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We've chosen IRN - for a couple of different reason's.

I have read up on them, but I still would like some advise & to see some set up's.

They are both 4 yo, have laid 1 clutch but they were clear. They are not being well cared for IMO, they are on a seed diet, small cage, not alot of fresh anything basically human foods.

So our 1st and main focus is getting them on a healthy start!! They are coming in a cage they have always had which is a ferret style tall cage 20x20.

I like the HQ flight cage but I wonder is the 1/2 bar spacing to small for them?
Do you use the Breeder diet pellet or would a natural be alright?

Id LOVE to see pictures of your breeding set up's - as Ive not meet to many breeders really.

I'm sorry I can't answer your questions about breeding, but I can help some.

1/2 inch bar spacing is not too small. It may make walking easier for fledglings before they fly.

I would go with the breeder pellets, supplimented by lots of fresh food. My ringneck loves cooked foods, fruits, veggies, and pretty much anything I eat.

Good luck with the breeding.

thanks for the reply.
This is the cage Im thinking about getting for them

http://www.windycityparrot.com/Merchant ... ct_Count=5

Not a bad cage!! I would make sure that you have several feeding stations so you can give your dry and "wet" feed seperately. My IRN is a dunker, so if they can be water bottle trained, that may help. They love fresh fruit, veggies and cooked goodies.

Knowing how much my IRN chews, you may want to go with a steel nest box, to keep the chewing down.

Keep us updated on how things go.

I think that cage is better than the little ferret cage you say they're in now, but it is no where large enough to give them room to fly. There are many people who keep their ringnecks in cages like you are looking at but at only 32 inches in length, the birds cannot fly; which is of great help in keeping them in good condition. My ringnecks are in suspended cages that are 2.5 feet wide, 2.5 feet high and 8 feet long. I have a 3/4 inch pvc water pipe for a perch at the far end of the cage and a white pine 2 X 4 for a perch at the close end of the cage.

Although they do chew, I would still give them a wooden nest box. Just a standard grandfather clock style box with dimensions 12 X 12 inches and 24 inches tall works best. Chewing the opening of the box seems to stimulate their breeding. I put about an inch of clean, dry play sand in the bottom of the box with about 4 inches of kiln dried white pine shavings on top of that. I also put in several fruit wood branches which the hen takes great delight in chewing up.

I keep a galvanized rabbit J-bin feeder on each cage with breeder pellets available at all times. Water is provided in a 32 ounce bottle. I keep a dish of dry seeds in overnight that is changed out about 8am in the morning in exchange for a bowl of fresh foods. We leave the fresh foods in until about noon when we give them a small amount of seeds overnight again.

Also, keep in mind that as smart as they are, they cannot read books (or the internet). What works for me may not always work for anyone else. Case example, my pair of turquoise and grey ringnecks never nested this spring along with all of the other ringnecks. Read any book and the experts agree that their breeding season starts about Christmas time. They'll have one, two and sometimes three clutches if the eggs and/or babies are removed early and that they'll be completely done by the fourth of July. This pair has just hatched 3 of their first 4 eggs laid this year. According to the experts, are they really late for last season or really early for this season?