Budgies Won't Go Into Nestbox

[moe]

Hello,
Last February I bought 2 young parrakeets ( a Skyblue Cock & a Yellow & Green Pied Hen ) at a local petshop. They've been together for the past 11 months, and they are affectionate towards each other, preening & head-bobbing together. Two weeks ago I placed them into a larger cage ( about 3 ft. long x 2 ft. wide x 3 ft. high ), which gives them a little more space to fly about than they'd had in the previous cage. I attached a wooden nestbox to the outside. 

They've been in the cage for about 2 weeks now, and they seem to enjoy flying about in it. They're affectionate with each other, and they spend the nights perched next to each other. The cock's cere is bright blue, and the hen's is tan. But they've yet to go inside the nestbox, and they pay no attention to it.

I'm just wondering, with a young pair of budgies, how long does it usually take before they become interested in a nestbox, and go inside it ?   I'd like for them to breed this coming summer. Thanks for any help that's available.

[Hezz]

Not all pairs will want to mate and there is not much you can do about that. More than likely the hen will decide whether she is interested or not. It sounds as though she is not right in breeding condition yet, anyway. The cere will be a crusty dark brown when she is ready.

[Sherbert]

I've had birds that take two years plus to finally mature to want to start breeding. You'll have much better birds for the job when they're a little bit older and more mature.

[moe]

Thanks for the advice in the previous 2 posts. Both of my birds do seem healthy & happy, and they like each other, and they're affectionate. I'd like to have the experience of breeding them, but I'm not in any hurry. I'll just be patient and let nature take its course, and see what happens.

[Gaile]

Do you have a photo of both birds please.

[moe]

I'm sorry, I don't own or know how to use a modern smart-phone, and so I'm not able to take photos of my birds. (I also am not very computer-literate, and I don't know how to post photos or make links).

But I can describe the birds' appearance fairly well. They were both young petshop birds when I got them about 11 months ago (February 2018). The Skyblue bird had a light blue cere with no white, so I guessed that it was a cock. Since then, his cere has turned an even brighter, darker blue. About 6 months ago, I'd see him several times rubbing up against a small tree branch I'd placed in the cage, and I think that he might have been "masturbating". I haven't seen him do this for the past few months, though. The Yellow & Green Pied bird had a whitish-colored cere, with some very pale blue on the edges, so I guessed that it was a hen. A while later, her cere gradually turned tan. Then for a while, it darkened to brown, but now it's turned back to light tan. So I believe that it's a hen.

I hope that this information is helpful.

[Gaile]

Yes sounds like you have a pair. You could separate them into separate cages for a week or so. The reintroduce them with their nest box x

[Sherbert]

Jan 16, 2019 16:17:22 GMT moe said:

Thanks for the advice in the previous 2 posts. Both of my birds do seem healthy & happy, and they like each other, and they're affectionate. I'd like to have the experience of breeding them, but I'm not in any hurry. I'll just be patient and let nature take its course, and see what happens.

It is a wonderful thing to get to go through and from what you've said, it sounds like they're a good match for one another. I'm sure you'll get to experience it all soon.  

[moe]

It's been about 3 months or so since my original post, so I just thought I'd provide an update. The cage my parrakeets are in is pretty spacious (about 3 feet long, 2 feet wide, and about 3 feet high). Last month I moved it in front of the window in my room, so the birds can get more light and look outside. But so far, neither the cock nor the hen has gone into the nestbox, and they pay no attention to it. They seem to like each other, and chatter to each other, but there's no sign of any mating. The cock's cere is bright blue, and the hen's is tan. But it's not dark brown, so maybe she isn't in breeding condition. Is there anything I could do to help bring her into condition ? Thanks for any help.

[3parakeets]

We have the same condition, 2 parakeets who are super affectionate, and mating call together, regurgitate, preen. But they show no interest in the nesting box. Female's cere is a pinkish brown, and a bit flaky. Maybe we just need to let them do it the way they where meant to. ^.^

[moe]

Yes, I guess that we just have to be patient and see what happens. It's now the end of May, and although the 2 parrakeets are affectionate, head-bowing, feeding, etc., there's no mating activity, and no interest in the nestbox. Whatever will be, will be.

[kay2311]

Apr 29, 2019 17:24:47 GMT moe said:

It's been about 3 months or so since my original post, so I just thought I'd provide an update. The cage my parrakeets are in is pretty spacious (about 3 feet long, 2 feet wide, and about 3 feet high). Last month I moved it in front of the window in my room, so the birds can get more light and look outside. But so far, neither the cock nor the hen has gone into the nestbox, and they pay no attention to it. They seem to like each other, and chatter to each other, but there's no sign of any mating. The cock's cere is bright blue, and the hen's is tan. But it's not dark brown, so maybe she isn't in breeding condition. Is there anything I could do to help bring her into condition ? Thanks for any help.

Hello, what you can do to help encourage your budgies to breed: provide lots of food specially different varieties, spray mist water on them daily 2-3 times for 1 week also make sure that they have privacy no disturbance. Try to keep them in a place where no one is likely to go frequently. Also if possible try to provide artificial light for 10-12 hours ( lighting helps at times not necessarily a huge factor ) also it’s important to ensure they have access to fresh water daily