Breeding budgies can be rewarding, but it is a bigger responsibility than many people expect. Before you start, it is worth understanding what is involved and making sure you can care for the results.
Should you breed your budgies?
Breeding is not something to do on a whim. Ask yourself whether you have good homes ready for several chicks, the time to hand-rear if a parent fails, and a fund for vet care if something goes wrong. There is no shortage of budgies needing homes, so breeding is best left to those who are prepared and doing it thoughtfully — not to make money or simply to see what happens.
What a breeding pair needs
A healthy pair should be a true male and female, over about a year old, unrelated, and in good condition. They need a roomy cage, a nest box, and an excellent diet with extra calcium from a cuttlebone and a soft food such as egg food, since laying takes a lot out of a hen. Warmth, longer daylight and a settled environment help put birds in breeding condition.
Eggs, chicks and knowing when to stop
A hen usually lays a clutch of 4–6 eggs, one every other day, and incubates them for around 18 days before they hatch. The chicks are helpless at first and are fed by the parents, fledging at about 4–5 weeks. Do not let a pair breed clutch after clutch — repeated breeding exhausts the hen and harms her health. Most keepers limit a pair to one or two clutches a year, then separate them or remove the nest box to rest.