Nutrition for canary hens sitting on eggs

[Dave]

Many times I've read that a sitting Canary hen shouldn't get egg food, as it 'creates too much heat' and can mess up incubation. I'm not sure what that means, but I listen to older breeders even if their explanations seems weird. A system that has worked for decades probably has some merit.

Now I have a Canary on eggs, in an aviary with other birds. I didn't isolate this hen, which I sometimes do, so she has the same access to boiled egg like the other birds in the aviary.

I paid attention to her when she's off the nest. She flies around and eats seed and sunflower chips and greens and mineral mix, but she passed up the egg food. That is unheard of in my flock! Maybe she read the book.

The question is: can we rely on our birds to manage their own nutrition? If our job is just of offer a lot of types of food, will the birds take just what they need?

[lovezebs]

Dave

Honestly, I've never heard of that and I guess my Canaries never read the book either.

When my girl was sitting on eggs, she stuffed herself with eggs, veggies, fruit, seeds, spray millet.... everything she could wrap her beak around.

So I really don't know what to tell you, sorry.

[Sheather]

I fed daily egg and fresh food with my breeding hen last year, she ate it up and she had 100% fertility for several clutches, no issues.