# Not sitting on eggs



## jak2002003 (Jan 10, 2012)

I have a pair of king pigeons that are acting strange and won't brood their eggs. 

They built a nest, laid their eggs, standing over the first one, then the second. Everything was going normally. I expected them to start brooding the eggs.

But, then they just would stand over them and not brood them for a few more days, then they started ripping the next apart and throwing the nesting material over the floor, and kicking out the eggs which rolled along the shelf.

I re made the nest for them and added the eggs back. They now have no interest in the eggs or nest and have gone back to roosting on the branch in the coop.

I have never had any pigeons do this before. It is their first clutch of eggs, so do you think they just don't know what to do.

I have thrown the eggs away today. How soon will they lay new eggs? They are my only pair of king pigeons. My fantail and old dutch capuchins are breeding well with no problems. 

Thanks.


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## Dima (Jan 15, 2011)

If it's their first time i wouldn't let the eggs to hatch though ( if they are young first time paired) Put fake eggs under for a while.
They will lay eggs again in about one week, if they mate. Make sure you give vitamins with Ca & d3. Laying eggs too quickly will deplete the female of her own calcium from her body.


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## jak2002003 (Jan 10, 2012)

*reply*



Dima said:


> If it's their first time i wouldn't let the eggs to hatch though ( if they are young first time paired) Put fake eggs under for a while.
> They will lay eggs again in about one week, if they mate. Make sure you give vitamins with Ca & d3. Laying eggs too quickly will deplete the female of her own calcium from her body.




Thanks for the reply. They have crushed oyster shell and mashed up chicken egg shells and cuttle bone in a pot available at all times. They also free fly and eat a lot of my chickens layer pellets, so hopefully they got plenty of calcium.

I have not see them mating - so perhaps they are just too young. The male is younger than the female. 

Hope next time they will brood the eggs. I really want more king pigeons!!!!!


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## Jason Heidlauf (Apr 2, 2012)

do they have mites or lice . just something to think about . they might have thought the nest was not suitable do to parasites .


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

I would wait longer to let them hatch babies. If they are even ready to sit the eggs, they aren't ready to raise babies. If they're too young and don't parent well, the babies will die anyway, or you will have to raise them, and that isn't easy. I'd use the fake eggs for a while until they are a bit older.


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## jak2002003 (Jan 10, 2012)

*Yes you are right.*



Jay3 said:


> I would wait longer to let them hatch babies. If they are even ready to sit the eggs, they aren't ready to raise babies. If they're too young and don't parent well, the babies will die anyway, or you will have to raise them, and that isn't easy. I'd use the fake eggs for a while until they are a bit older.


You are right. I don't want to hand raise any chicks - I had to do that once before and it was a messy and long job. I rescued a pair of feral pigeon chicks that someone wrapped in newspaper, sealed in a plastic shopping bag and dumped on the street in the full sun. Both chicks had pigeon pox and were in a very bad state, but I got them through it and now they live free again at my local temple (one come home each day for free food before flying home to her new mate). It was very rewarding, but not something I ever want to do again!

I will put some of my bantam chicken eggs under them if they go broody and let them hatch them out - then take the chicks away. Raising baby chickens in a brooder is so much easier then hand rearing pigeon squabs lol.


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