My parakeet's nest is dark. What nesting materials should I use?

Feed a good quality pelleted diet (Harrison's, Roudybush, Lafeber, Pretty Bird or Exact) supplemented with a fortified seed mix and fresh greens and vegetables. Provide a cuttlebone or mineral block. Always have fresh water available. Provide an appropriately sized nesting box and suitable nesting material (straw, Aspen shaving, shredded newspaper, etc.).

If you are looking to build your own nesting box, there are many websites that will provide information. Use your preferred search engine and search for "DIY budgie nesting box". Boxes are made of plywood and are glued or nailed together. A heater is typically not necessary. You can allow the hen to incubate the eggs until they hatch. Breeders will usually pull the chicks at two weeks of age and handfeed/handraise them from that point until sale. The link below is an example of a site that will show you how to build a box. http://www.birdspyaustralia.com/make-a-budgie-box.html

I think you could try it. Birds can have preferences just like humans. I think you could give it a try and see what the birds think of it. If you want them to use this box, then remove the other nests to limit their options. Hope they like it!

It is possible the stress of chronic egg laying may be affecting her appearance and feathers. Remove any nesting boxes in the cage. If she's laying in the seed bowl, use a smaller container that she cannot sit in. Limit Camille's exposure to daylight to 8 hours or less. Use a dark cage cover or sheet to block light if necessary. Use a calcium fortified seed mix. Leave the fake eggs in the cage for at least 4 weeks.

Thanks for reaching out about Elly. Start out with a good nutrition, including a wide variety of vegetables, plant proteins (beans, legumes) and some seeds. A nesting site needs to be provided. For most birds to breed, nutrition must be good, the nest needs to feel safe and a mate needs to be received. Most birds breed in spring, stimulated by lengthening photoperiod. Good luck.

Parakeets don't usually try to mate with things other than other parakeets, however if he is doing this behavior with you it is best to just put him back in the cage and let him go about his business until he has calmed down. You can still interact with him by offering treats or having him sit on a perch instead of your hand if the behavior continues. If they're both males (which is always possible) it may be they aren't interested in the nest. You can try adding some items to it to make it more interesting, or offer some nest building material (most pet stores will carry this) to see if it encourages nest building. Be sure not to place yarn or other strings as feet and beaks may get caught on that and cause injury.

If you are hoping to raise babies, then providing nesting material for the parents is best so that they can make a safe nest where the eggs are less likely to fall or break. The parents may also break eggs or discard them if they aren't viable or they are young parents that don't know what to do. Because the eggs need to be incubated, they need to remain in the nest with the parents in order to hatch. You can keep letting both parents try to raise a clutch (and be sure to provide a calcium supplement for the mother), or, if you don't wish to raise babies, can just remove and discard any laid eggs.