Well...

[FinchLover&Breeder]

Hey guys it's me Nick again. Sorry I haven't been on recently. Figured I'd give you an update. I'm officially in 11th grade! Also I'm expecting. Over the past three days my two parent birds have breed at least half a dozen times. So I'm not going to disturb them at all and hope I get some more birds to watch grow up. Can y'all give me the odds of it being a successful clutch? Can't wait to hear from you guys.

[Icearstorm]

FinchLover&Breeder

Congrats! You going to start applying for college later this year (if you plan to go)? I made the mistake of waiting until my senior year, and that was ridiculously stressful to the point where I would get upset over pretty much nothing; once I opened the fridge and almost broke down crying when I realized that my mom had bought spinach instead of lettuce...

I hear that society finch fertility is around 80%, so I imagine zebras will be similar. If it's their first time together, the rate is generally lower, although at least an egg or two should hatch.

[FinchLover&Breeder]

Icearstorm
I'm thinking of going into the service when I get older. But will do college. This is definitely not their first time together. So wait a week or so and start listening for baby birds? What mutation am I likely to get? Also help finding a female society Finch would be great. Any leads?

[Icearstorm]

FinchLover&Breeder

If they haven't laid eggs yet, you should probably start hearing babies in 3-3.5 weeks. If you post pictures of the parent birds, perhaps haroun or someone could help you with mutations.

I might have a female or two for sale in four months, but at this point I don't know.

[FinchLover&Breeder]

Icearstorm
Alright. We'll keep each other updated.

[FinchLover&Breeder]

she laid her third egg yesterday. however Im worried because it was very small. Compared to the other two it is very tiny. Im hoping she lays more. she lays an egg every two days or so. But my main concern is the small egg. is there still a chance of it hatching or should i just count my losses with that egg? Please help me. It is currently hard for me to take pictures bu if you need one then i can try to take one so you can see what im talking about. Please help.

[Icearstorm]

FinchLover&Breeder

The small egg could be what they refer to as an "empty egg" if it doesn't have much of a yolk. It probably won't hatch, but there shouldn't be an issue with leaving it. If your hen isn't laying eggs every day, she's not quite in condition; it's hard to say what might be wrong, but she might not be getting enough nutrients or could be a bit old or something.

[FinchLover&Breeder]

Icearstorm
I've got some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that the parents tossed one of the eggs that could have hatched. When I checked last night there was one normal egg and the tiny egg. This morning I checked and saw no eggs except for the tiny one and my heart sank. Here's the good news. After my heart sank I saw movement and noticed that they hadn't tossed the egg, it hatched! I'm hoping even though it's only one baby that they take care of it and raise it. Do you think they will?

[Icearstorm]

FinchLover&Breeder

Nice! They should feed it. Just make sure they have access to eggfood; I think I figured out that my one bird (Macbeth) went on a baby-eating murder spree a couple of years ago because the dry eggfood dispenser got clogged...

[FinchLover&Breeder]

Icearstorm
Is eggfood a nessciaty? I haven't given it to them before and the twins turned out fine. What mutation could I get and what gender? I can't take pictures right now.

[Icearstorm]

FinchLover&Breeder

Eggfood, boiled eggs, scrambled eggs; the specific type doesn't matter, so long as they have access to some high-nutrition protein source. Ask haroun about the mutations; he's the zebra finch expert.

[FinchLover&Breeder]

Icearstorm
How long is it good for once I cook the egg and give it to them?

[Icearstorm]

FinchLover&Breeder

I'm not sure. The Internet says it's safe for human consumption for two hours or something, so it's probably similar for birds. I use the dried stuff most of the time so I can just leave it out at all times without needing to constantly replace it. When I do serve boiled or scrambled egg, the birds don't touch it after an hour or so, but that's probably partly because they throw it on the sand and it dries out to the point where they don't eat it. I also serve it frozen, so it probably could last a little longer since it needs to thaw first.

[FinchLover&Breeder]

Icearstorm
I just gave them some not long ago. They love it! How often should I give it to them? Once a week or what? As far as I can tell the baby is still in the nest and alive. How long till he/she can leave the nest?

[Icearstorm]

FinchLover&Breeder

Since they're breeding, I'd give them egg every day. Otherwise once or twice a week is fine so long as they aren't moulting.