[Lameco]

Greetings everyone!

I am making this post because earlier this year (May 4th) I was leaving work and I found a baby pidgeon on the ground (picture - http://imgur.com/a/CsaNt and http://imgur.com/a/Ip7UF). He had few feathers and I could not leave him there because it's a crowded city with a huge aveneu, he would probably end up getting ran over by a car. He would definitely die there so I felt i had to do something. There were a few people looking at him deciding what to do and since my father is a bird lover and has lots of canaries I thought I could help by bringing him home, turns out my father knews nothing about pidgeons . I did a lot of research that day and I figured out how I could feed him. Turns out it worked and today (July 24th) he is still around and healthy!

I am making this post because since I am a noob when it comes to pidgeons, I would love to know if it's a male or a female. I will post a few pictures of him, if it's not enough i'll take a few more.

Here are some pictures I took today:
http://imgur.com/a/NOuAK
http://imgur.com/a/FhU4h
http://imgur.com/a/DPyBc
http://imgur.com/a/3APwI

I'm sorry if i should have not used imgur to lin the photos but I wasnt able to attach them...

I had an "expert" coming by my house and he told me it was a female but she was too young to say for sure. Now she is developing some colours and some other guy told me it was a male because of the colors on his/her neck. Truth is im falling in love with this bird and it's behaviour...

As you can see in the pictures I have him on my backyard (yes he has a place to sleep) but he is a free bird, he is free to fly whenever he wants, I'm not keeping him in a cage, and trhe fact that he always comes back home and is always around is making me love him a little but everyday!

When i brought him home I was thinking about leaving him in the city when we was a grown bird but I am just too scared to do that.. I think I will keep him around..

Please if you have any advice to give me about this bird I would love it! As I said i am a noob when it comes to pidgeons. I'm just glad I "saved" his life .

Thanks in advace and sorry for the wall of text.

 

[Chuck K]

Sex

You have asked the age old question everyone struggles with. A lot of folks have a gimmick for sexing pigeons. I have heard folks say they can feel the vent bones, and if the bones are close together it is a cock bird if they are further apart it is a hen. I seen people claim that the length of the toes on cocks is different, and the length of toes on hen is the same. I have also seen others with a little device where a wooden stick is suspended on a string and the direction of the wooden stick tells you the sex. I don't think any of these are reliable to determine sex.

If you are interesting in trying a couple of the methods, the fellow in the linked video believes he has the secret.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNoU71s71Oo

 

[Jay3]

No way you can tell from a pic. Some will guess, but that is really all it is........a guess.
Even when you own birds, it can be difficult to tell, as some males may be very quiet, and some females will act like males. If it ever lays an egg, then you are sure.

Letting him fly outside by himself, and not integrating him into a flock is dangerous, as he is more likely to be picked off by a hawk or other predator. Just letting him go in the city, he still won't know how to survive or find food or evade predators. He was hand raised, and didn't have the benefit of his parents or the flocks help in learning these things. A soft release helps to integrate him into a flock, which is best, but survival still isn't always great because he was hand raised.

 

[Lameco]

Thank you guys for your help, I will take your advices in consideration!
I followed what the guy on the video says and it seems to be a female, but then again, I can't say for sure!

 

[Jay3]

The only way you can know for sure at this point is to do a DNA test, which is available.

 

[Skyeking]

Thank you guys for your help, I will take your advices in consideration!
I followed what the guy on the video says and it seems to be a female, but then again, I can't say for sure!

Without a DNA test you can't be sure until the (bird matures)egg drops.

 

[FredaH]

I've used this site to sex my birds, waiting on the last result now actually. I believe they cover Europe as well as the US.
http://www.animalgenetics.eu/Avian/avian-dna-sexing/avian-dna-sexing-index.html

 

[Jay3]

I've used this site to sex my birds, waiting on the last result now actually. I believe they cover Europe as well as the US.
http://www.animalgenetics.eu/Avian/avian-dna-sexing/avian-dna-sexing-index.html

This is the only thing I would trust. Thank you FredaH.