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What do people do with their retired lovebirds? I have an old female that I want to find an old male for. She is too old to have babies, but she wants some company. I had one person email me about 2 pairs of retired birds, but unfortunately, that didn't help me since I need a single. You would figure that there is a retired male out there that someone wants out of their aviary!
How common is it to have a sterile male lovebird? My female is 9 or so and going strong. I was hoping to find her a retired male around the same age or a sterile male around the same age, but apparently no one has one.
Do lovebirds typically "dry up" at a certain age? I certainly do not want to breed her, she is my old lady and a funny gal (though she is only semi-tame and much prefers birds to me). SHe just needs an old man to grow old with.
Right now she has somewhat bonded to a 9 month old male I have and I really want to breed him, but I'm not going to leave her all by herself. Although, I know if I get them both other birds, they may still want to be together.
Does anyone have any suggestions or comments?

It's my own complete honest opinion, but as long as birds are healthy and well cared for they can breed until the day they die! I heard of a ringneck once who was 31 years old (life expectancy is 30 years) and still laying eggs! It would be great to know if she's still alive!

And for a great example, in lovebirds no less, here's a quote from a member from another bird forum! And it was also posted this month!

Thimble, (aka grandma) is over 15 years of age (she is a lovebird) and not a single hen can out do her. She is getting yellow feathers showing her age, and she does not produce 8 eggs like she did, but she produces 2-3 healthy babies. Forget taking away her box. She'll pluck, scream, whine, not eat, whatever it takes to make her point. Love those colors!

So I don't necessarily agree that birds SHOULD be retired as long as they remain healthy and fit! However, on the contrary, IF I myself could produce offspring throughout my entire lifetime, I wouldn't want to... and to be honest I don't even want one child!

Well, I guess I thought they were sterile after awhile because she has mated with a few VERY fertile males and has yet to lay fertile eggs. She has a lot going for herself, she is in great health and doesn't let her age show besides her beak is a little worse for wear. I guess maybe SHE is just sterile or other reasons. She was 5 when I got her and has had several mates since then and has her fair share of "lovin'".... but has always laid clear eggs. She still occasionally will mate with a breeder male of mine (who already has a mate) and still nothing, and he has produce over a dozen beautiful babies.
Thank you for your response. I guess I could have her check out, but I don't know if I want her to have babies (though she would bite my throat if she knew that, since she has been trying for years!).

I understand your concerns! If she's never produced any fertile offspring then indeed SHE could be sterile! I wonder though if she'd make a good foster parent? I know when it comes to breeding birds it's always good to have at least one foster parent (i.e. a bird who'll accept chicks or fertile eggs) to raise!

Can't really help ya though on finding a mate of her own age though, unless of course you go with someones pet? I guess most breeders tend to keep their pairs less they have reason to downsize?

Yeah, she would make a great foster parent, which is another reason why I want to find her a suitable mate. That's another reason why I'm looking for one around her age. She has outlived 2 mates (both passed from accidents) and she needs to find an older mate to have as a companion. I have been looking to adopt an older male, but all of the lovebirds I can find for adoption are all younger birds.