THAT is WAY WAY to little time to not be with them 24/7...the birds have to bond very well, for several months before attempting to mate. What I would do is either buy another keet of the opposite sex, and introduce slowly, and then put into same cage and watch if they fight at all. If the fighting gets bad..seperate for a few days, then together again. Will your best friend let the 2 be together for up to a year? That may be the time for them to get bonded and breed, and have a clutch. Yes, the father needs to be in the cage at all times. He helps out by feeding mommy, who feeds the babies.

Basically your saying you want to put two keets that don't even know ea/other together for a week and expect them to breed and have babies. That is deffinately NOT going to happen.

The whole reproducing keets process can take even up to a year...this is NOT a short process that lasts only a week.

Also, how old is the male. and how old is the female. also you must wait until the fm. is in heat, and the male is sexually mature before anything will happen btwn the two.

ok, i really really want to breed,but there are a few problems, my keets love each other alot but also fight alot over things like the swing, the ball, or there favorite toy with two spin around mirrors a bell at the bottom a a wheel like thing that they can move around. then there is the fact that, i think they are brother and sister, because, they both came from the same pet shop at the same time, they are the same breed of parakeet, and they are almost the same age the only difference is one has a blue tail and a white stripe across it's belly while the other one has a white tail and has an all blue belly, also if i got another male i would have to seperate the old one because he is very aggresive, and should i breed them in the fall or next year in spring when they turn 1 year old?

I'm interested in the topic of breeding. I'm not ready to breed though. Will a male and female breed no matter what as long as they are both mature?

no, they have to like each other and be in breeding mode.

coolkeet: they may fight over little things, mine do, but only over the swing, lol. But when breeding is suggested, they may make the lovliest couple! BUT from your description, I would NOT breed them, they do sound to much like bro and sis. you don't want to inbreed.

This is what i'd do in your place!!:

-Go out and buy another male, one that has a very dark blue cere (sexually mature). Then put the other agressiver male in a seperate cage (if you don't have one now, you will have to buy one.) Then let the new male and prev. female bond until next spring. By then, they should DEFFinately have a bond and love eachother.

Then when spring arives, introduce the nesting box to them...and hopefully they'll be a successful couple and produce beautiful babies!!

PM me if u need any help! good luck


Chad E: No, only certain pairs will take to eachother, some will even just take a long time to nest and take intrest in it if they are young or don't have a good bond with eachother. Also, yes, both have to be sexually mature, but the female has to be in breeding mode/heat.

so lemon&lime you are saying i should get another male, and wait to 2008 or 2007

Yeah. get a mature male, asap, and let them bond. and move the other agressive one out to another cage, and i'd get him another male companion, b/c you'll be spending most of your time w/ the breeding couple. When spring 07 comes, they will be good and bonded, and then start to breed them.

Good luck!!! PM me if u have any Q's or post here.

ok i will do that, but he will br pretty upset, they might be bro and sis but they still preen each other feed each other, and sit together and rub beaks. he will be mad becauase he will be losing his girlfriend to some new guy and he will be in a seperate cage by himself so he can't peck the new guy, lol just asking but what are some of the things that can occour from inbreeding?

There's always the option of getting 2 new keets, both mature, and the female in heat. Then bro n sis (maybe) can be together, and won't get lonely or miss eachother, n be happy!

somethings that can occur from inbreeding are:
-deformed beak
-deformed stance
-deformed legs or feet
-mentally impared

Hello,
New to this site - I've read alot here and a lot of great info!!
I currently have 3 parakeets (Peter, Piper and Pepper)
Peter and Piper have bonded and poor Pepper seems to be left out (so I'm sure I'll be getting another ) I just love them all!!
Anyway - My question is about cage size. I'm looking to purchase a couple of new cages or one flight size cage - I'm not necessarily going to be breeding, but how come breeding cages (usually around 20x20x30) seem so small (short)? I've seen tall cages starting at 36"tall - My thinking is - since these little guys live in the tree tops of Austrailia - the taller cages would be more suitable. What does everyone think - is taller better?