Chronic Egg Laying

I don't know about you, but one of the things I hate most is when one of my birds starts laying eggs incessantly! Especially when they don't get the point, that there's more to life than just laying and sitting on eggs all day. Not only can this situation be annoying to the owner, it can also be dangerous to the bird's health. Chronic egg laying is most common in budgerigars (parakeets), cockatiels, and in hand raised and/or human imprinted birds.
In the wild, birds are influenced by the amount of light exposure and the amount of food available to start their regular breeding cycle. Increases in sunlight and food supply usually cause hormonal changes influencing the process of egg laying and breeding.

Reasons for Egg Laying

1. Increased Light Exposure
Most pet birds are housed inside and therefore are usually exposed to long periods of artificial light along with natural light. Probably a safe light exposure time limit would be around 10 hours. Keep in mind that a healthy bird requires around 12 hours of darkness.

2. Sexual Stimuli
Sexual Stimuli can include a mirror, a favorite toy, or a nest box set up in the cage. It can also be caused if the bird's owner pets or strokes the birds back. This is usually interpreted by the bird as copulation.

3. Contact with Breeding Pairs
The sight of breeding pairs in the process of mating and raising young can be a stimulus to some females. They'll want to raise their own clutch and be like the rest of the "flock".

The Problem with Pulling Eggs
Please understand that I am not saying that non-breeder birds laying eggs is bad. To the contrary, it is fine for some birds to lay eggs under natural conditions, this can give them experience if you choose to set them up as breeders in the future.
However, I oppose pulling the eggs right away. This is probably the main cause of chronic egg laying problems and egg binding. The absence of the egg(s) the bird just laid can cause her to lay more until she has a complete clutch of eggs to sit on, or until she finally wears out.
You should let the bird lay a complete clutch of eggs and then let her incubate the eggs, until the regular time they would be due to hatch if fertile. (The varying incubation periods will be discussed in a future article.) If you are trying to stop a pair from having more chicks, you can substitute the fertile eggs for fake or infertile

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