Questions from a new owner

[ImEmma]

Hello! I recently bought two finches, (a zebra and a spice finch) and I'm a first time bird owner, so I have some questions...

First, I didn't notice when I bought the spice finch, but he/she has LONG claws!! So, I looked up some information online that you could just clip them with a nail clipper, but when I tried to catch the poor guy it was stressfull and hard, so I don't want to repeat that experience...

Does anyone know of any other ways to get his toes clipped?

My second question is about both birds. My brother claims that he witnessed both birds mating, (he describes it as they were in the "position," and flapping their wings.) The zebra finch was top, and I know it's really hard to sex spice finches, so I'm not sure if its a boy or a girl. So my question is, do birds sometimes behave in "homosexual" behaviors? Where they just having a little fun with each other , or does this tell me that the spice finch is a girl (for sure,) and should I expect eggs some time in the future?

I would really appreciate some help!

[Sally]

Crystal has made an excellent video on nail trimming on Finch Information Center. The only way to tell the sex of a Spice finch is that the male will sing, the female will not. According to the species info on these two birds, they are not known to cross-breed, so you probably wouldn't get any babies.

I once purchased a 'pair' of Diamond Doves. After a few weeks, noticed the male doing his little courting dance/song, and then mounting the 'female'. To my surprise, the 'female' then did its own courting dance/song and proceeded to mount the male. So I had two boys. Luckily, I was able to swap one of them for a true female, who proceeded to raise babies for me. So I thnk they sometimes make do with what is available to them. We create some of these behaviors. In the wild, these birds would have lots of mates of their own species available to them; in our cages, they don't have these options, so they work with what is given them.

[ImEmma]

thank you for your help! I'll check out that video.

[Hilary]

I think that, like with dogs, it can also be a show of dominance.