Am I inviting health problems if I don't want to breed?

[rfn1]

Hate to swim against the stream here, but,... Novice here... On another thread, I reported severe feather loss in my Star Finch hen -- but I guess I overreacted and now she's recovering her feathers after some startling but "normal" moulting. Still, I've decided that I don't want her (or my gouldians) to breed. When I acquired my female gouldian (from Hillary who posts here often), she mentioned that she was a good egg-layer. So, do I invite health problems if I deny a nest and nesting materials? And, are there other things I can do to discourage breeding? Thanks in advance for any advice.

[Sally]

I don't think there are any health issues involved in keeping hens from laying eggs. One thing you can do to discourage breeding is to have the birds separated by sex--an all-female cage and an all-male cage. Another thing you can do is not provide a nest, and have nothing in the cage that they could use as nesting material. Another thing is to provide an austerity diet--normal finch seed mix or pellets and greens, but keep treats way down, and only give eggfood and other protein-rich foods if they are molting or as a very occasional treat.

There is nothing wrong with discouraging breeding. The problem with breeding is that you have to have a plan for what to do with the babies. After all, if you have several successful clutches, you can quickly triple or quadruple your bird family, and cages take a lot of space!

[rfn1]

Appreciate the advice, Sally.