FINCHforum

Ok well It has been 15 days since jessie and bobbie have been sitting on the nest....they started with 4 eggs and now theres just 1 left in there...and it looks slighty brown on top. Should I be worried now that this last baby may not hatch? The other 3 eggs ended up on the cage floor just a couple of days after jessie layed them.

But both bobbie and jessie are still nesting and I am concerned what to do next as this is my 1st time breeding any bird. They are zebra finches

I would leave them (and the egg) for another few (5) days just to be sure. Then you can remove it if it hasn't hatched. They will have more clutches in the near future.

If it's brown on top it could be the yolk dried up balled up near the top, but as was suggested just let it be for a few more days. If anything this period of "rest" is good for the females body, it'll help her prepare for the next clutch.

I would just throw the last egg out and let them try again.

by now you should know if this last egg is going to hatch..

None of the eggs ended up having any babies

this last one was just a thick yellow yolk inside

Shawn, I know just how you feel. I too have a pair of zebra finches and they keep laying and sitting on them but no babies. I wish some of these experienced breeders could help us. Don't you/? Esty from Texas
Good luck to you

Breeding finches can be so frustrating. Even Zebras, which are the rabbits of the finch world, don't always cooperate. You can provide everything they need, but you can't make them breed. Shawn, it sounds like your eggs were not fertile. This often happens when the birds are young, they just haven't figured it out yet. You saw them mating, but maybe the male was just a little too quick. One thing we all usually fail at is giving the birds enough privacy. Try not looking at all, just note on the calendar when they appear to start sitting, wait about two weeks and see if they seem to be eating lots more food, especially eggfood, then wait another week and see if you can hear little peeps. It is very hard to do, I love to peek too, but when I do, I'm usually sorry.

Sally wrote: You saw them mating, but maybe the male was just a little too quick.

A common complaint from you females

There are many reasons why eggs may be infertile...just be patient and give them time.

poohbear..... shame, shame on you.