white love doves

Question
My two love doves layed an egg this morning 10/22/2009 she wont take care of it.she wont sit on it.just by it.so i took it from her and put it on a heating blanket on low with a wash cloth under it so it wouldn't get to hot what should i do for it other than that?

Answer
If you want the egg to mature, then you will need to incubate it till it hatches, and then hand feed it with bird hand feeding formula, although if you give the doves a plastic egg there is a chance they may care for the young when they hatch.

Keep in mind that hand feeding birds must be done every two hours 24/7 for a couple of weeks, and then every four hours....and so on. It is a huge commitment that lasts 6-8 weeks, if you have the time and you are willing then continue incubating it.

If not don't let it incubate and just let it go...

If you don't know for certain that your birds mated, then their is a chance you female dove simply laid an egg & that it is unfertilized and will never develop.

I found the following iformation at pet-doves.com  You should check out the site for more information.( I don't breed birds so I had to look it up for you..)

"The best incubator I have found is made by Lyons. It has a clear dome, a temperature control and regulator, a humidification system and an automatic egg turner which is very important. The eggs must be turned no less than once every 4 hours. If the babies are not turned properly, they will become deformed. Toes may become adhered and circulation to parts of the body may become impaired. It is difficult to maintain the egg turning schedule manually when you are sleeping or working so an auto turner is very important. The temperature will need to be maintained at a constant 101 degrees Fahrenheit and the humidity at 51%. The auto turner will turn the eggs once each hour. The only thing you will need to do for the next two weeks is keep the water bottle full with distilled water and check the temperature and humidity. Although you can get cheap incubators for around $15, this incubator is what you need if you are serious about saving the babies. It costs around $350 with everything." (http://pet-doves.com/petdoves/dove_eggs.htm)

Blessings,
-m