Have you heard that inbreeding budgies can cause a problem for the newborns such as infertility, abnormality, survival issues, or anything similar. Are you worried that your budgies can mate with their siblings and cause the issues then read on to understand the truth.
Can Budgies Breed With Their Siblings?
Yes, Budgies can breed with their siblings however the first clutch from the siblings might be safe but the later clutch will start causing problems such as infertility, flying issues, abnormalities, and much more. We recommend you should separate siblings before they reach the maturity stage.
At What Age Do Budgies Start Mating?
Male budgies become ready for mating after 5 to 6 months.
Female budgies become ready for mating after 6 months but usually, they take a longer time than male budgies such as 12 months to start mating.
You should separate siblings before this age so they don’t start bonding with each other.
What are the Signs of Budgies Mating?
Be careful if you see some specific signs between budgie’s siblings which show a typical interest in mating. These signs are as follows,
- Budgies can start preening each other, preening is a maintenance behavior in birds so they start positioning their feathers
- The male budgie might start feeding the female budgie
- The male budgie might start tapping on the female budgie’s beak
- The final stage of mating is, the female budgie might lift her tail and lay down her wings to invite the male budgie to mate.
If you view these signs between the siblings then take precautions and separate them from the cage and place them in other cages far from each other. It is better to change their partner from another bloodline.
Is it Fine for Sibling Budgies to Mate?
Have your sibling budgies completed the process of breeding and you were unaware? If the female budgie has mated with its sibling male budgie then you might see the following issues,
- Abnormal Egg Size
- Hatching issue
- Survival issue due to the same bloodline
- Abnormal growth in limbs, wings, and other parts of the body
- Infertility in the newborn
Abnormal Egg Size
Female budgies lay eggs in abnormal sizes if siblings have mated with each other. Normal budgie egg size is (L18.5mm x W15mm) and the abnormal size might be smaller or bigger.
Hatching issue
You will see egg-hatching issues after budgie siblings have mated with each other. You might see a dead baby bird in the eggshell because the baby bird does not have enough energy to break the shell due to weakness caused by the same bloodline/inbreeding.
Survival issue due to the same bloodline
The newborn baby from the same bloodline might not be able to survive because the same bloodline offsprings are weak and cannot survive even after hatching.
Abnormal growth in limbs, wings, and other parts of the body
Even if the baby budgie hatch from the egg successfully, you might see abnormal growth in them. If the wings have overgrown then the bird will not be able to fly properly.
We have seen some cases where the baby budgie is born without a leg, eye, or any other body part.
Infertility in the newborn
Sometimes the baby budgie seems healthy even after coming from the same bloodline but you will see the effects after it reaches maturity. These birds might face infertility issues.
Normally female budgies lay 5-6 eggs in a clutch where 80% of eggs hatch successfully that brings 4-5 healthy budgies to life however when siblings have mated with each other then the chances of having a successful breed are near to 25%.
Conclusion:
Never keep sibling budgies together in the same cage when they reach the maturity stage as they can start bonding with each other which then can result in mating.
You can pair half-siblings with each other where the chances of getting good breeds are higher. Half siblings share one common parent whether a male budgie or a female budgie.
