Your going to have to put your finger on its butt and feel around a little. On a female you'll feel the Y of its pelvic bone that gives and expands for egg laying. Have fun!
Any Pigeon experts here?
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Do you plan on raising birds? or are you just curious?
I'm no expert, but I have raised several broods....you probably have both sexes if you have a fair number of birds.
The birds will nest at just about any time of the year, but usually start pairing up and laying eggs in midmarch or so (at the earliest). The hen usually lays two eggs, and both male and female with incubate them.
You didn't say what your keeping your birds in, but you need to give them some type of ledge or box to lay thier eggs in. It also helps to give them a supply of small sticks & twigs to build a "nest" with (that's what they build, but when you see one, you will agree it is a poor example of a nest). When they are "in the mood", the male is easily identified....he will strut around and bob his head; the female is the one that spends most of her time on the nest. Generally speaking, males are larger than females.
If you plan to breed them, good quality food & grit is important....I like using crushed oyster shell as it seems to transfer over to a good shell on the eggs when they lay them. Most feed stores carry this and it is relatively inexpensive. I've found that you can also supplement your feed bill by feeding the birds stale bread, bagels, crackers, ect. One of the best sources of feed that I have found is movie theaters.......TONS of buttered popcorn, free for the taking! It gives the birds the carbohydrates and fats that they need this time of year to survive the cold. One of the best waterers I've found was in the Bill Boatman catalog....it is nothing more than a plastic "tray" that fits to the mouth of a glass pop bottle, and is then inverted. The tray is placed through the wire cage netting, and the bottle is attached to the outside of the coop via a spring. Pigeons are filthy birds, and usually foul both thier food and water....with this device, that rarely happens, and they have a steady supply of fresh water. Unfortuately, it doesn't work this time of year because the water freezes and breaks the bottle.
I've never heard the "eye" thing about homers, but I have found that most birds WILL return if you keep them fed and happy and don't release them too far from their coop. I had one male that my chessie got ahold of and tore some skin from his neck......I thought for sure he was gone forever when he flew off, and that he woud die someplace, but two days later he was sitting on top of the coop, waiting to be let in. That was two years ago, and my friend still has him.
Hope this helps.
I'm no expert, but I have raised several broods....you probably have both sexes if you have a fair number of birds.
The birds will nest at just about any time of the year, but usually start pairing up and laying eggs in midmarch or so (at the earliest). The hen usually lays two eggs, and both male and female with incubate them.
You didn't say what your keeping your birds in, but you need to give them some type of ledge or box to lay thier eggs in. It also helps to give them a supply of small sticks & twigs to build a "nest" with (that's what they build, but when you see one, you will agree it is a poor example of a nest). When they are "in the mood", the male is easily identified....he will strut around and bob his head; the female is the one that spends most of her time on the nest. Generally speaking, males are larger than females.
If you plan to breed them, good quality food & grit is important....I like using crushed oyster shell as it seems to transfer over to a good shell on the eggs when they lay them. Most feed stores carry this and it is relatively inexpensive. I've found that you can also supplement your feed bill by feeding the birds stale bread, bagels, crackers, ect. One of the best sources of feed that I have found is movie theaters.......TONS of buttered popcorn, free for the taking! It gives the birds the carbohydrates and fats that they need this time of year to survive the cold. One of the best waterers I've found was in the Bill Boatman catalog....it is nothing more than a plastic "tray" that fits to the mouth of a glass pop bottle, and is then inverted. The tray is placed through the wire cage netting, and the bottle is attached to the outside of the coop via a spring. Pigeons are filthy birds, and usually foul both thier food and water....with this device, that rarely happens, and they have a steady supply of fresh water. Unfortuately, it doesn't work this time of year because the water freezes and breaks the bottle.
I've never heard the "eye" thing about homers, but I have found that most birds WILL return if you keep them fed and happy and don't release them too far from their coop. I had one male that my chessie got ahold of and tore some skin from his neck......I thought for sure he was gone forever when he flew off, and that he woud die someplace, but two days later he was sitting on top of the coop, waiting to be let in. That was two years ago, and my friend still has him.
Hope this helps.
Well... let me know how all of this goes... I'm seriously interested in some pigeons. If all of this doesn't work let me know... I talked to Jeff Hartley from Pipeline Ringnecks (Bird Farm) and told him to get some pigeons in there to get us bird dog trainers. Anyways, he getting pigeons.
Anyone who'd like to directly talk to Jeff his number is
989-879-3546 Tell him Scott w/ the Vizsla sent you
-Scott
Anyone who'd like to directly talk to Jeff his number is
989-879-3546 Tell him Scott w/ the Vizsla sent you
-Scott
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