I just peeked into the M/M society (foster) nest. No hatchlings yet. I didn't candle the eggs, but hopefully they're still okay. The foster dads are incubating their little hearts out. :-)
Sandy, one of my zebra finch females, became eggbound over the weekend. With some extra calcium and some heat, she was finally able to pass the egg. Since I had to move her around in order to get the heat lamp on her, I figured she'd most likely abandon the eggs in the nest, so I went ahead and moved the eggs to my M/M/M societies. Didn't want to take any chances. It's too soon to tell if they're viable, but I know for sure that they've mated (and mated and mated and mated!), so I figured the foster societies would be the eggs' best chance for survival (assuming they're viable). I replaced Sandy's eggs with known-dud eggs so she wouldn't know I "stole" her eggs. :-)
It's interesting that 2 of the 3 females I bought at the bird fair ... both from the same vendor ... have become eggbound ... one fatally. :-( The third female is one that escaped from the carrier, so I don't know if she would've had eggbinding problems or not. Maybe it's just a coincidence. The crested hen I bought from Mr. Barnett is doing fine, as are all my other hens, so I don't think it could be an issue of calcium deficiency. (They're given calcium supplements and eggbread 1-4 times a week depending on whether they're laying eggs, plus they've got cuttlebones available 24/7.)
Interesting, to say the least. :-/
Yes, that is interesting that the fair birdies were egg bound. Were they all sisters, I wonder?
ReplyDelete