# Pigeon Problem



## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

I have a pair of feral pigeons (no leg bands, no history) I traded a roller pigeon I had for this breeding pair and 1 of their offspring from a previous round. Here is the problem..the hen laid her egg yesterday outside of the nestbowl..but in the nest box on the top shelf. So I was like "silly bird" and I put the egg into her nest bowl. The egg was perfect.
This evening I went to check on the breeders and the egg is cracked..not a little but alot. Here's where I can use some help...Should I glue the egg and put it back? or Throw the egg away and let them only raise one egg? or just consider it a failed experiment and get rid of the birds? If it helps...I have a standard pigeon nest bowl, Has a coconut fiber nest pad, there is plenty of Hay for their nest building...and the birds lined the nest with some of their feathers. Any ideas?


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

jAxTecH said:


> I have a pair of feral pigeons (no leg bands, no history) I traded a roller pigeon I had for this breeding pair and 1 of their offspring from a previous round. Here is the problem..the hen laid her egg yesterday outside of the nestbowl..but in the nest box on the top shelf. So I was like "silly bird" and I put the egg into her nest bowl. The egg was perfect.
> This evening I went to check on the breeders and the egg is cracked..not a little but alot. Here's where I can use some help...Should I glue the egg and put it back? or Throw the egg away and let them only raise one egg? or just consider it a failed experiment and get rid of the birds? If it helps...I have a standard pigeon nest bowl, Has a coconut fiber nest pad, there is plenty of Hay for their nest building...and the birds lined the nest with some of their feathers. Any ideas?


well you have two options, glue the egg and see what happens or toss it and replace with a fake and see how the second one goes. I would not discount the pair just because of a broken egg. it happens.. just wondering why are you breeding ferals?


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## Matt Bell (May 5, 2010)

Yeah, what is the experiment? You can put a stamp on it to seal it, and then see how it goes. Personally, thats why I always leave the eggs where the birds lay them, if not all kinds of funny stuff can happen. At least it happened with ferals.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

spirit wings said:


> well you have two options, glue the egg and see what happens or toss it and replace with a fake and see how the second one goes. I would not discount the pair just because of a broken egg. it happens.. just wondering why are you breeding ferals?


I did'nt set out to breed ferals..the guy BS'd me..He told me he released the birds form his brothers house in Atlanta and they flew back to Jacksonville..he made them sound real good. Well I know more now and these birds look identical to what you could find on any power line or under any freeway overpass. Well they under my care now so I bought them the best I could find..but now I have my doubts. Its been said it cost more to raise bad birds then good birds...good birds you'll make your money back..bad birds just an expense.

The experiment is to see if the babies can pass a basket test.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

jAxTecH said:


> I did'nt set out to breed ferals..the guy BS'd me..He told me he released the birds form his brothers house in Atlanta and they flew back to Jacksonville..he made them sound real good. Well I know more now and these birds look identical to what you could find on any power line or under any freeway overpass. Well they under my care now so I bought them the best I could find..but now I have my doubts. Its been said it cost more to raise bad birds then good birds...good birds you'll make your money back..bad birds just an expense.
> 
> The experiment is to see if the babies can pass a basket test.


oh, thats right I remember now... well just do the best you can.. let us know how it goes.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

False Alarm!

I went to buy some Elmers glue to save the egg and when I pulled the nestbowl out and took the egg inside the house into the light..there is the perfect little egg! The coconut fiber nest pad had cast a wicked shadow on the egg and I thought it was shattered..the rest is history. Thank you for the help.

Oh on a side note...how long do I wait untill I can "candle" the egg to see if its fertile?


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

jAxTecH said:


> False Alarm!
> 
> I went to buy some Elmers glue to save the egg and when I pulled the nestbowl out and took the egg inside the house into the light..there is the perfect little egg! The coconut fiber nest pad had cast a wicked shadow on the egg and I thought it was shattered..the rest is history. Thank you for the help.
> 
> Oh on a side note...how long do I wait untill I can "candle" the egg to see if its fertile?


oh, well good. you can check it at 5 to 7 days. you will see a dot and some red veining through the egg.. use a small pen light or flash light.


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## Guest (Jul 1, 2010)

do you really need to candle them ? why not just wait and see if they hatch at 18 days because most likely they will be fertile ... it would be horrible if you went to candle the eggs and the parent wacked the egg out of your hand when you went to gather the eggs  happens alot .


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

LokotaLoft said:


> do you really need to candle them ? why not just wait and see if they hatch at 18 days because most likely they will be fertile ... it would be horrible if you went to candle the eggs and the parent wacked the egg out of your hand when you went to gather the eggs  happens alot .


been there done that..lol..


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## TheGame (Apr 17, 2008)

Candle the eggs 5-7 days after the 2nd egg is layed. If you are afraid of the parents hitting the eggs out of your hands you can try what I do. What I do is simply grab the hen or cock thats sitting on the eggs and lift it away from the bowl. Idk if you have a loft or a cage but if its in a loft grab the hen/cock off the eggs and move him/her to another perch. Then take the eggs candle them and place them back before the cock/hen goes back to the nest. 

Or you can use both of your hands. Use one to distract the cock/hen and then the other to grab the eggs. Make sure you grab the eggs so your hands are protecting them incase the cock/hen swats or tries pecking at it accidentally. You dont want the egg to crack.


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## cotdt (Apr 26, 2010)

I was crazy enough to toss a feral hen 25 miles away, but instead of flying back to her loft of 1 year, she flew back to her birthplace (my uncle's home) 80 miles away! I was quite surprised, both because I thought I had rehomed her and because of the distance. The homing ability in ferals take a while to develop though, so the YBs can't be raced.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

cotdt said:


> I was crazy enough to toss a feral hen 25 miles away, but instead of flying back to her loft of 1 year, she flew back to her birthplace (my uncle's home) 80 miles away! I was quite surprised, both because I thought I had re homed her and because of the distance. The homing ability in feral take a while to develop though, so the YBs can't be raced.


I'm not mad at the guy who traded me these birds..he probably lied to me..but I needed to get rid of the roller pigeon I had. He would attack the other birds when they ate..he was real agressive..also Diamond started driving that guys hens as soon as he was released into his new loft. So he is that guys problem now. As for the breeder pigeons there is a chance these are real homers..the guy said he got them from a retired racer...but they are not banded and no pedigree. Only time will tell what their babies can do. Either way definitely a learning experience.


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## cotdt (Apr 26, 2010)

jAxTecH said:


> I'm not mad at the guy who traded me these birds..he probably lied to me..but I needed to get rid of the roller pigeon I had. He would attack the other birds when they ate..he was real agressive..also Diamond started driving that guys hens as soon as he was released into his new loft. So he is that guys problem now. As for the breeder pigeons there is a chance these are real homers..the guy said he got them from a retired racer...but they are not banded and no pedigree. Only time will tell what their babies can do. Either way definitely a learning experience.


Yeah definitely worth doing some tosses for the babies, just to see what your pigeons can do.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

jAxTecH said:


> I'm not mad at the guy who traded me these birds..he probably lied to me..but I needed to get rid of the roller pigeon I had. He would attack the other birds when they ate..he was real agressive..also Diamond started driving that guys hens as soon as he was released into his new loft. So he is that guys problem now. As for the breeder pigeons there is a chance these are real homers..the guy said he got them from a retired racer...but they are not banded and no pedigree. Only time will tell what their babies can do. Either way definitely a learning experience.


not that it matters, but if you post a pic we could probably tell if they are domestic stock or wild rock dove..


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## re lee (Jan 4, 2003)

If the egg is cracked elmers glue takes a time to dry. I used to use clear finger nail polish It has that applicater easy to apply and drys very fast. And the wife used to keep it around the house So i would put a bottle of it in the pigeons suppliies And the every so often use it.. Could you post a picture of these birds. AS they still could be race birds.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

Here is 2 pictures I have right now


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## Matt Bell (May 5, 2010)

Well, from the one bird i can see (the one not in the nest bowl) I would say your assessment is correct, they are ferals. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean the guy lied, considering he got them from a different loft. The other loft may have been using this pair as pumpers, as I do know people that use ferals as pumpers because they are excellent feeders, have done it myself a few times. He may have just assumed that all the birds were the same.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

yeah, the one esp looks feral, the beak and wattles are smaller than my homers...they could have SOME pure domestic homer in them... thanks for showing, they look nice and healthy... beats making a living out on the streets..


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

They could also be a mix.


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## re lee (Jan 4, 2003)

i say to ferals. So do not expect much for homing But just a short distance. You can get race birds and keep these as pets i guess. I think the person either did not know what a homer was or just didnt think you did.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

re lee said:


> i say to ferals. So do not expect much for homing But just a short distance. You can get race birds and keep these as pets i guess. I think the person either did not know what a homer was or just didnt think you did.


Well I do not want to keep any roller pigeons...if a hawk tries to catch them, they fall backwards into a somersault..Not for me I want high speed low drag racing homers. Having said that...I still consider these 3 ferals better then 1 roller atleast they will have the common sense to try and outrun trouble and not try fool a hawk with acrobatic tricks.


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## TheGame (Apr 17, 2008)

Hey actually you are wrong. Rollers do not spin when in danger. They actually fly like any other breed but they will fly in tight circles and climb high into the sky. They will fly so high you can't see them sometimes. I know this for a fact because have Birmingham Rollers and have witnessed hawks and falcons chasing my birds and thats what they do.

My birds only roll when they are calm and relaxed. If they are spooked or scared they take off and fly.

You should look for some Roller flyers in your town and check out their birds and setups. This way you can see for yourself.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

*Good to know*



TheGame said:


> Hey actually you are wrong. Rollers do not spin when in danger. They actually fly like any other breed but they will fly in tight circles and climb high into the sky. They will fly so high you can't see them sometimes. I know this for a fact because have Birmingham Rollers and have witnessed hawks and falcons chasing my birds and thats what they do.
> 
> My birds only roll when they are calm and relaxed. If they are spooked or scared they take off and fly.
> 
> You should look for some Roller flyers in your town and check out their birds and setups. This way you can see for yourself.


Thanks for answering that..I was scratching my head trying to figure out why people would want a pigeon that goes into some kind of epiliptic fit and starts tumbling?...I stand corrected its good to know Rollers are'nt hawkbait. Just not my cup of Tea...these feral birds came from a guy who loves breeding Rollers for color and form. He's not into racing pigeons and I'm not into Rollers so the 2 breeders and thier daughter for 1 Roller was a fair enough trade.


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## TheGame (Apr 17, 2008)

Well the Rollers are slow flyers which makes them very vulnerable. And their method of escape isnt the best like a homers that would just take off. The hawks are smart and will scare the rollers very high and then hide in the trees. After awhile of flying the Rollers get tired and start coming down slowly and when they come down to land is when they get ambushed by the hawks.

Im glad you are happy with your trade. I wish you the best with your birds. You should try looking for local clubs and flyers in your area that have homers. I am sure they wouldnt mind and be more than happy to give you a few REAL homers. You just gotta make some friends, be very polite and interested in the sport thats all it takes.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

TheGame said:


> Well the Rollers are slow flyers which makes them very vulnerable. And their method of escape isnt the best like a homers that would just take off. The hawks are smart and will scare the rollers very high and then hide in the trees. After awhile of flying the Rollers get tired and start coming down slowly and when they come down to land is when they get ambushed by the hawks.
> 
> Im glad you are happy with your trade. I wish you the best with your birds. You should try looking for local clubs and flyers in your area that have homers. I am sure they wouldnt mind and be more than happy to give you a few REAL homers. You just gotta make some friends, be very polite and interested in the sport thats all it takes.


Would ya believe the second egg is in the nest and daddy is fierce protecting them. I love it...I was disappointed when I thought I saw a fractured egg..was thinking all the bad stuff about ferals was true (could still be have to wait and see). As for gift birds I have to finish my racing loft before I can accept all the birds I have been offered. I am going to apply to the AU and The Greater Jacksonville Racing Pigeon Club the day after Indepenance day..Next Tuesday. Excited about that too.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

jAxTecH said:


> Would ya believe the second egg is in the nest and daddy is fierce protecting them. I love it...I was disappointed when I thought I saw a fractured egg.*.was thinking all the bad stuff about ferals was true (could still be have to wait and see).* As for gift birds I have to finish my racing loft before I can accept all the birds I have been offered. I am going to apply to the AU and The Greater Jacksonville Racing Pigeon Club the day after Indepenance day..Next Tuesday. Excited about that too.



Would you mind telling us what those bad things would be? They make great parents, and ARE very protective.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

Jay3 said:


> Would you mind telling us what those bad things would be? They make great parents, and ARE very protective.


Its a moot point because I do not have birds that destroy thier own eggs (wich is why I opened this thread)...All is calm and normal. Thank You everyone for your help and suggestions.


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## TheGame (Apr 17, 2008)

jAxTecH said:


> Would ya believe the second egg is in the nest and daddy is fierce protecting them. I love it...I was disappointed when I thought I saw a fractured egg..was thinking all the bad stuff about ferals was true (could still be have to wait and see). As for gift birds I have to finish my racing loft before I can accept all the birds I have been offered. I am going to apply to the AU and The Greater Jacksonville Racing Pigeon Club the day after Indepenance day..Next Tuesday. Excited about that too.


Very nice!! Good luck with everything


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

TheGame said:


> Very nice!! Good luck with everything


Update for anyone following this thread...Two yellow squeekers hatched today..one is slightly larger then the other so the name came to me to call him "Rambo" and the second one I'll call "Cheri"..I'll take a pic tomorrow and post it.


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## mr squeaks (Apr 14, 2005)

We are just flyin' in to say


*CONGRATULATIONS!!*

Will look forward to your pictures!!

Shi and MR. Squeaks/Dom/Gimie/WoeBeGone/Rae Charles


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## SmithFamilyLoft (Nov 22, 2004)

cotdt said:


> I was crazy enough to toss a feral hen 25 miles away, but instead of flying back to her loft of 1 year, she flew back to her birthplace (my uncle's home) 80 miles away! I was quite surprised, both because I thought I had rehomed her and because of the distance. The homing ability in ferals take a while to develop though, so the YBs can't be raced.


 Well if one did, wouldn't it be a bit like trying to race the family farm plow horse against a bunch of thoroughbreds ?


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

As promised here is a pic of the sleeping little devils.. The one on the left is my First Born "Rambo" and on the right is "Cheri" They were born yesterday so this is them day 2. I would say these babies prove the "Hillbilly Deluxe Casa De Love" was a success.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

They are adorable. Enjoy them. And Congrats! More pics as they grow up.


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## jeff houghton (Jul 17, 2010)

The egg once splitt is rendered useless this has happened to me on several occassions.Once eggs are moved the parents will rarely sit them.When ever my birds lay on the floor of the loft and not in a nest box i provide a nest bowl on the floor as this is where they felt comfortable laying.The majority of my young birds this year were all raised this way.Not all birds make good parents first time around .I wish you better luck next time.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

they look just perfect, keep us updated on their progress, it should be intersting.


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## cotdt (Apr 26, 2010)

SmithFamilyLoft said:


> Well if one did, wouldn't it be a bit like trying to race the family farm plow horse against a bunch of thoroughbreds ?


I don't know yet until I start tossing them with my future YB team. I don't notice any difference in flying speed visually but the racing homers are quicker at finding the direction of home as expected. I've been reading articles on cross-breeding and wonder if I can develop the homing ability in my ferals and cross them with one of my best racing homers and see what happens.



jAxTecH said:


> As promised here is a pic of the sleeping little devils.. The one on the left is my First Born "Rambo" and on the right is "Cheri" They were born yesterday so this is them day 2. I would say these babies prove the "Hillbilly Deluxe Casa De Love" was a success.


Nice babies. Are you going to fly them?


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

cotdt said:


> I don't know yet until I start tossing them with my future YB team. I don't notice any difference in flying speed visually but the racing homers are quicker at finding the direction of home as expected. I've been reading articles on cross-breeding and wonder if I can develop the homing ability in my ferals and cross them with one of my best racing homers and see what happens.
> 
> 
> 
> Nice babies. Are you going to fly them?


I don't think I will let them breed again..I'm going to find some wooden eggs and slow these love birds down. As far as these babies go if they can keep up with my other ybs then they will have a home with me. If they can't hang with my racing homers I will give them away to people that love pigeons. I told a associate at Home Depot about my birds and he got excited...said he used to raise barn pigeons as a kid. So I offered him their baby from another round. The birds are kind of like pringles...its hard to only have one. Well see what happens. I will be adding more pics after I band them..I have some 2008 bands so these will be the oldest ybs in my loft.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

I banded these little birds today (Day 6) with some extra bands I was given by Mark Raymond aka Ace in the Hole Lofts out of Okeechobe, Fl. Thought I would add a pic for those who love the fugly babies..hahaha kidding about the fugly remark..but these little guys are now banded with 2008 bands..making them some "old" ybs.


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Nice to hear that they are doing fine. Very cute little guys.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

SmithFamilyLoft said:


> Well if one did, wouldn't it be a bit like trying to race the family farm plow horse against a bunch of thoroughbreds ?


Have you ever seen the movie "Sea Biscuit"..they said the same thing comparing "Sea Biscuit" to the champion thoroughbred "War Admiral". I doubt these are like that but they seem more like "Mustangs" to me then family plow horses.


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

jAxTecH said:


> Have you ever seen the movie "Sea Biscuit"..they said the same thing comparing "Sea Biscuit" to the champion breed thorough breed "War Admiral". I doubt these are like that but they seem more like "Mustangs" to me then family plow horses.


well, that is one of my favorite movies.. AND that is a real cool way of looking at it.. please keep us updated on how these two do.. should be fun.


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

Here is a pic of these little birds at 2 weeks:










On the left is Rambo protecting his little sister Cheri


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

they look in perfect health... now go clean their bowl...lol.... (p.s. Im an obsessive nest bowl cleaner..lol.)


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

I have changed the bowl nest pad once already and a ol timer told me to let them build up a "natural" immunity. So I figure I'll test his theory with these guys. I know it looks gross but its what will make them disease resistant later on.


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## Thunderbird Racing (Jul 24, 2010)

jAxTecH said:


> On the left is Rambo protecting his little sister Cheri


please excuse my ignorance, but how do you know the sex of these birds?


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

jAxTecH said:


> I have changed the bowl nest pad once already and a ol timer told me to let them build up a "natural" immunity. So I figure I'll test his theory with these guys. I know it looks gross but its what will make them disease resistant later on.


I know.. I was just kidding, us women folk like to clean things...lol... ferals do not have house keepers either so I can imagine what their nests look like..lol..


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

Chromie said:


> please excuse my ignorance, but how do you know the sex of these birds?


I could use a Pendalum...but one egg (the first egg) was bigger then the other...so I made a guess its a male..when I went to take the picture the one I call "Rambo" was alot more aggressive...spreading his wings and grunting like he was protecting the sibling that seems very calm and tame. So do I know 100% for sure? NO.. but its my way of keeping tabs on them.


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## Thunderbird Racing (Jul 24, 2010)

jAxTecH said:


> I could use a Pendalum...but one egg (the first egg) was bigger then the other...so I made a guess its a male..when I went to take the picture the one I call "Rambo" was alot more aggressive...spreading his wings and grunting like he was protecting the sibling that seems very calm and tame. So do I know 100% for sure? NO.. but its my way of keeping tabs on them.


right on, thanks,


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

I updated my website today for anyone following this thread. http://www.jaxracinglofts.com/First Born.html

I posted 2 new pics one from last week and one from today. Here are my "pigeon problem" now:

Last week August 7th









And here they are today:


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Beautiful little birds. Thanks for the update.


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## Thunderbird Racing (Jul 24, 2010)

fast growing little guys, what is the green bands about...


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## JaxRacingLofts (Apr 11, 2010)

Chromie said:


> fast growing little guys, what is the green bands about...


The green bands are from 2008..I was given some old bands and used them with these birds...


Edit :Oh I did'nt get it at first..yeah the leg bands are green when I cleaned off the poop bracelet they had on.


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