I wrote this up for another site and thought it would not be a problem to post it here... if it is ..Please let me know.




OK, I will quit… I was asked to write up something about the pros & cons of breeding…
This is all my own opinion, and I am hoping not to ruffle any feathers. My husband & I have been breeding on and off for about 15 years. We love the challenges each new breeding season brings. We are not a big breeding business, we are small hobby breeders. I send each of my prospective families home with an information package that covers cage size, proper toy suggestions for that type of bird, type of foods they eat (with samples), personality traits, training techniques, recipes, & bird safety tips. I try to keep all bases covered. Now these are some of the things I have come up with, if I think of more maybe I can do an update and answer any questions anyone may have also.

Pros:
Educating people; I love to teach people about the birds we breed. I think it is important that they get as much information about a particular bird, before bringing it home. I am very honest about how my bird’s personalities are. There have been times when I have told a family that I did not think my bird would be right for their life style. That is a hard thing to do.
Beautiful babies; It is the most wonderful thing to watch a mother & father, go through their mating ritual, egg laying and setting. Then when those eggs hatch, it is so amazing….. The father getting the food and keeping the mother well fed. It is so sweet
Fun with colors; It is so fun to see what color combinations that come from the parents… We go into it thinking what will come from them… but there is always a surprise, especially when it comes to the variegated birds.
Wonderful new friends; I am very fortunate with the families that have adopted from me. We have kept a very close relationship. I love hearing the new things their pet is learning, and the funny things that happen. I think that this is one of the best things that happen with my breeding of birds.

Cons:
Loss of chicks; No matter what you do or how good you feed. You will always have losses. That is a real hard pill to swallow. It makes you wonder if it was something you did wrong.
DIS; Dead in shell… This is another thing that does happen on occasion, and then there you go, wondering if it was your fault.
People not taking your advice; I know you can’t make every think and feel like me in regards to their birds. When I do send them home with a new family and I hear something happened to them it crushes me. Especially if it was something I warned them about. I know I can’t go home with them and make sure they do what I say, but I do give them enough information to try and avoid these accidents. It does still bother me quite a bit when it does happen.
Letting the babies go; After spending so much time & effort on these babies, hand feeding, socializing, weaning. It is hard to let them go, I know I can not keep them all. My objective is to bring joy into others lives. But letting them go is a very hard part. I do know that I keep in contact on the internet and the phone, for weeks before and after I adopt my babies out. So during our conversations a question does arise I am available to answer. Plus it also eases my mind that they are getting the care they need.
2 & 3 hour feeding; I like to pull my babies early. It gives them quality socialization and it also gives the parents a break. Especially if they have a large clutch. The 2 and 3 hour feeding even throughout the night do get tedious. But I have made this commitment and I do stick with it. That also cuts down on my social life, and spare time. But in the end when I have that gorgeous little sweet baby in my hands or under my neck, it makes it all worth it.
Expense; Don’t let anyone fool you… You do not make money in birds if you are raising quality, nurtured birds. The cost of the different varieties of foods gets to be outrageous. If you are a barn breeder that does nothing special for your birds then yes, you make make money. But, I have chosen it as a hobby, it hopes of bring up the best birds possible. I spend a lot of time & money making food and feeding. I do know my birds have got the best start possible.
MBS; The dreaded multiple bird syndrome… That is the worst. You never have all the birds you want, and when you think you are happy. Someone comes out with a new mutation. And you got to have it. That is when you really start wondering… Who is raising who?

But I would not change any of it, I love to breed. I get a lot of flack from a lot of people.
I try and explain why I do it, in hopes that they will understand my side. I do take in my share of strays. It is hard to make someone’s mistake, (bad judgment purchase) a good pet. So it is nice to have a choice to buy a good quality, young bird to make your family member. You are more then welcome to contact me if you have any questions or concerns. I am more then happy to help anyone out.

Please feel free to add anything you may come up with...

__________________
Denise
Lineolated Parakeets, Parrotlets & Canaries
denise@parrotchatter.com

http://www.affaviary.com

Denise - thanks for posting this. I find that far too often, people think breeding is a piece of cake. They don't realize the dangers, especially when inexperienced. I often ask "what will you do if the parents will not feed the babies you are promoting be created?" to which they usually say that they will "hand feed" them - many say they fed a baby squirrel or bunny once. They just don't seem to understand that birds are totally different. I wonder how any would get up every 2-3 hours to feed. Not many, if any at all.

I agree..I was on many site before (no names) where there were little kids talking about breeding and to be honest I am scared for those poor budgies. I have owned budgies my whole life and haven't bred any of them yet for the fact that I am not certain I can handle it right now (time,money...etc).. I wish people would really consider this before more birds end up in crowded cages, sick and uncared for. ...

Yes, the 2 & 3 hour feedings around the clock are quite rough, making sure they are kept at the right temp... is also tough... making sure the formula is the right temp also tough.... it is not easy.... but I love the babies I get...and I love the new famillies that have joined mine... And I love the stories that I hear from them about their wonderful babies... that just melts my heart...
So in the end... it is so worth it to me.

Are you serious, this is great information and we very much appreciate you posting it here. This is a great Article Denise, I found it very informative. I also want to compliment you on educating people and being honest about the birds personality. We need more breeders like your self. Keep up the excellent work.

I wanted to pipe in and say thanks for the infomation, sharing infomation about such things is always good. I am always interested to hear people's veiws on breeding their birds. Thanks

I let my tiels breed 3 years ago and I ended up keeping all the babies-check my siggy! LOL!! I just couldn't bear to part with any of them!

No more breeding though otherwise I would end up with 200 cockatiels!

Being a person who is going back to breeding I look at the cons and sit here nodding. I remember losing chicks in the past, have just gone through 2 lots of infertile clutches with my turks (apparently not unusual with these guys for their first couple of clutches but still heart breaking), and MBS. People say to me oh so you're going to make quite a bit of money out of this. Are you serious? By the time you take out food, potential vet costs, set upcosts with birds, aviaries, brooders, feeding equipment and then convert time spent to a labour cost there is no money.This isn't about money it's a passion. I know full well that there will be babies that I won't want to let go of, the special little one that you bond with, and babies that I'll lose. I've been lucky enough enough to make some great friends and also find a mentor to join me on this journey.
Denise, well written and great information.

Tara, how do you prevent your tiels from breeding now? Do they simply not breed if you don't have a nest box in their aviary? Will they try and make a nest out of the branches and things that are in their aviary?

I breed and I dont even cover the costs. I only have about a 50% - 60% live chick rate at banding. To prevent us trying to keep all the babies I have to put "for sale" sign on the tail feathers or I would soon be overrun with all the cuties. I chose to take the suns at 4 weeks because it gives mom and dad a chance to raise babies a bit and this way I keep baby numbers down. It give the parents a longer time between clutches, they take rests.
I do so love them but the parents are their own their own account not just as egg factories. They dont have to give a large number of eggs/babies to stay here. I am not in favour of egg setters or removing tiny babies. Maybe egg setters and raising from egg is the only way to make money but then is a high quality bird getting raised?