# HELP! Don't know if my pigeons are male/female. and why they're not laying eggs.



## mkuetpigeon (Oct 21, 2010)

Hello, I bought 2 homers about a month ago and the owner said to me that they both were mates. They haven't had eggs yet but here and there I do see the White Homer Coo and chase/attack the other Homer. The other homer seems to not do anything back but just stay there or sometimes run away. Is this normal for mated pigeons? I want some eggs but they seem to not be cooperating. I putted them into a nesting box but it didn't turn out so well. Any suggestions?



My parents bought these 2 pigeons from a market and I asked my parents if they were male/female. My father replied "yes" he said the person who sold him the birds feeled on the pigeons vent bone and said 1 was male & the other was female. I study those 2 pigeons and their behaviors are smiliar. 1 does seem to be a bit bigger but never once i saw one or the other give off a MALE impression. I'm just worry that the 2 pigeons my parents bought are either 2 cocks or 2 hens, but yet they are always together as if they were mates. Do pigeons stay with each other even though they aren't mates?


----------



## fresnobirdman (Dec 27, 2008)

when one coos and the other shake their head up and down then the cooing one is a male, and the one shaking their head is the hen.
But when one coos and the other coos back and they attack each other than it is two cocks. Sometimes hen will coo and attack each other but that do not happen often.

and of course mates will hang together.
cocks will not! mate with cocks.
But hens will mate with hens when there is no cock for a while. ha that sounds weird.


----------



## ptras (Jun 29, 2010)

fresnobirdman said:


> when one coos and the other shake their head up and down then the cooing one is a male, and the one shaking their head is the hen.
> But when one coos and the other coos back and they attack each other than it is two cocks. Sometimes hen will coo and attack each other but that do not happen often.
> 
> and of course mates will hang together.
> ...


Looks like wishful thinking to me. Cocks will mate with cocks, and hens will mate with hens. I've only been keeping pigeons for six months now, and I have already seen cocks paired up, and have had a pair of hens that paired up.


----------



## sreeshs (Aug 16, 2009)

mkuetpigeon said:


> Hello, I bought 2 homers about a month ago and the owner said to me that they both were mates. They haven't had eggs yet but here and there I do see the White Homer Coo and chase/attack the other Homer. The other homer seems to not do anything back but just stay there or sometimes run away. Is this normal for mated pigeons? I want some eggs but they seem to not be cooperating. I putted them into a nesting box but it didn't turn out so well. Any suggestions?
> 
> 
> 
> My parents bought these 2 pigeons from a market and I asked my parents if they were male/female. My father replied "yes" he said the person who sold him the birds feeled on the pigeons vent bone and said 1 was male & the other was female. I study those 2 pigeons and their behaviors are smiliar. 1 does seem to be a bit bigger but never once i saw one or the other give off a MALE impression. I'm just worry that the 2 pigeons my parents bought are either 2 cocks or 2 hens, but yet they are always together as if they were mates. Do pigeons stay with each other even though they aren't mates?


Are these pigeons banded or do you have an idea on their age ? Juvenile pigeons will mate up despite sexes and you will not want it if your aim is to breed. Some people have extra cocks while some might have extra hens, so you can possibly exchange if both your pigeons are of the same sex


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

fresnobirdman said:


> when one coos and the other shake their head up and down then the cooing one is a male, and the one shaking their head is the hen.
> But when one coos and the other coos back and they attack each other than it is two cocks. Sometimes hen will coo and attack each other but that do not happen often.
> 
> and of course mates will hang together.
> ...



Don't know where you got this info. But cocks DO mate up with cocks.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Maybe they are the same gender, or maybe she doesn't like him. Or maybe it will just take a while for them to feel comfortable where they are. Where do you keep them? Do you have other pigeons?


----------



## mkuetpigeon (Oct 21, 2010)

I have 2 other pigeons with the mated pair and they are homed inside a loft. & the owner said she has had them for roughly 2 years now.(she said the female had layed eggs before) Today i saw the male go Cooing around and went inside a box but no other pigeon followed after him. Interms of the other 2 pigeons..... I have no clue if they're a male. I'm assuming they're 2 hens since they both have not given up any impression of a MALE pigeon.


----------



## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

I made this mistake with some white racing homers I was given for use as pumpers. One cock was huge compared to the other. I assumed the smaller one was a hen..a month of being paired and nothing so I broke up this pairing. As soon as I put this smaller "hen" with a known hen..He turned out be a very aggressive cock.
Separate the birds for 1/2hr and then "re-introduce" them back together in a good size cage and see if they fight. If so you may have 2 cocks. You could also test this with your known cock from the other pairing. Put him in the cage and "test" the other birds. I have seen the hens run and try and get away. The cocks fight and hold their ground.


----------



## sreeshs (Aug 16, 2009)

jAxTecH said:


> I made this mistake with some white racing homers I was given for use as pumpers. One cock was huge compared to the other. I assumed the smaller one was a hen..a month of being paired and nothing so I broke up this pairing. As soon as I put this smaller "hen" with a known hen..He turned out be a very aggressive cock.
> Separate the birds for 1/2hr and then "re-introduce" them back together in a good size cage and see if they fight. If so you may have 2 cocks. You could also test this with your known cock from the other pairing. Put him in the cage and "test" the other birds. I have seen the hens run and try and get away. The cocks fight and hold their ground.


Thats a good point and many fanciers use it to ascertain the sexes of pigeons  I would suggest use a known hen first and if your new birds do not coo and strut behind her, then try with a known cock, because sometimes cock birds do also try to run from dominant cocks giving the impression of a hen, especially when young and at a new place


----------



## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

If you have a hen and a cock, they may not be a pair or mated up.. she might not like him.. or you have two males, or the hen may be not old enough to lay.. they start when they are 4 to 6 months of age. but just to add my experience, I got a cock and a hen..not paired.. it took a few months before they even paired up and then a month or so before she laid any eggs.... it takes awhile sometimes.. here is some pointers to help you guess what you may have.. that is after they pair up or IF they even pair up and start mating:

Fertile male / fertile female = two fertile eggs except when the sperm is blocked from reaching the egg
Fertile male / infertile female = zero eggs
Infertile male / fertile female = two infertile eggs
Infertile male / infertile female = zero eggs
Fertile female / fertile female = four infertile eggs
Fertile female / infertile female = two infertile eggs
Male any / male any = zero eggs


----------



## fresnobirdman (Dec 27, 2008)

ptras said:


> Looks like wishful thinking to me. Cocks will mate with cocks, and hens will mate with hens. I've only been keeping pigeons for six months now, and I have already seen cocks paired up, and have had a pair of hens that paired up.


Really?
In all my pigeon years, I have never had any cocks pair up with cocks before.
I guess I don't have any henny cocks. lol.


----------



## Pigeon0446 (Apr 22, 2007)

I've had two cocks mate up and I used them as pumpers they'd raise some of the nicest babies. Nither one of them were henny in any way they were both big boys who beat the crap out of anybody they wanted to but they mated when they were young birds and didn't break up until a hawk got one of them when they were loft flying one day when they were about 6 years old. One of them was actually a pretty god racer as well I clocked him a bunch of time in young birds and old birds.


----------



## ptras (Jun 29, 2010)

fresnobirdman said:


> Really?
> In all my pigeon years, I have never had any cocks pair up with cocks before.
> I guess I don't have any henny cocks. lol.


I have a pair of cocks sharing nesting duties on some eggs from my kitbox. Although they may not have "mated", they sure are acting like mates.


----------



## RodSD (Oct 24, 2008)

Cocks can mate with other cocks. I also have one cock here that mate with anything that moves. You should have seen the threesome he did with another cock who is mating with his hen--3 birds on top of each other. Such crazy birds!

To the poster, be patient for now. There are birds though that won't pair up even though they are of different sexes. Don't expect eggs if they are not yet a couple and did the deed.


----------



## fresnobirdman (Dec 27, 2008)

RodSD said:


> Cocks can mate with other cocks. I also have one cock here that mate with anything that moves. You should have seen the threesome he did with another cock who is mating with his hen--3 birds on top of each other. Such crazy birds!
> 
> To the poster, be patient for now. There are birds though that won't pair up even though they are of different sexes. Don't expect eggs if they are not yet a couple and did the deed.


Funnie bird porn.


----------



## bicklebok (Sep 29, 2010)

I have had birds for years and never have I seen 2 birds of the same sex mate up! I find that so hard to believe. I did, however, have a cock bird once that had 2 hen mates.


----------



## ptras (Jun 29, 2010)

bicklebok said:


> I have had birds for years and never have I seen 2 birds of the same sex mate up! I find that so hard to believe. I did, however, have a cock bird once that had 2 hen mates.


I've only been keeping pigeons for six months, and I have already run into three different mated same-sex pairs. My mentor (who has been keeping pigeons for 50 years) says that he sees it all the time when the hens and cocks are separated. I think they go by the Crosby, Stills & Nash lyrics: If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with.

You must be looking in the wrong places.


----------



## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

ptras said:


> I've only been keeping pigeons for six months, and I have already run into three different mated same-sex pairs. My mentor (who has been keeping pigeons for 50 years) says that he sees it all the time when the hens and cocks are separated.* I think they go by the Crosby, Stills & Nash lyrics: If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with.*
> 
> You must be looking in the wrong places.



Too funny! Yes, it happens often.


----------



## marsmith66 (Oct 29, 2010)

I am also new at this and that was my question,how do tell them apart.I did see someting on the net today that said to tie a magnet on a string.about 2" above the bird.if it goes around its ahen,if it goes in a straight line its a male.i am going to try this......i just gotta make sure there is no metal around...lol


----------



## ptras (Jun 29, 2010)

marsmith66 said:


> I am also new at this and that was my question,how do tell them apart.I did see someting on the net today that said to tie a magnet on a string.about 2" above the bird.if it goes around its ahen,if it goes in a straight line its a male.i am going to try this......i just gotta make sure there is no metal around...lol


This method actually has a pretty good success rate: If you do it and find that it is a hen, there is a 50% chance that you are right.


----------



## drifter (Oct 7, 2009)

And of course there is 50% chance that it is wrong, so why bother.


----------



## ptras (Jun 29, 2010)

grifter said:


> And of course there is 50% chance that it is wrong, so why bother.


Exactly the point I was trying to make.


----------

