FINCHforum

I found this forum when in mid October, I found a zebra finch at a petstore who was badly beat up by its fellow cage mates and was missing several clumps of feathers. A few weeks later, I bought a society finch as a companion for her. I believe it is a female as it only makes "cricket" like chirps.
Anyways, Zoe (the zebra finch) has been doing great until today...today she has hardly left her little wicker nest. She has only left it a couple of times and when she has, it was to either to hop around for a minute or two or to put a bit of timothy hay into the nest. She has hardly "beeped" at all today and all of this has begun to make me a little worried.
I am extremely inexperienced when it comes to finches, so this question will probably be very stupid...but is it possible that she's pregnant?
The only reason I think this is because she has added a few pieces of timothy hay to the nest and has stayed so long in the nest. There was a male zebra finch in the cage with her when I bought her but does it really take that long before they lay eggs?
Or is there something else that she may have?
Advice is extremely appreciated!

Approx 5 days from mating to first egg.
She can also lay eggs w/o mating, but the eggs will NOT be fertile.

If you think she may be about to lay eggs, give her mashed hardboiled eggs + crushed egg shell. The crushed egg shell provides calcium needed to help pass the egg. The fresh egg provides the nutrient for the body to absorb the calcium.

Thank you for replying so promptly! I actually didn't know that about her being able to lay eggs without mating...
Oh and I also forgot to mention that she has lost some feathers around her vent. That was the other reason why I thought that she was getting ready to lay eggs. But I will definitely try giving her some of those eggs.

enbarr wrote:Thank you for replying so promptly! I actually didn't know that about her being able to lay eggs without mating...
Oh and I also forgot to mention that she has lost some feathers around her vent. That was the other reason why I thought that she was getting ready to lay eggs. But I will definitely try giving her some of those eggs.

My society hen acts like your hen sometimes too she lays in a food cup (i have a nest, but they dont seem to mind it) and looks puffy, but suddenly she is hopping around and seems 100% healthy. I dont know why she does that either, but i figured, as stated above, that she might lay eggs.

Good sources of calcium are oyster shells (i sprinkle some on the bottom of the cage where i have sand) cuttlebones and crushed eggshells. My dont eat of the cuttlebone, so i grate it and sprinkle some of the powder on greens or eggfood