Pet Parakeet Care: How to Create and Organize a Parakeet Nest Box

If you are interested in breeding parakeets, your number one thing to prepare will be a parakeet nest box. And if possible, not only one. If you can, offer more of them to the birds so they can choose it. These little birds can be very picky.

Parakeet nesting box can be made in different shapes and sizes, with various measures. However, there are some rules that need to be followed when it comes to making (or buying) a perfect nest box.

The first rule is to make enough space for the bird. Space is extremely important for laying eggs and even more for proper development of baby parakeets once they hatch.

Second important rule is about the room in which we are keeping the box. The room has to have optimal conditions. It will need proper temperature, humidity and lighting as a foundation for birds to mate and lay eggs.

In the winter you will need to keep the room warm (always keep a thermometer in the room). In the summer, avoid to put the parakeet nest box in direct sunlight. And in both seasons, you need to maintain a certain level of humidity in the room. Don't let the air get too dry.

Making a parakeet nest box

You can make a nesting box yourself. It can be done with thin wooden panels, hardboard or even wire. Avoid using any paper or cardboard material because the female bird will destroy it very fast. They have the urge to dig in and she will chew threw paper materials.

The bottom of the nest box is important. Find a board that is about 0.6 to. 0.8 inches thick. It can be thicker of course. You will need to make a dent on its surface. The dent should be wide and shallow.

Why the dent? Because the female budgie parakeet will turn around and move eggs and you don't want them flying out of the nest box. Birds in the wild put feathers or grass on the bottom of the nest. It would be good to imitate that. You can put wood shavings on the bottom. Use the wood shavings that are used for guinea pig cages. These wood shaving pieces are larger and that kind is better than fine dust-like wood shavings. The fine one can get into birds nostrils.

To make it easier on you, if you are making a parakeet nest box all by yourself, build one with a removable top. It will make the nest box easier to clean and you will be able to reach the eggs or little birds easier.

Important things for the box:

* bottom with a dent and some wood shavings * a round hole in one of the sides for the bird to get in the nesting box * a perch on the outside, just bellow the hole * removable top

Where to put the nest box?

Now that you know how to build it, where do you put a parakeet nest box? It should have a lot of light but try not to put it in direct sunlight. It would be great if you could find a nice spot opposite to the window. Make the nest box easily accessible to the bird.

There you are. Your basic guidelines on how to create and organize a nesting box. You are all set to breed parakeets and I hope you have a lot of success with it.

Pet Parakeet Care: Proven Ways For Breeding Parakeets That Guarantee Best Results

There's a huge difference between owning and caring for a parakeet, and breeding parakeets. Like every other animal, breeding requires a certain quantity of additional attention so that your breeding animals are always kept in the absolute best condition.

One of the first things to think about is that to maintain the absolute best health for the breeding pair and the offspring, is the breeding pair shouldn't be related. They should also be freed from any illness or sickness, and show no appearances of any birth defects.

A clean health check from an animal health pro would give you the confidence to go forward with your planned breeding program. The breeding pair should also be more than a year old.

The cage you need to use for two breeding parakeets shouldn't be any smaller in comparison to 20x20x20 inches, and it should always contain a wooden nesting box that itself is more than 12x12 inches. Correct nesting material should also be placed at the base of the nesting box to make it comfy, and this would ideally be pine chips or an analogous product.

Parakeets need a sundry diet composed of seed, top quality pellets, and heaps of fresh fruit and plants. Breeding parakeets should be supplied with a cuttlebone and a calcium supplement to guarantee the correct egg development, and also to help the hen regain nutrients she'd have lost in the midst of making her eggs.

Female Parakeets will always lay their eggs extremely shortly after mating. Many varieties of birds are the same, and it's not unusual to find the parakeet laying one egg each day till all eggs have been released. There are typically between four and eight eggs in each clutch, however this could alter.

The incubation time for parakeets will be between seventeen and twenty days, but this too can alter by 2 days either way, and this is no cause for concern.

Your call on ways to raise the hatchlings will figure out how you treat them when they break out into actuality. If you're going to tame the hatchlings as pets, then some breeders permit the natural parents to raise the hatchlings till they're weaned, at which time they're going to remove the babies to start them becoming familiar with humans.

Most babies are weaned when six weeks rolls around, and it is then safe to take them from parental care.

For specialised recommendation on breeding parakeets, you can contact other breeders to work out if there are any clubs around which will support new breeders, and occasionally the breeders themselves will be pleased to aid wherever they can.

You may also get lots of info from the Net and from books available thru your local book store, or at the library. Ensure that whatever recommendation you are listening to or reading the person offering the recommendation is experienced in the topic.