question

[060963]

I was looking for a love bird and the lady at the feed store told my friend in Tennesse that you could breed brother and sister. They does not sound right but I am new to breeding.. please help.

[birdlover912]

I wouldn't do that--the gene pool would be so small that the offspring would likely have defects and be unhealthy. Lovebirds do NOT have to be paired to live or be happy. If you want a lovebird that will bond to you, just get one. :)

[Monica]

Yes, you can, however if the two birds are carrying any bad recessive genes, they are more likely to show up in offspring, quite possibly creating health problems.

This may not pertain to birds, let alone inbreeding, however it's a good example of how recessive traits can show up worse when parents share similar/same genes
Mixed-breed dog - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

And another article that may be of interest...
Inbreeding - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


For the best chance of healthy offspring, you'd be going for genetic diversity... that is, pairing unrelated birds together to produce healthier offspring, assuming that both parents are healthy and carry healthy genes.

[LolasMomma]

Yes, you only have to get one lovebird & it can be happy. Be careful, it takes a long time. Ive had Lola about a month and she still isnt that attached to me. Some days I think she hates me.

[amanda143]

There is something called "line breeding" where you pair a female with their father or a male with his mother, however most breeders avoid brother/sister combo's.