# Solo Hen builds Nest, has Baby...



## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

One of my slated for release, free fly, free rove Pigeons, a Hen, ( I do not remember why she was originally here, but she flies well and is in good health now ) built a Nest by herself, and laid two Eggs.

Nest is on top of a not in use Cage which is on a Table top, so, about five feet up.

She sat her Eggs 24/7, never saw her take a break once...and, one of the Eggs pipped four or five days ago..and, she has sat the Neonate 24/7 since, but, for finally, last day or two, taking a few little short breaks.

I had set a little Bowl of Seed, and one of Water for her, long since, when I saw her first sitting...so, been keeping those refreshed and tidy, all along.


I have seen a couple situations before, where a Hen builds a Nest and Lays all by herself, but always next to a Cage where a convelesing Male is where the two had formed a Romance...but, never seen it happen where there is no hint or history of any mate, no suitor or mate close by, and never seen it before where an Egg pips!


No idea who the Father is.


Non flying Pigeons, when having a flying Mate, they always build their Nest where the male brings most of the material, and, the Nest is always built where they both can access it alright.

So, she is a solo Hen, a single Hen, as it were...





'Peeper' can be partially bulging her low Feathers out a little, under what would be her right side front.


She is a very sweet Hen...and soon became very friendly with my tending to her Seeds and Water.


Oh! Just realized, my 'Avitar' is a Hen some years ago who made a Nest by herself, next to a convelescent Male she had formed a Romance with. She was very gentle and sweet also...she had laid two Eggs, and, they were not fertile.



Phil
Lv


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

How sweet, Phil!!

Please keep us updated on the little one AND Mama!

SENDING OUR BEST WISHES TO ALL WITH LOVE AND HUGS! 

Shi/MR. Squeaks/Dom/Gimie/WoeBeGone/Rae Charles


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## Skyeking (Jan 17, 2003)

What a wonderful little mama, please DO congratulate her for me on her new little hatchling!

Hope she and her little one have a long and happy life.

Thanks for sharing!


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## John_D (Jan 24, 2002)

Sure takes dedication for a single hen to be doing all the work, Phil!

She sounds like she'll be a real good mother 

John


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

This is the first 'peeper' here in six months!


I had been very good at removing viable Eggs, and replacing them with 'duds'.


I did not think her Eggs were going to be viable, so I did not bother rotating them...and, also, secretly, just between you and me, I sort of hoped they might be, since I missed the presence of 'peepers'!


Lol...


Very unusual situation far as I have ever seen...that a single Hen with no mate, would build and sit a Nest all by herself, stay on it for what would optherwise be both 'shifts', and, have her Eggs ( or in this case, only one Egg ) pip, and raise the Baby(s) all by herself too.


Always something new with these Birds!


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## c.hert (Jan 15, 2010)

Thats sweet--you had a "ops baby". She sure does look like a sturdy hen and pretty too and I bet that baby will be just as pretty. Congratulations PaPa and it is nice to have a peeper in the house...Do You Need Any Plastic Eggs...lol...I'll send you some.....c.hert


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

ROFL....gee, Phil, I NEVER would have guessed you secretly wanted to be "surrogate papa!" 

Only kidding as I am NOT surprised!!

Actually, Peter Pied Piper lost his mate and had to raise his baby alone. He did one hell of a job too! Raising ONE is one thing...two with just one parent can be something else tho!

Will sure be looking forward, as always, to the "growth process!" 

What 'cha gonna name the little one?????

Sending LOVE, HUGS, SCRITCHES and WARM FUZZIES to Mom and Baby!!

Shi and the gang


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

There were times here, when pre-relase ones would have built up...I'd do the Egg Gathering every Monday and Friday, to switch 'dud' Eggs in place of newly lain ones, and I 'd have 26 Eggs to put away to cool for a week or two and me marked as 'duds' for their return to a Nest.

I'd put these into a Dresser Drawer that had some padding in it.

One day, I open the Drawer, and there is a newly hatched 'peeper' sitting there.

What the Hay???


Anyway, tucked them under a suibale pair who had a couple new 'Ooops!' Babys...all went well.

I would always, ALWAYS 'Candle' each pair of Eggs before deciding this, and if I saw any meaningful hints of veination or structure, I'd put them back under their parent.

So I have no idea how THAT 'peeper' in the Drawer happened.

Sure glad I found them when I did..!

Guess it had been j--u--s--t warm enough in here, for them to incubate alright as they were.

Yipes!



I would also miss some, sometimes, ones I did not know were there, 'Secret Nests' and so on, so, always, one was hearing what seemed like faint 'Crickets'...

Well, they weren't CRICKETS, let me tell you...they were 'PEEPERS'...Lol...


Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh...gollly...whatchagunnado...


Anyway, I got on top of things a little better...very few releaseables allowed to build up. Secret Nest sites all removed...rooms much more empty now. 

No 'peepers' of the 'Ooooops!' or other kinds since early or mid November...till now. ( Unless one count my Workshop, where Wild Pigeons I have known and released, with their Wild Mates, have Nests in the ceilings...so I often hear their Babys out there...)


Just did a little walk around, in the free fly free rove zone, and I see five Nests, and ten Eggs, with dutifully sitting Hens or Cocks...

All but one are 'floor nests' of non-release-able Birds, some with a non-releaseable Mate, some with a release-able Mate.

That is why I would drag my feet on the releases...I'd see a slated for release one, having got themselves a non-release-able mate, Nest in progress, all lovey-dovey, I would hate to break them up to release the release-able one.


Oye...


Do I need to have my Head examined????


Lol...


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## Ammonite (Mar 9, 2010)

Sometimes you see a male pigeon who's in a mated pair mate with a different female. I guess this is what happens to her!


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

ROFLMAO

Phil, I am NOT at all surprised that you found a "drawer squab!"

I collect Woe's eggs but I KNOW they are not fertile. Even if one was, it wouldn't hatch because I don't keep them in a "warm" drawer. I've collected them in a dish, which is rapidly getting too small to hold them all. 

Have no idea WHY I'm saving them...but she has such _beautiful_ eggs!

Ammonite, I know what you are saying! Gimie, Woe's mate, is also interested in Rae Charles, my newest pij who is blind. Woe is sitting on her eggs so Gimie is the one out in the mornings for exercise.

One morning, Gimie was sitting on top of Rae's home. I took Rae out and lifted her up to see Gimie. He took one look and hopped on top of her! I don't who was more surprised...Rae or me! : eek: 

Gimie has a badly healed broken leg, so he will never be a "daddy" ...at least so far...

Still sending LOVE, HUGS and SCRITCHES to your newest, Phil!!

Shi and the gang


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

The one in the drawer was ready to hatch so it did, your best bet is to remove the eggs right when they are laid and replace them with fake ones.. and check the nests every week to make sure no one slips a real one in there..been there done that..lol.. I would use the fake ones to avoid anymore hatchings esp with a "single" hen.


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## pdpbison (Mar 15, 2005)

The Egg which hatched in the Drawer, had been in there over two weeks.


I'd pull new Eggs, one Nest at a time, check them against a Light Bulb anyway to be sure nothing was developing...set them in the Dresser Drawer into a segregated area.


Next round of pulls, would go into a different area...prior round would all get moved to the right, etc...it was all very methodical...Eggs then elected for substituting, would be chosen from among the oldest...and I would mark them with an "X" in soft Pencil.


Was early Summer, warm indoors here.

I might have goofed up, but it might have also just incubated for 14 or 16 days or whatever, there in the Drawer.

Heck of a shock to me anyway!


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

pdpbison said:


> The Egg which hatched in the Drawer, had been in there over two weeks.
> 
> 
> I'd pull new Eggs, one Nest at a time, check them against a Light Bulb anyway to be sure nothing was developing...set them in the Dresser Drawer into a segregated area.
> ...


I pull all eggs within three days of being layed.. that way I do not even need to candle them, they get their fake eggs and no worries about anything developing in there. and having more birds I don't need. goofing up can be easy when it comes to eggs though as you know..lol.... I have done it.. I was using a pair of capuchines as fosters to hatch homers that I keep in the flying team area (would find eggs on the floor) and put the homer eggs under the capuchines if timeing was right..well I must of got one egg mixed up and a capuchine baby hatched with a homer baby..I was surprised expecting two homer babies... he/she is a cutie, just did not want to breed anymore capuchines.. so like they say sh** happens...lol... the drawer baby is really something though.


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