Life pairing....new partner ??

jem · New Member Joined: Jun 12, 2005 Posts: 1

Hi, (popping this question up here as requested) Ive just joined your site & have found it very informative. Could you spare a minute to answer a question for me. Unfortunatley, even with my vets best efforts, I have just lost my young hen due to egg binding. I only have the one pair & am very concerned about the remaining male. They have never really been seperated & shout the house down if for any reason they are. Do they pair for life or should I find another female for him. He's under a year old & suprisingly, at present doesnt seem too bothered......Im not too sure he's realised shes gone...shes been hiding in her box for the last few days so, he hasnt seen much of her. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated, Many Thanks.......also, another thought, how would 2 males get along as friends. Ive noticed a few people seem to have the same problem Ive had & there are quite a few lone males looking for a new home out there. Im not bothered about breeeding as, they arnt a common bird over here & I dont like the idea of having to re house new birds with dubious owners or pet shops...also, to be honest, Im scared of having a repeat situation, Ive never had any problems with any of my other birds before & this was really upsetting (just thankful, for her sake, I noticed so quickly), Thanks again, all comments w3c

Kaka-riki · Site Admin Joined: May 30, 2005 Posts: 363

Putting another cock bird in with your original bird should not pose too many problems. The cock birds usually only squabble if there is a hen around also. Just observe the birds for the first 24 hours after introducing the new mate. Most problems occur very early in the piece if there is going to be any drama.
It can sometimes cause more problems if you try and replace the hen. We have some breeding males that simply attack any new females we try to introduce. To overcome this we put the hens into a new aviary first and then place the cock bird in last. Never place a new hen into an aviary that has previously been shared by the original cock bird and his mate. Shift both the cock and new hen into neutral gound for both of them. We have found this works the best.