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why is my single female budgie laying eggs2007-11-24 17:27:37

During the time when a female bird produces eggs, changes happen in her body that will need an aware owner to help with. An egg is made when yolk is released from the ovary into the oviduct, where it will take 3 weeks or so for the body to form a hard shell around the egg and expel it. This hard egg shell takes a lot of calcium to form, and a cycling bird will need plenty of extra calcium in her diet to help her do this. If a cycling bird does not get an adequate supply in calcium, it can result in her eggs being deformed, soft-shelled eggs and hypocalcaemia, which affects her bones. Extra calcium can be given to your bird in the form of a good supplement, like Zolcal, which contains vitamin D3. D3 enables the bird to absorb the calcium, and a bird usually gets a good supply of D3 through natural daylight. This is why it is always a good idea to place your bird's cage where it can receive natural light (not too much direct sunlight), so your bird can get its own supply of D3. Cuttlebone should always be made available for your bird, but contrary to what people say, it isn't a good enough source of calcium to be relied upon, especially during cycling. You can feed your bird crushed up egg shell, egg food, and egg biscuits to aid with calcium supply.

When a bird is cycling, you may notice that she is more active and playful than normal, showing affection towards her toys or you and regurgitating seed as a sign of affection towards the favorite toy or to herself in a mirror. She can seem incredibly excited when at play, and a clear sign that she is cycling is when her tail goes up vertically, accompanied by soppy, fluffy eyes (increased white rings around the eyes). This is when the bird ovulates, and she usually does this during mating with a mate. If there isn't one, she will do it to you or her toys. You may also notice her increased appetite and a slight weight gain, which is her conditioning herself to lay. She will try to prepare a nesting area. You may find her sitting in the seed bowl and kicking out all the seed or shredding up paper on the bottom of her cage. She may even fancy the wall paper as a nesting material and start stripping it off

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She's broody. She probably sees the straw box as a safe place to nest in.