Budgies eat their own eggs.
I understand, as humans, it’s hard to imagine a mother eating their kids for health and nutrition.
Well, budgies are after all animals, and animals behave differently!
Want to know more?
Let’s get into more detail why budgies do this
Carry on reading
Will Budgies Eat Their Eggs? (In Detail)
The two reasons why mother budgies eat their unborn babies – by that we mean the eggs that haven’t been hatched yet are lack of nutrition and stress with the latter being the most common reason.
Budgies are naive creatures who get scared of literally anything!
They get stressed when they find themselves in the following vulnerable situations.
Overcrowded Cage
Budgies are super possessive about their territory.
While you a few more budgies thinking that your pet won’t feel lonely, and will enjoy their company, they get tensed and uncomfortable and start doing weird things such as eating their own eggs.
When They Are Surrounded By Predators
Budgerigars are extremely scared of new environments and take more time than usual to get familiarized and comfortable with their ‘new home.’
That’s why they easily get intimidated by people and other pets in the home, such as dogs and cats.
They register them as predators who may attack them.
Several owners say that their budgies become aggressive and stressed when there are other pets around.
That’s because they feel the urge to defend themselves and their territory.
They scream a lot, scratch themselves, and, sometimes when the stress levels shoot up, they end up eating their eggs.
When A Baby Budgie Gets Sick
If one a newborn hatch-ling catches an infection or is deformed in some way, the mother budgie kills it and eats the remains to get lots of protein or simply removes it from the nest to prevent other babies from falling sick.
They May Even Get Scared Of You!
Your infinite love and acts of affection can also increase your budgies’ heart rate, and provoke them to eat their eggs.
While you offer a handful of grass seeds to them, they get petrified and clung to their perch or their partner or may even bite your hand.
This happens because they see you as a potential threat invading their private space.
Why Do Budgies Break Their Eggs?
Budgies break their eggs mostly due to the stressful atmosphere.
After breaking their eggs, they either cull them or eat them.
An overcrowded cage frightens the hatchlings and most of them usually die.
Mother budgie discard some of her baby budgies focusing on the remaining ones.
The other reason why budgies break their eggs is because they feel nutrient deficient, mostly protein.
They consume their eggs to get all the essential nourishment and become well-prepared to produce more eggs in the future.
Sometimes during breeding or even nesting, mother budgies sense diseases and deformations in their babies so they smash those eggs right away and start over.
How To Stop Budgies Eating Their Eggs?
You can stop budgies from eating their eggs by giving them a comfortable atmosphere and paying special attention to their diet.
Give them a large cage where they can freely move around.
Avoid putting too many budgies together in one cage, and if you do, make sure your budgie gets comfortable by them first.
Make sure to give them rich meals filled with all the essential nutrients such as proteins, fats, and carbs.
Observe what foods they like eating and which ones work best for them.
Breeding budgies require specific nutrients.
So, make sure to go to a veterinarian and get a custom diet plan for your soon-to-be mother budgie.
We hope this blog clears your confusion about why budgies break and eat their own eggs, and how you can stop them from doing so and ensure they are happy and comfortable in their new home.
Here are some related articles you may find interesting
When to remove unhatched budgie eggs?
Do budgies lay eggs without mating?
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