# Hen's Fighting Over an Egg



## ZigZagMarquis (Aug 31, 2004)

Well... the past couple of weeks or so, a couple of my birds, Budgie and JJ have been "courting" pretty heavily and picked out themselves a corner of the loft to "nest" in. Last night, I felt JJ and she felt kinda eggy, so I put a nest bowl in the corner her and Budgie had picked out, but no egg last night.

Tonight, I got home from work a little later then normal and there was an egg in Budgie and JJ's nestbowl... BUT... it wasn't JJ sitting on her (??) egg... it was another hen altogether, Shelly!

The plot thickens... well, JJ and Shelly start going at it all "cat fight" like. JJ didn't what Shelly on her nest and Budgie joined in the fight too at times.

Thing is, I didn't see which hen laid the egg, but given its location, I'd expect it was JJ's... but if that's the case... why would Shelly "come along" and sit on an egg she didn't lay in a nest that wasn't her's... unless it really is her egg???

Pigeons are weird...


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## ZigZagMarquis (Aug 31, 2004)

Update... I pulled the egg and replaced it with a wooden one.

JJ and Shelly continued to fight over it.

During a break when JJ managed to drive off Shelly for a bit, JJ kicked the wooden egg out of the nest, but Shelly still came around trying to sit it.

I suppose we'll see how this one plays out over the next couple of days... when the 2nd egg comes... or 3rd... or 4th...  

Never a dull moment with pigeons.


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

LOL...like a soap opera.  

Does Shelly have a mate?


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## ZigZagMarquis (Aug 31, 2004)

Trees Gray said:


> LOL...like a soap opera.
> 
> Does Shelly have a mate?


Yes, Shelly has a mate, Speedy... but Speedy has a couple of other girlfriends too...  

I've had the nestboxes out of the loft for quite sometime now, and it seems to have cut-back on the egg laying, but at the same time, its made such things a lot less "organized".

As to the eggs which have come over the past few months... I put a nest bowl under the hen in what ever corner of the loft it is she decided to lay in and let her sit some wooden eggs for awhile to keep her from getting egg bound or calcium depleated because of just pulling them and letter her start all over again.

Seems Shelly may want to just despertly raise some young. She used to be one of my fliers, but the past couple a' three months when I've offered her liberty, when she wasn't sitting dummy eggs, she won't fly, she just runs back into the loft... wants to be on eggs!  I've thought about offering her up to see if someone wants her as a breeder, but she's a smallish hen and not a pure-breed homer, her mom, Lady-Bird is the Homer/Pheasant cross I have.


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## feralpigeon (Feb 14, 2005)

That's an interesting situation, I hope you get to find out what the real dish is
so you can let us know....

fp


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

If Shelly wants to brood and hatch babies, I would keep her inside and allow her to do so. Pigeons become "one-track" oriented when they want to breed, it is strong in them, and nothing will change their mind.

I have several hens sitting on dummies, and everything they do, is done with only one thought and purpose, brooding...brooding..they rush to eat, drink and scurry back to he nest. They only allow themselves a break when the male takes over.


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## bartuska (Apr 20, 2005)

I have a similiar situation going on. Chloe and Boomer have been together but Boomer has been cheating with Jezabel. Jezabel laid an egg, one day later Chloe laid an egg, the the next day Jezebel laid her second egg then the next day Chloe laid her second egg in Jezebel's nest! Chloe has laid before and Boomer left her so I replaced the eggs with fakes. (then he came back--deadbeat dad). This time I put one of Chloe's eggs into another nest -- a pair of my good breeders who I let have one egg this round--well, now they have two. I replaced one of Jezebel's eggs with a wooden one --thinking that maybe they each could raise one baby and I have foster parents available if needed. Well, Jezebel kicked the wooden egg out and refused to sit on her other egg so I tossed it--Chloe is happy brooding and Boomer does help. It will be interesting to see how this all pans out inthe next couple of weeks! (could write a book)


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

*Rofl !*

Whoa! TWO soap operas! DO keep us updated y'all!!


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## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

Wow, all of this gets really complicated....and, people think pigeons mate for life, ha!  

Maggie


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## ZigZagMarquis (Aug 31, 2004)

Well... got home tonight, and JJ is sitting on the nest & now _dummy_ egg. If she really laid the real one yesterday, she should lay another tomorrow.


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

Lady Tarheel said:


> Wow, all of this gets really complicated....and, people think pigeons mate for life, ha!
> 
> Maggie


Yeah, I hear you Maggie! I heard the same thing (mating for life) and then noticed Peter Pied Piper at ASU. AFTER reading all the threads/posts on Pigeon Talk, I am REALLY beginning to wonder...again 

Just messin' with y'all...I know pigeons USUALLY mate for life...


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## ZigZagMarquis (Aug 31, 2004)

Well... the plot thickens... last night, I cleaned up a broken egg on the floor, away from JJ & Budgie's nest and at that time, JJ was still sitting on her one wooden egg.

So, then, I wan't sure if JJ or Shelly had laid the one that got broken.

This morning, I check on JJ sitting on her nest, and she's still got the wooden one under her, but also has another real one.


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## BirdDogg10 (Aug 23, 2005)

Oh brother.

When will it end?!

I don't watch soap operas, but this is getting good.


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## bartuska (Apr 20, 2005)

Latest on the SilverWind soap opera:
Chloe now kicked out her wooden egg (at least I think it was her) and this afternoon she must have thought it was Boomers turn to sit on the remaining egg so she left--I fugured Boomer would return but after about 45 min--and the egg beginning to cool-I took the egg and put it in Bill and Rowan's nest (they are good breeders and don't cheat!) You see, my three good breeding pairs have all laid two eggs over the past few weeks, but I took one from each and replaced it with a wooden one mainly for number control. So now I have two of my proven breeder pairs with one of their own eggs and and one of someone elses. I put 2 more wooden eggs in Chloe's nest--and tonight when I went back to the loft she was sitting on them as happy as can be.
I am now trying to decide if i should give Chloe her live egg back--actually since it cooled down a little I don't know if it will even hatch. 
Oh, Mike and Lily (one of my 3 good breeding pairs) are proud parents of their one egg as of today--at least that is going as planned


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

*And ZigZag*

thought she (he?) had problems?!  

I'm familar with the game of musical chairs, but, until now, had never heard of "musical pigeons!"


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## BirdDogg10 (Aug 23, 2005)

Hoo, boy... this whole soap opera thing has the making of a classic "Road runner cartoon"


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## Pikachu23739 (Jan 6, 2006)

ZigZagMarquis said:


> Well... the past couple of weeks or so, a couple of my birds, Budgie and JJ have been "courting" pretty heavily and picked out themselves a corner of the loft to "nest" in. Last night, I felt JJ and she felt kinda eggy, so I put a nest bowl in the corner her and Budgie had picked out, but no egg last night.
> 
> Tonight, I got home from work a little later then normal and there was an egg in Budgie and JJ's nestbowl... BUT... it wasn't JJ sitting on her (??) egg... it was another hen altogether, Shelly!
> 
> ...


*wow.. you must be suprised*


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## ZigZagMarquis (Aug 31, 2004)

*And then there were three...*

Okay, so I go to clean the loft today *and* I find JJ is now sitting on *three* eggs!  

So, I know that this means one of two things... 1) I've got a pair of mated hens in Budgie and JJ... or... 2) The first egg that was in the nest back on 11 Jan, was Shelly's as was the broken one on the floor a couple of days ago... and the last two have really been JJ's.

One interesting note, the last two real eggs I've tossed have been Grade A, Large as pigeon eggs go!  Maybe I've got a Chicken hiding in my loft somewhere!!??!


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## TerriB (Nov 16, 2003)

These birds can mess with your mind! 

Last year, KD (hen) laid an egg in the nest box above hers while that male was on the nest (that hen was out sunbathing). Guess she figured that, even if she couldn't make it to the top level, her egg would! (The only reason I could tell what happened is that the three hens lay distincly different looking eggs.)

Good luck with figuring out your situation!


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

Oh the mystery! Oh the laughter!  

This story is getting better and better, ZigZag...ever considered writing a "pigeon mystery who dun it" book?? ROFL


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## ZigZagMarquis (Aug 31, 2004)

mr squeaks said:


> Oh the mystery! Oh the laughter!
> 
> This story is getting better and better, ZigZag...ever considered writing a "pigeon mystery who dun it" book?? ROFL


Actually, I'm thinking of setting up "Pigeon-Cam" in the loft...


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

ZigZagMarquis said:


> Actually, I'm thinking of setting up "Pigeon-Cam" in the loft...


Oh boy, better yet - MOVIES!


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## zoo keeper (Oct 3, 2004)

Tim, you have some goofy birds.  I have had the boys fight over the girls, but never girls fight over eggs.


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## BirdDogg10 (Aug 23, 2005)

*Oy...*

this diffenitly has that Tom and Jerry humor

doesn't it?


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## ZigZagMarquis (Aug 31, 2004)

*3 Eggs Again*

Well... they're at it again... well, sort of... I didn't think this was worthy of a new thread, so I figured I'd put it here.

So, I go out to the loft this morning to give my birdie buddies fresh water and then to give them their breakfast and I notice that Baldy now has 3 eggs in her nest...  ... well, 2 of them are the wooden ones she's been down on for about a week and the other is a real one. Don't know if she figured out 2 were fake and laid a new one last night or if someone else plopped an egg in her nest when she or Spot weren't on it.

What are those type of birds that lay their eggs in another species of bird's nest so they can run off and have someone else raise their chicks? Maybe I have one of those in my loft??


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## Maggie-NC (Jun 22, 2005)

Hi - they are cowbirds. Hate what they do particularly since it seems they love to lay in cardinal's nests but if you really look at them they are beautiful little birds. From what I remember they would follow the cattle on their trails eating seed, etc. from cow droppings and in order to live had to leave their eggs. They are resourceful. Once saw a fledgling in with a cardinal family and the parent cardinals fed it right along with their own babies.

Maggie


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## Nooti (Mar 14, 2002)

I used to have a pair of bonded lesbian pidgies - 
They both laid their eggs in synch - so two would appear at once.
Then another two 48 hours later.
They both took turns to sit on the eggs but both would sit them during the night - 2 under each bird.
When one bird left the nest to eat the other would - with difficulty, fit her two eggs underneath with the ones she was already brooding.
They were a devoted couple
Very devoted to each other
Cept for the odd couple of minutes here and there when they cast their eyes elsewhere.
Coz all 4 eggs were fertile each and everytime!

They weren't stupid birds.
They knew what had to be done to fill those eggs!
It was the only time they didn't look to each other

My two pidgie suffragettes
Who obviously just didn't trust fella pidgies!


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## Pigeonpal2002 (Jul 27, 2002)

Hi Maggie and Zig, 

Cuckoos do the old egg switcheroo too


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