# How Old is Too Old?



## Teddscau (Jun 27, 2012)

Ju (who's at least four) and Samantha (who's at least 13) keep going at it like bunnies. Mom thinks Samantha might be with "egg". Theoretically, would it even be possible for her to produce eggs at this point, or would it be like believing an eighty year old human could become pregnant?

I've been praying that she's not with egg, but I just don't know. She's hollowed out the top of the wooden kabob that's in with them, and Mom says she's been sitting on top of it. Mom put a nesting box in the cage today (I told her not to, but whatever) and filled it with sphagnum (it's for terrariums, so it doesn't have an chemicals). The nesting box is made of plastic and is slippery, but that's a different story.

Samantha and Ju are very interested in the nesting box and Samantha wants to explore inside of it. I also question whether or not she's been pooping as much, which could be a sign that she has an egg in her tummy. They've been mating since last Friday.

Please tell me eggs can't form in her tummy! She's never had eggs before, and now is definitely not the time to start! She'll die if she has eggs !


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## StarlingWings (Mar 15, 2013)

It is extremely risky to have a 13-year old female with eggs, so I hope this is not the case. As they have already been mating, at this point there is nothing you can do except for monitor her closely. As soon as she shows any signs of laying, have your avian vet a phone call away, because at this age, anything could go wrong. 
There are many ways to discourage laying, and even though she might have an egg I would remove the nest box and the kabob and rearrange the cage. 
Please, please keep us updated and I'm hoping for the best for your girl! :hug: :fingerx:

Hopefully, everything works out and Samantha is okay!


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## Teddscau (Jun 27, 2012)

Thanks, I really hope she's not going to produce any eggs. I kept telling Mom not to put the nesting box in, but does she listen? No. I've taken out the nesting box and I'll be taking the kabob out, too. Should I take the other shreddable toy out, too? It's made out of palm, pine cones, and other shreddable material. Should I also turn the UVA lamp off too? It can be dark in the cage, and I also want them to have full use of their tetrachromacy. I know extra light and UVA can encourage breeding, but it's not good for it to be dark in the cage all the time, either.

I'll set the lights to go off earlier and I'll rearrange the cage. I've also been giving them a natural supplement that has lots of vitamins, minerals, and protein in it on the off chance she has an egg in her tummy. I know the extra nutrition can encourage egg laying, but I'd rather take the risk than risk her dying from lack of nutrients if she does lay. I'm also being careful not to give her vitamin toxicity either.


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## StarlingWings (Mar 15, 2013)

Teddscau said:


> Thanks, I really hope she's not going to produce any eggs. I kept telling Mom not to put the nesting box in, but does she listen? No. I've taken out the nesting box and I'll be taking the kabob out, too. Should I take the other shreddable toy out, too? It's made out of palm, pine cones, and other shreddable material. Should I also turn the UVA lamp off too? It can be dark in the cage, and I also want them to have full use of their tetrachromacy. I know extra light and UVA can encourage breeding, but it's not good for it to be dark in the cage all the time, either.
> 
> I'll set the lights to go off earlier and I'll rearrange the cage. I've also been giving them a natural supplement that has lots of vitamins, minerals, and protein in it on the off chance she has an egg in her tummy. I know the extra nutrition can encourage egg laying, but I'd rather take the risk than risk her dying from lack of nutrients if she does lay. I'm also being careful not to give her vitamin toxicity either.


The other shreddable toy is okay, hopefully it will distract her some from the frontier of motherhood 
The UVA lamp would probably be better limited like you said, and you're right not to stop the vitamins. If you were sure she wasn't going to lay then I would, but since we don't know it is better to not risk her dying from inadequate calcium or egg binding, which is common in older budgies. 
Sounds like you're doing well!  Good luck!


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## FaeryBee (May 9, 2011)

*Personally, if they were my budgies and were "going at it like bunnies" I'd put them into separate cages and do everything possible to ensure there was no breeding and no eggs.

A female budgie can produce eggs no matter how old she is.

Although the eggs may not be viable, the toll producing them will take on the budgie's body is great and budgies over 4 years old should not be bred.

The nest box definitely needs to be removed from the cage and egg laying should be discouraged for the health and well-being of both budgies.

When We Don't Want Eggs! - Talk Budgies Forums*


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## Teddscau (Jun 27, 2012)

I'll try all the suggestions to get them to quit mating, but if I can't get them to stop I'll separate them. I understand how dangerous this is for Samantha, but I only want to separate the two lovers as a last resort.

If I put the divider in the cage, Ju and and Charlie would have to be on one side, and Samantha, Ziggy, and Alice on the other. Samantha and Alice get along really well (they don't exactly interact or socialize or anything like that. They just choose to stand on the same rope perch together when they want quiet time.), and Ziggy likes Samantha and is in a very loving relationship with Alice. Ju and Charlie are best friends, but they are also really close with Ziggy. Also, Charlie sometimes talks to Alice, and Alice, as you know, is kind of "autistic" in her behaviour and social interaction, so it's good for her to interact with someone besides Ziggy. And of course, Charlie and Ju really like Samantha, and she them. It would be very stressful for all involved, except for Alice since she only wants to be with Ziggy.

Maybe it would also help if I have scheduled activities for them or something? Music, story time, nap time with the lights out, etc.


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