It's not like the importance of pet desexing isn't understood. With both dogs and cats, the procedure can help to reduce unwanted behaviour (generally aggressive and antisocial behaviour) while also preventing unwanted litters. But when it comes to the animal members of your family, you might not have a dog or cat. Pet parrots are not usually desexed, unless it's a necessary solution to a specific problem, such as chronic egg laying.
Natural Becomes Unnatural
Whether eggs are fertilised or not, egg-laying is a completely natural process. It becomes unnatural when the number of eggs becomes chronic. The production of these excessive eggs, and the nutrients that are depleted from the bird in producing the eggs, can make the issue dangerous to the bird's health. Malnutrition and various deficiencies (primarily calcium deficiency) become more likely. So why might a parrot begin to chronically lay eggs?
A Curious Phenomenon
There are a wide range of issues that can trigger this curious phenomenon. Parrots can be tricked into thinking that they're in an ideal situation to reproduce (even though their eggs are not fertilised). This trickery comes from them thinking that the amount of available light (which is generally artificial light), along with the controlled temperature inside your home—means it's their ideal breeding season.
Misguided Affection
Chronic egg laying can also be misguided affection. A parrot can forge a strong bond with a human (often a specific member of the family), a cage mate of the same sex or even a toy in their cage. Their disorder can demonstrate their readiness to reproduce with their favourite human, their cage mate or their toy. Whatever the cause, this chronic egg laying is detrimental to their health and must be managed.
Behaviour Modification
Modifying the bird's behaviour is the best first step. This can involve regulating the bird's perception of the space they live in—turning out the lights or covering the cage so the parrot's internal clock resets itself. When their affection for a person, another bird or a toy is guiding their behaviour, contact must be reduced. The parrot may need to be isolated from the object of their affection until their egg-laying is no longer chronic. They will need interactive enrichment toys in their enclosure so that their psychological health isn't overly affected by the temporary separation.
Desexing
If behaviour modification is unsuccessful, talk to your vet about a few desexing options. Surgical desexing is possible, though usually as a last resort. Given the size of a parrot (and the subsequent size of their reproductive organs), surgical desexing is an intricate procedure. Your vet may instead recommend a form of chemical desexing, involving the injection of leuprorelin, which is a type of hormone. A slow-release hormone patch placed beneath the skin can also be an option.
Chronic egg laying should first be addressed with behaviour modification, but if this doesn't correct your parrot's excessive egg production, there are a few desexing options available. Keep these tips in mind when looking for a pet desexing service near you.