For lovebird enthusiasts worldwide, when they hear the news that a new mutation has been discovered that didn't happen before, they will want to get a pair for breeding purposes or just to complete their collection.
Some hobbyists want to own a pair for research purposes on inheritance and other scientific proofs. However, business-oriented lovebirds will not waste this opportunity and will quickly buy the latest mutations to propagate before the local lovebirds get started.
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This is indeed a good business because every new, rare mutation usually has a fantastic price compared to mutations that many people already have. So, you have to breed lovebirds quickly and efficiently.
The challenge is that the new mutations are slow to reproduce when you only have a pair of lovebirds. For this reason, I will provide some tips on how to breed lovebirds faster, especially to reproduce new mutations.
Faster and more efficient lovebird breeding tips
Although you must be fast and efficient in breeding new mutated lovebirds, you must also pay attention to the welfare of the birds. Do not let you only exploit it for continuous reproduction. Nutrition plays an important role in breeding success. A diet balanced with vitamins, minerals, and proteins improves the fertility and health of lovebirds.
- Fresh Vegetables and Fruits: Include a variety of fresh vegetables and fruits to provide essential
nutrients. Some lovebirds will need to adapt to the feeding regime in your Aviary. It is important to supplement
vegetables and fruits so they can choose according to their preferences and then pick up untouched fruits and
vegetables.
Protein Source: Feed hard-boiled eggs or a protein-rich pellet mix to support
breeding. You can also mix boiled eggs with gold patee or fruit patee to
supplement pre-reproductive nutrition. It is useless to have lots of eggs, but all are infertile.
Calcium Supplements: Ensure females have access to calcium, which is essential for egg production. Providing
cuttlefish bones or "nus fish" is the easiest way to fulfill the female's intake of eggshell material.
Mineral blocks also seem more practical if they are available at your local pet shop.
Choosing the right lovebird pair
Make sure to choose a mature lovebird pair or a proven pair if available. Avoid buying recent mutation chicks, as you
will be waiting a long time for the reproduction period to start. Make sure the pair of new mutation lovebirds are
really male and female. If necessary, buying with a DNA-sexing certificate is preferred.
Only gamble on buying a bird that is certain it will save time. It
is important to note that 9 months of age is an ideal time to start a reproduction session because it will be
long enough for you to have several generations in your Aviary.
Faster breeding with a babysitter system
With fantastic prices and scarce availability, you may only be able to purchase a new pair of lovebirds. The
reproductive cycle of lovebirds is 40-45 days from when the first egg is laid until the chicks leave the nest box.
In this period, you will only get 3-4 chicks from a pair of new mutations.
For this reason, a
babysitter system is needed to shorten the cycle and multiply the number of chicks. You only need to utilize a pair
of lovebirds with obsolete mutations to incubate the eggs of a new pair of lovebirds and take care of the chicks until
they are independent.
When the new mutation pair lays eggs, you must move to the nest box to change and manipulate the babysitter as if it is her egg and finally willing to incubate. Meanwhile, when the new mutation is done laying eggs, you
can rest and prepare for the next reproductive cycle.
With this nanny system, you have a high chance of
producing at least 6-10 birds in a shorter time. This depends on how many foster parents are available in your Aviary; the more foster parents, the fasAviaryd more likely it is to be.
Faster lovebird breeding with an incubator system
The next way to breed lovebirds faster is using an incubator system instead of the main brood. You must move each egg from the new lovebird mutation into an incubator set to temperature and humidity. Setting the temperature in the range of 37-39 ° C / 65-70% is recommended.
Unfortunately, this incubator system lovebird breeding method is only for experienced breeders. You
must hand-feed the chicks when they hatch until they get their first grain.
This is very risky
for the death of chicks. The advantages of the incubator system are the same as those of the babysitter system. You will also
get new mutation chicks quickly and efficiently without the need to sacrifice the main parent working very hard. So, the productive period of lovebirds will be longer.
I can share These tips on how to breed lovebirds faster with lovebird breeders and hobbyists. I have no intention of exploiting them; I am just sharing. Hopefully, it will be useful and inspiring.