Apples n Carrots - hold the banana

I'm entering week 2 of giving the breeding pairs Nekton-e. Not much seemed to be happening until yesterday. I went in the room to do my regular feeding/cleaning of the birds. They get a Tropican mix blend of pellets and seeds. I always offer them fresh fruits and veggies. It seems only one of the pair, the green cheeks like banana. The yellow sides can't stand it. Both pairs love Apple, and some raw carrot. There is never much left by the time they are done feasting on it. But thats besides the point. I have noticed that the female yellow side has been spending a lot more time alone in their nest box, and less time out in her cage with her mate. I'm no expert by any means, so I wrote my mentor and asked a very simple question. "My female yellow side is spending more time in the nestbox, does that mean she will be laying an egg or two?" Not that I was getting very excited about this ( sense the sarcasm?), but I was anticipating an answer. Unfortunately, I had to head to work, and wait a whole 9 hours for the answer. I kept watching the clock, counting down the minutes till I got home from work.

I raced home, and ran upstairs to my laptop in hopes that I get the answer I have been waiting for. With a very short answer my faced gleamed with excitement. "That's very good news! I'd say she's getting ready to lay eggs. :D Keep me posted! " That was enough for me to be excited and with that thought in mind, and my fingers crossed, I hope that my mentor is right.

So for now, its apples n carrots hold the banana.

Hurry up and wait.....and wait......

In the last week I have managed to put together a small place where I can house my green cheeks. I have a small area of the basement all cordoned off. The space is about 8ft by 5 ft, all curtained off, in an attempt to make the birds feel safe in their own space. The two pair are separated by a short divider, where they can't see each other. I have a double bank of fluorescent full spectrum lights set up above them. Below them I have I much smaller fluorescent light also set on a timer. Why the two lights? Simple I don't want the birds to be waken by a sudden burst of light, nor do I want them to go to sleep in sudden darkness. There is about 20 minutes of overlap during the night, hopefully this will simulate the sun setting. In the morning the smaller light comes on for about 20 minutes before the big light turns on. Hopefully simulating sunrise. Will it benefit the birds in the long run, I'm not sure. I have read on other sites that this was a successful tip to help the birds adjust to their surroundings, and at the same time making it a safer environment for them. At this point any information that could make this endeavor any more successful, I'm willing to try. Like having a radio on. A few of the other breeders I have been talking too suggest that playing a radio for the birds has a few benefits. Firstly, it helps drown out any surrounding noises, and can help drown out the occasional squawking form the birds.

More about the birds: The male yellowside was hatched in 2005 and is split to yellowside. He has had a previous clutch last year with another hen, and produced 5 chicks. The female yellowside will be a year old in July of this year. They have been together for 7 months now and are fully bonded. I will be placing an nest box on their cage after she turns 1. The previous breeders where an elderly couple that were downsizing their operations because of health issues. They have been dna'd and I do have the registration papers for this pair. They are close banded

The green cheek pair are almost 4 years old. They have had 5 clutches together and are fairly prolific. This pair was purchased from the breeder where I purchased Summer our family bird. They weren't the breeders pair, but a friend of theirs. These birds have not been Dna'd. They are close banded as well. They do have a nest box, that they hop in and out of. It is lined with pine shavings, and for an added touch, I have placed some small pine blocks in the box for chewing. ( I have read that chewing can stimulate breeding.)

They seem to be settling down, as I was warned that it might take some time for them to settle into their new place. The yellowsides are still very skittish, but the green cheeks have settled right in.

So, now its hurry up and wait. I go in once a day, change the food, check the nestbox and make sure everything is okay. I sweep quickly if I have too, but I try....sometimes not to successfully to limit the contact and disruption. It's sometimes harder to stay clear of the room, than not. We're anxious to start hand feeding some chicks, but then there is so much more that we have to prepare for.....