF2 Grey completely feathered. Going to be gorgeous!

I was thinking the very same thing! It's so strange. All the YF type 1 or 2 greys i have seen at the pet shop are patchyand not very nicely coloured to be honest. They seem to sell quite slowly.

It looks as though this chick (the YF2 opaline grey) has a beautiful even colouring, almost a mustard grey. Also, as far as markings goes, it looks like of all the chicks she has the most clarity on her back - typical of the clear V shape opalines SHOULD have. Unfortunately that is not always the case these days, but i am hoping to keep the best marked male and female (at a minimum :P).

Can you also see the difference in the two YF2 blues? Look at their tail feathers especially - the depth and spread of yellow is very interesting in it's difference between the two of them.

Loooove breeeding!

[Guthwulf]

Ok so i thought i'd had them all pegged. Contrary to whatever laying/hatching order eventuated, the YF2 opaline grey was the first to start peeking out the hole and then a day later i found it out of the box on the floor of the breeding cage, happily investigating the seeds and other goodies i had left out (cos i suspected it would fledge :P). What surprised me even more was that this little guy took one look at his parents on the perch and promptly flew up after only two tries!!

Following that, the YF2 opaline sky blues came out together about 2 days later, at which point i noticed all three were eating alone just fine and not being fed much if at all by the parents. When i saw mum attacking the YF2 op grey for trying to get back in the nest, i figured it was time to put all three fledged into a nursery. The YF2 blues took a couple of days to learn how to fly to the perches instead of climbing up the cage wiring :P That grey is so smart and such a quick learner!!

The last 2 babies turned out to be what i suspected, an opaline sky blue and a grey, they are currently in the box still although the sky blue fledged today, and depending on how it goes tomorrow i will move it up with the others in the nursery.

Todays big surprise?? Tuatha has started laying for round two!!! I noticed her poops getting bigger 2 days ago, and her tail was pumping this morning. This afternoon, around her usual 12-2pm time she laid an egg!.

The other amazing thing for me is that after a day or two in the nursery adjusting, the three oldest chicks now line up by the door to their cage, and as soon as i open it they try and crawl onto my hands!!! One of the YF2 sky blues goes gaga when i scratch it on the head, the YF2 grey is super smart, super curious, and loves to fly away for a second, check something out and then come back to me hovering until i hold out my hand. Aaah i am loving these little guys so much!!

Anyway, i will try and post some pictures very shortly. Apologies for not having pics of all of them just now, been busy with holiday stuff :)

Pics to follow!

[Guthwulf]

Bubs in nest:

http://file047b.bebo.com/6/original/2008/12/27/09/6697130a9724825564o.jpg

Almost grown up:

http://file047b.bebo.com/6/original/2008/12/27/09/6697130a9724825584o.jpg

Almost fledged:

http://file047b.bebo.com/6/original/2008/12/27/09/6697130a9724825602o.jpg

Newly fledged:

http://file047b.bebo.com/6/original/2008/12/27/09/6697130a9724825618o.jpg

Smarty pants and head scratch lover!:

http://file047b.bebo.com/6/original/2008/12/27/09/6697130a9724825643o.jpg

[Rebeccaveggie]

Aww they are so cute!

[rachelle83]

Just gorgeous! The YF Grey is beautiful :)

[Cannuck]

They are adorable! The YF Grey is absolutely gorgeous!

[nev90]

They are looking really good. Are you going to let the pair do another round?

[Zeena]

They look absolutely gorgeous just like the parents!!!
I love all the of their mutations!
Can't wait to see the chicks out of the nestbox and spreading their beautiful wings :)

[Guthwulf]

They are looking really good. Are you going to let the pair do another round?

Yeah i think i will nev. Seeing as they have already started laying, and both look to still be in good condition. I will moniter them and pull them if their are any signs of trouble.

I was wondering if i could move the cock bird in with another female that i REALLY want to lay. She has been in season since i got her, and only accepts him as a mate. However, she is preferable (genetically) for my breeding plans as she is violet. So i was wondering since the hen currently going for round two doesnt need the male for a while if i could put him with the other hen and get her to lay before this next round of chicks hatch???

Thoughts??

[nev90]

Yeah i think i will nev. Seeing as they have already started laying, and both look to still be in good condition. I will moniter them and pull them if their are any signs of trouble.

I was wondering if i could move the cock bird in with another female that i REALLY want to lay. She has been in season since i got her, and only accepts him as a mate. However, she is preferable (genetically) for my breeding plans as she is violet. So i was wondering since the hen currently going for round two doesnt need the male for a while if i could put him with the other hen and get her to lay before this next round of chicks hatch???

Thoughts??
You could try. If the hen doesn't hatch too many chicks she could manage on her own. Some breeders use one cock with two hens very successfully. The cock is usually moved in with the second hen for about five hours each day and then stays with only one of the hens after all the eggs are laid. It would pay to have a foster hen available in case the hen that is on her own has too many chicks

[Guthwulf]

That foster hen will probably be me :P

[Guthwulf]

Sorry its been so long without an update. All 5 budgies hatched very successfully and i will soon be selling the YF2 op grey male and teh op grey female to cut down on grey stock.

Their mother has laid 8 eggs for round two, only 4 of which were fertile. Egg 1 was fertile, hatched today - an albino female!!! Eggs 2,3,4 were clear. Egg 5 and 6 were fertile but developed the red ring of death (either they got kicked or simply failed to develop somehow, they wont hatch anyway). Egg 7 seems clear, egg 8 looks fertile but was only laid shortly ago.

So all i all, looks like 2 out of 8 might hatch for round 2. Not great, but anything is better than nothing, and i was SO excited when i saw little red eyes this morning. She hatched a day earlier than expected, probably because its been warm lately, so when i did the morning feed i didnt even bother to check and just before i left i heard this oddly familiar cheeping noise... I was bouncing around like a child when i saw it was an albino. Amazing that the first chick to hatch from such a problematic round is exactly what i had hoped for and lost in round one! :)

Anyway, here is some fleding pics! Notice the difference in size and feathering between the chicks!!

http://file048b.bebo.com/14/original/2009/01/15/08/6697130a9875478433o.jpg

http://file048b.bebo.com/14/original/2009/01/15/08/6697130a9875478479o.jpg

http://file048b.bebo.com/14/original/2009/01/15/08/6697130a9875478502o.jpg

[rachelle83]

WOW, they are gorgeous. Boy that one YF Sky Blue has got the Fluff doesn't he? He is an excellent chick! I still think my favorite is YF Grey though, lovely colors.

[enicol6]

They turned out so very beautiful!!! Glad to hear that you got another albino. I hope the new clutch goes well. I did have one with the red ring that ended up hatching so maybe???? Can't wait to see the new babies!

[softie]

Wow, they are absolutely gorgeous!! :D I wish I could take them all ;)

[Rebeccaveggie]

Stunning birds! They are so cute!

[nev90]

They look great Dean. Good news that you got an albino (or maybe a creamino) in the 2nd clutch

[Zeena]

they look absolutely beautiful!
I'm so happy that you finally got that albino :)
Keep us posted on the new clutch :)

[Guthwulf]

Just thought i'd update everyone on the albino. Turns out she is a creamino!!! Inherited YF2 from dad :P Daddy's little girl indeed...

Here is a recent pic of her, she's cute as anything!

http://file046b.bebo.com/9/original/2009/02/11/01/6697130a10072499858o.jpg

Isn't she just stunning :)

[Zeena]

She is so cute :) very photogenic :)

[Guthwulf]

Hi all!

Figured i should continue this thread instead of starting a new one. After some careful thought and monitering of both parents, i decided to let augren and tuatha go down for a third round. Both parents put on weight and condition looking after only 1 chick in the second round, and i was careful to ensure adequate liquid and solid forms of calcium supplement.

Tuatha has has laid a total of nine eggs for round 3. Egg number one hatched today - a beatiful red eyed little girl! Unfortunately egg #7 got cracked, so i let augren and tuatha eat it (very nutritional and perfectly natural for them to do). So there are 8 eggs left, egg #4 appears clear, and i havent really bothered to check the rest. I suspect around 5-6 out of the nine eggs will hatch. I have finally got another pair down, so if pair one has 3-4 chicks, and augren and tuatha have six, i will balance it out so both have 5.

Photos and updates to follow soon :D

[Guthwulf]

Here is baby one! Gorgeous little albino girl!

http://file048b.bebo.com/0/original/2009/03/02/07/6697130a10235323275o.jpg

[kimhosken]

she's adorable

[Guthwulf]

Woops i really should update this!! Im busy working today and tomorrow, but i'll update on saturday. This albino turned out to be a creamino, and she has much more yellow than her creamino sister from the previous round! Of the 10 eggs laid (YES TEN THIS ROUND) 6 hatched, one got crushed, 2 died in shell and 2 were clear. 5 babies from this round :)

Theres been a bit of a mysterious mutation pop up, i'll explain once i have pics up...

[Jazz4Tj]

:D can't wait for your update.... leaning on the edge of my chair (which has wheels so don't take to long or I might end up on the floor!)

[enicol6]

Looking forward to the pictures :)

[Guthwulf]

Hope no-one is dissapointed but the mysterious mutation solved itself! There was a chick that appeared to be a yellowface type 1, but given dad is YF2 and mum is not a yellowface, i couldnt figure it out. The yellow fas deepened a bit now that the feathers have grown out a bit, but its still a lot paler than i have seen in most of its siblings from this and other clutches.

Anyway, here is a pic of the brood. The chicks in my other breeding journal are older and more colourful right now so check that out. Oh, and the creamino sister that should be in this nest has been placed with big blue and his lady so that each pair has 4 chicks to raise instead of one having 3 and one having 5. Oldest chick is the creamino (not shown in this nest pic), then there is the YF2 opaline grey, a sky blue opaline and 2 unfeathered babies.

http://file046b.bebo.com/5/original/2009/03/29/07/6697130a10455645063o.jpg

[Zeena]

aww they're looking too cute!! i want them!

[Jazz4Tj]

:D was worth the few tumbles to the floor!

Oh my they are just the sweetest!

I do believe I would like our next budgie to have a yellow face... the more I see of that mutation the more I want one!

[kimhosken]

they so cute

[Guthwulf]

Interesting! The second chick in the above photo (not the yf2 grey, the other one with pin feathers) seems to be a violet. I wasnt aware of violet in either parent, nor dark factors. Its only just showing at the moment, so i will be very interested to see how it feathers up.

Keep you updated!

[Guthwulf]

Here are four of the five chicks from this round. The oldest (YF albino hen) was put in a foster nest.

http://file047b.bebo.com/16/original/2009/04/30/03/6697130a10723109866o.jpg

http://file047b.bebo.com/16/original/2009/04/30/03/6697130a10723109879o.jpg

http://file047b.bebo.com/16/original/2009/04/30/03/6697130a10723109889o.jpg

Have a go at guessing their sex and mutations. If you check the parents and the previous clutch, it should be super easy to guess their mutations. So take a stab at sexing them! (I already have sexed them, but have a go for yourself!)

[Robbie T]

i cant really see that well in the pic and im new at this so id say from left, female female, male male although the last one i cantreally see the colour

[Jen144]

Okay..A sky blue Opaline, Yellowface Grey Opaline, Cobalt (Violet?) Opaline, and a Grey Opaline. The Grey Opaline is definetly a girl, the othes I'm not sure of..but the Sky Blue looks like a male, and the rest look like girls.

[Guthwulf]

Neither parent has a dark factor, so if there are two different blues then that could only mean.... ? (Jen guessed at it)

[Guthwulf]

i cant really see that well in the pic and im new at this so id say from left, female female, male male although the last one i cantreally see the colour

Click the top of each picture and they should enlarge to their full size for a better view :)

[Heatherz2boyz]

well I can only guess sex I am getting to know the mutations so here it goes.........................Female, male, male, male. I could be wrong as I am still new to this.

[Guthwulf]

Yep, there is a YF2 opaline grey female, YF2 opaline grey male, sky blue opaline male, violet skyblue opaline female.

Good work guys :) Thats it for augren and tuatha this breeding season! 11 chicks :)

For anyone interested, heres a recap:

YF2 sky blue opaline split for ino cock (augren) x opaline grey hen (tuatha). Apparently one of the parents is carrying violet, but i cant visually tell which one. I suspect tuatha..

Of 12 chicks they had

Opaline grey x 1
YF2 Opaline grey x 3
YF2 Opaline sky blue x 2
YF2 albino x 2
Opaline sky blue x 2
Opaline violet sky blue x 1

I think one of the albinos is masking blue and one is masking grey. So all in all, 5 greys, 6 blues. Basically a 50/50 split, just as you might expect based on breeding expectations from one grey and one blue parent. 7/11 YF2 which is slightly higher than 50% expectations, but thats fine by me!
There was a 25% chance of getting an albino from this pair, so out of 12 chicks you would expect 3 albino females. This is exactly what happened except the first albino baby died. Had it survived, they would have had 12 chicks, of which exactly 25% (3 chicks) would have been albino.

[Robbie T]

okay im gunna change my mind i always thought if a bird has a blue cere it is a boy but ive read to many contradicting posts alover the place that have confused me

okay in the last pic i would stagger a guess at (from left) boy boy girl girl

[Ialani]

I just read the WHOLE thing from beginning to end! Way to Go! Now I really wanna breed! *wail* Your babies are all so adorable!:p

[Budgiebreeder11]

I'm going to take a shot at sexing using the second photo. Girl boy boy girl.

[FrankieGomez]

How excitig i hope you do get an albino budgies ha ive always wanted one.