While I'm a lovebird breeder, if I had to take a guess at what happened, you bred blue to blue. This can produce weak babies that won't hatch or survive.

 

Ahhh, but here's the argument about turquoise and blue that I've been learning about with this type of pairing. Technically, turquoise and blue genes are separate genes. So technically you can breed them together. There's pure turquoise and there's turquoise blue. Since blue and turquoise genes can be co-expressed... you can get a turquoise blue. I've heard that you can potentially tell the difference between a pure turquoise (2 turquoise genes) and a turquoise blue (one turquoise gene co-expressed with a blue gene), but they're very difficult to tell apart. Also, the turquoise blue bird is the one that is more commonly found.

Anyway, with that said, you also have first time parents. Sometimes, the first clutch doesn't go well since the parents are inexperienced.

Here's some other thoughts, you have a pied female and a pied male. It doesn't really make sense to pair a pied to a pied as most pieds available are the dominant pieds. So a majority of the babies are going to be pied anyway if you pair a pied with a non-pied. And since you don't know if your birds are double factor or single factor pieds, it makes genetics a bit harder.

It's really your choice, but I would imagine since you don't really know if they're siblings or not, that it may be just better to repair.

 

Here's some other thoughts, you have a pied female and a pied male. It doesn't really make sense to pair a pied to a pied as most pieds available are the dominant pieds. So a majority of the babies are going to be pied anyway if you pair a pied with a non-pied. And since you don't know if your birds are double factor or single factor pieds, it makes genetics a bit harder.

Could you explain the double and single factors? Corn snake genetics weren't quite so complicated and mostly genes are simply recessive. I'm having trouble understanding some of the bird lingo. I tried researching it and as close as I can tell if both parents are double factor, then the babies will be visually the same. And if the parents are single factor then the babies might not be the same...like I said, I don't have a handle on it.

It's really your choice, but I would imagine since you don't really know if they're siblings or not, that it may be just better to repair.

We have been debating if we want to split our pair up and just purchase two more to repair them. We agree on our fondness for blues, turquoises, and dilutes. Problem is that our current pair went from being semi tame before their clutch to now wanting to tear us to shreds through the cage. If we got two more, we'd want them to be more pets than breeders. But if we did, what would be a good match in order to produce nice healthy babies?

Also, I just want to say thank you. You seem to answer all my posts.

 

How is the humidity? It sounds like they died in the shell with the darken shells.The eggs need good humidity.Also if the pair is young mom may not have sat as well on the eggs as an older female.

 

How is the humidity? It sounds like they died in the shell with the darken shells.The eggs need good humidity.

I should have thought about the humidity. With snake eggs, humidity is always considered. However, with the bird eggs it didn't even cross my mind. What should be the percentage?

 

Single and double factor dominant pieds can appear the same. Though some people say that a single factor will more likely be a light pied and a double factor will more likely be more heavily pied in appearance. Single and double factors only really matter in breeding.

So if you have one double factor dom. pied bred to a normal, all the babies will be single factor dom. pied since the double factor will give each baby a pied gene. If you have a single factor dom pied bred to a normal, you will have 50% single factor dom pied and 50% normal babies.

Most breeders (and I'm not one, so I really don't know) say that if you have breeder birds, they're really not going to be tame. So if your thinking of having breeders as pets, I wouldn't expect it to happen. Does that mean it won't? No. I believe Koolaid on youtube is a pet and a father, so it can happen; but I would imagine it would also depends on the bird's personality. I have a pair of p'lets (that I don't plan on breeding), but one was a great pet before she bonded with the other. Now, she'll step up and do some tricks, but doesn't really want to hang out with me or let me give her scritches. I'm happy that she's happy, but sometimes I miss that closeness with her.

Without knowing what the genetics of your pair is, it's really hard to determine the best match for them. But here's my opinion...

Blue pied paired with a green split to blue, which will give you green pied split to blue, blue pied, green split to blue, and blue (assuming no splits with your blue pied).

The turquoise pied is a bit harder to determine as you don't know if the turquoise is pure or turquoise blue... I guess, i would go with another green split to blue on that one or a green split to turquoise. You'll get turquoise blue, green, and blue (if bred to a green split to blue and assuming your turquoise is a turquoise blue and not a pure... the turquoise blue is more common than a pure).

And you're welcome We're all learning here I hope this helps you

 

Could you send pics?