Start of the breeding season

[Learner]

Love those aviaries! I'd like to get a bit more green in and around mine. Are those banana plants out front?

Presently my birds are more interested in tasting their new home than flying around it.

[marleen4]

I had to google what they are called again: they are canna lilies and will bloom with bright red flowers.

The aviary can be enjoyed, played with and eaten, which gives the birds a great delight. Sad though that they themselves may end up as food, that was not my intention. In the breeding season the birds eat greenery sitting on my hands, so we still have a good bond. Works for us.

[Hezz]

How is the hen, Marleen? If it makes you feel some sort of revenge on the rodent world, I caught the rat that had spooked the budgies on the deck a week or so ago ...... finally!!! Now I just have to dispose of it.

[marleen4]

Well done Hezz, makes me feel a lot better!
I'll let you know tomorrow when I check her again.

[Learner]

Aug 15, 2013 19:15:17 GMT marleen4 said:

I had to google what they are called again: they are canna lilies and will bloom with bright red flowers.

The aviary can be enjoyed, played with and eaten, which gives the birds a great delight. Sad though that they themselves may end up as food, that was not my intention. In the breeding season the birds eat greenery sitting on my hands, so we still have a good bond. Works for us.

Canna lilies! Wow - yours are huge. My son has one next to his pond - a real exotic plant but his about half the height.

Near my aviary there's chickweed and groundsel mixing in with the flower-bed. Not quite so colourful although the budgies like it.

Hope the birds are doing well.

[marleen4]

I checked the hen thoroughly this morning and she winked at me...

Looks like she will be coming right as the eye does not look damaged. The tissue around the eye is still very swollen. The wound on her head is healing nicely too. Pfff, if all continues to go well she will have a nest after all!

The other birds are starting to lay eggs. I did not want to disturb the young and inexperienced hens by checking their nest boxes, but an older hen has 3 eggs. exciting!

[BudgiesBuddy]

Some good news at last

[Hezz]

Good news re your little hen. I hope the swelling goes down soon and all is well with her. And eggs! Yah!

[Nicola]

That evil, Evil, EVIL little thing! Hurting a poor, defenseless birdie! They have no heart in my opinion. To do something like that!
(Sorry for everyone who likes rats etc.. I'm sure there is a sweet side to them)

Anyway, I am over the moon that she is going to make a full recovery! Fingers crossed for her to become a mummy soon

Nicola

[marleen4]

Thank you all for your kind thoughts!

I'll be in Rotorua with my Dutch relations next week, and we'll think of you from the boiling mud, geysers, mineral pools and volcanic landscape!

The birds will be looked after by my kids, who started the aviaries until they realised their mother took more pleasure in the birds and got hooked fairly quickly. The birds have gradually become my responsibility, which is my pleasure!

[Hezz]

I'll be thinking of you "enjoying" the particular smells of Rotorua, Marleen. I have some very funny memories of my son Cameron at Cameron's Pool ....... lets just say he wasn't impressed!!! And it was he who first brought up the idea of a budgie in our house and guess what? I took over the cage cleaning as I couldn't stand having to argue every week over it, and ended up being bonded with by Cam's budgie (I think he discovered girls) and now they are my little pleasure. There is a pattern emerging here!

[marleen4]

Back from Rotorua. I cannot say I saw Cameron's pool but the champagne pool was spectacular. Not that I felt like drinking the stuff, that would have been pushing it a bit. The pool looked like a painters palette. Another pool looked like a creamy lime ice cream, but again the hot smoke and sulphur smell did nothing for the taste buds. Rotorua remains the most bizarre and dangerous landscape I've ever come across. Hot smoke rises from the ground and water, in the strangest of places. We saw water boiling between cracks of pavement stones in the street, somewhere else the asphalt broke up and was spewing hot smoke. A lot of smoke and boiling mud on / in lake Rotorua. Unbelievably beautiful. I learned that Rotorua is built in the crater of an old volcano, which was absolutely massive and blew it's top a very long time ago.

The hen that was attacked by a rat is looking fantastic. She sat in a nest box last night, but no eggs yet. Her eye is open and bright, and besides the feathers on her head looking a bit ruffled she looks her good old self again. The hens have sorted out where they will be spending the season, and things have quietened down a bit in bird land. The young budgie hens have started to lay their first eggs and are making themselves comfortable in their new homes.

A clutch of baby button quails has hatched, although one baby died in the cold rain. There is a reason they have so many chicks! I'm waiting for the other clutch, but think there is something wrong as the hen has been sitting for a long time now. Perhaps the same rat got her eggs? I'll be checking properly this morning.

[Hezz]

It certainly is a different place, Rotorua.

So happy to know that your little hen is back to full health - she is one lucky little bird. Good luck with the hatchings.

[mizloco]

Sounds an amazing place. I will look it upand have a read about it sounds very interesting.
Glad the hen is better and all is good when you got back.

[marleen4]

The hen has a bold patch on her head, but this is not stopping her: she laid an egg!

Much happy!!!!