Mating

[ranchnanny]

I have been watching my two canaries to see if they mate. It seems every morning they fly around the cage the cock chasing the hen and he is singing as well. Is this normal? This happens everymornig once or twice.

[tobyneilson]

With mine I never noticed them mate,but they built a nest about 4-7 days before they laid,and the female spent a lot of time sittin in it, hope this helps

[ranchnanny]

Thanks for the response. I have been watching the hen today and she is busy busy busy in and out of the nest putting stuff in then taking it out .
She is all over that cage eating then nest building then bathing I guess she will get it right sooner or later.

[ranchnanny]

OK is this normal I see her pulling soft feathers from under her own wings???

[Ria]

most birds will pluck feathers from their belly area, both to line the nest and so they can contact the eggs to pass along body heat more efficiently.

[ranchnanny]

Thanks Ria I watched her pulling feathers out almost falling off the perches. She was working very hard. He tried several times today to mate with her.

[debbie276]

Here's a link that explains the brood patch in birds:
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordb ... tches.html

Most birds have "solved" the dilemma posed by the need to both transfer and preserve heat by evolving "brood patches." These are areas of skin on the belly that lose their feathers toward the end of the egg-laying period. In most birds the feathers are shed automatically, but geese and ducks pluck their brood patch and use the plucked feathers to make an insulating lining for their nests.

When just one parent incubates, it alone develops a brood patch. If both parents incubate, both may grow brood patches, or one may cover the eggs without a patch, warming it less efficiently, but at least retarding heat and water loss from the egg.