Determining Pigeon Gender: 7 Best Ways To Distinguish

Determining pigeon gender can be challenging, especially if you are a beginner. Even some experienced pigeon breeders also get fooled. Although, this task will be much easier for you if you raise pigeons for awhile.

Actually, determining pigeon gender is very important, especially if you are willing to raise pigeons commercially. That’s why you need to know more about the ways about how to determine pigeon gender.

There are many different methods for determining pigeon gender. But none of these methods can ensure 100 accurate results. And only DNA testing method can provide 100 percent accurate result. However, here we are listing the top ways for determining pigeon gender easily.

Why Determining Pigeon Gender Important?

Before discussing more about the ways about how to determine pigeon gender, let us first discuss why doing so is very important. Actually, determining pigeon gender can be very important for you for many reasons. Here are the most common reasons for successful pigeon farming business:

1. Identifying pigeon gender will help you in successful breeding. Pigeons require pairing a male with a female for successful breeding. And incorrect paring due to gender misidentification can lead to unsuccessful breeding attempts.
2. In some cases, controlling the pigeon population become essential to manage space and farm resources effectively. That’s why learning about how to determine pigeon gender will help you in planning and controlling breeding.
3. Male and female pigeons act differently sometimes. For example, the male pigeons can be bossy and may fight more, especially when they want to make baby pigeons. And knowing these behavioral differences between male and female pigeons can help you to take care of your pigeons better.
4. Some health problems are more common in male pigeons than female pigeons, or the other way around. That’s why learning about their gender will help you to take better care of them.
5. Not all the pigeons are same in production. Some may be better at producing meat, while others are better for racing or shows. When you learn the gender, you can decide which ones are best for each job.
6. Determining pigeon gender is also very important for your marketing strategy.

How to Determine Pigeon Gender?

As we have mentioned above ‘there are no ways for determining pigeon gender with 100 percent accuracy (except DNA testing)’. But don’t worry! You can learn gradually and tell the differences with high accuracy if you keep pigeons for several months or years.

You need to learn the basic system for determining male or female pigeon, if you are raising pigeons. However, here we are describing about the common ways for determining pigeon gender.

Way 1: Appearance of the Birds

The male pigeons are generally larger in body size and appearance than the females. Head of the male pigeon is round. On the other hand, the female pigeons have generally flattened head.

Eyes of the female pigeons are round, while the eyes of the male pigeons are not so round like the females. In case of body weight, the male pigeons are pretty heavier than the female pigeons.

Way 2: Monitor Their Behavior

Monitoring the behavior of your birds is also a great way for determining pigeon gender. The males generally become very angry in nature, and the females become calm. Both male and female coo.

But the male’s coo generally come with a dance and fanned tail scrapping the ground. The males generally like to chase other pigeons. And the males tend to hold more property than the females. A female pigeon accept a male by dropping it’s wings.

Pigeons generally live in pairs and they mate for life. They share the care of their eggs and young. If the pigeons have eggs, the male will generally sit on the nest in the morning (until around mid-afternoon). And the female will take over the nest later in the day.

Way 3: Listen to Their Sound

Both males and females generally coo. But the male pigeons ‘bow and scrape’ (bowing their heads, while scraping their tail feathers along the ground). The females are generally less vocal than the males.

Way 4: Monitor the Toe

Back finger of the pigeons is generally smaller in both males and females, but the differences in their side finger. The side fingers of a female pigeon are not equal to the front fingers. While the males have side fingers which are equal to the front fingers.

Way 5: Hold their Wing

Hold your bird’s two wing by two hands and shake it in air. If the tail of the bird is straight, then it’s a male pigeon. But if you notice the tail is in upward position, then it is probably a female.

Way 6: Vent System

Some experienced pigeon breeders use this system for determining pigeon gender. The male pigeons have bones which are closed together under their tail. While the bones in female pigeons are wider.

Way 7: DNA Testing

None of the above methods can ensure 100 percent accurate results. You can only get 100 percent accurate result by DNA testing system. DNA testing determines the gender of a pigeon by analyzing a sample of a bird’s blood or feathers.

These are the common ways for determining pigeon gender. Hope this guide has helped you. Good luck and may God bless you!