Needling Canaries

[Jamm972]

Can anybody tell me where I can find instructions and or what materials I can use to needle canaries to help me determine the sex of a canary? Even though this is not 100% accurate its a place to start. I was told you can tie a needle to a string but needles are really thin and hard to see and determine if its circling and or going back and forth. So I need something more heavier and thicker.

I searched the internet and it brings me to the same old breeding canaries, and sexing canaries page.

any help is appreciated with links or what material I can use or not use.

I watched a video but he didn't say what he was using as the pendulum

[lovezebs]

Jamm972

Personally, I don't believe in this method.

[debbie276]

http://www.westernrollercanaryassociati ... ollers.pdf
Yet only a few canary hobbiests know that there is still another distinguishing characteristic and it is the surest of them all. Using it you can be 99% sure of the sex. The eye of the hen lies somewhat higher in the head than the eye of the male. If you imagine a line that follows the line between the upper and lower halves of the beak, the eye of the female lies on top of it; but, with the males the line runs through the eye.
In practice you take the bird in your hand and with the other hand align a straight pin or needle with the line where the two halve of the beak meet.
Now you can clearly see the sex of the bird, since with the females the eye is lying on top of that line and with the males, as already mentioned, the line passes through the eye. That is with the males the eye is centered exactly on that beak line

http://www.yccuk.com/briankeenan/ask16.html
try threading a needle with some cotton, and dangling this by the thread over the birds in question. After a few seconds, the needle will begin to swing like a pendulum when held over a cock bird, whilst it will circle when held over a hen. I know this sounds like an old wives tale but it works and it is accurate perhaps nine times out of ten!

http://www.upatsix.com/chats/breeder-ch ... 11641.html
Sexing birds using a copper needle and thread:-
Wrap the thread into the needle's eye, wrap the other side of the thread with your figure and make the needle hanging freely, hold your bird into the other hand (the bird completely laying in the hand with the legs up) now make the needle hanging close to the pelvic area and watch the direction of the needle movements … first the needle will go just randomly and it might stop, but soon will start moving again, make sure you are not moving your hands or your figure (mean you are not controlling the movements of the needle); so finally when the needle start moving backward and forward … (the bird is male) or when it moves in circle (the bird is female).

http://ica.canaryfans.com/community/vie ... ?f=17&t=55

[Jamm972]

Very Helpful debbie276 thanks

[adoumski]

Jamm972 i attached some pics before in a different topic.
Those should help you.
Now i beleive the best way to know the sex of the bird is to check the vent and the 100% foolproof way is if they lay eggs

[Paul's Amazing Birds]

That is helpful Debbie.

Today I'll be setting up 14 pairs from a free flight walk-in. I usually wait until after St Paddy's day when they're all in a courtship frenzy. Boys are easier to identify by their vent when in breeding condition.

Yesterday I pressure washed the selective breeding cages and sanitized nests, feeders and other equipment.

I've taken a lot of notes about the band colors and the feather type of the singers but sometimes I still get it wrong when doing the actual match up - and then loose a whole month of my relatively short season for that particular pair producing infertile eggs.

Not sure how the commercial breeders do it but I know that my daily feeding and cleaning routine takes a lot of focus for just 14 pair. My procedure is standardized so it takes about an hour each day plus feeding and house keeping for all the other species in the open flight. I try to get all the canaries back out to the free flight by the end of June for their own benefit and also so I can return to an every-other-day aviary maintenance schedule. My aviary was set up for close observation at several key points. The overall structure has 3 sections and the outdoor section blends nicely with the garden. The weather protected walk-in part is along side the house - out of view except for a view point from the dining room windows.

Thanks again for the useful tips on paring.

Paul

[Jamm972]

Hey Paul's Amazing Birds I responded to one of your other responses. you never got back to me but I learned a lot sense then.
This is my first year attempting at breeding my canaries. What do you do with the male canaries that don't want to breed and wont sing to court their hens? I have a male Crested canary but he only sings when he is by him self and cant see other canaries. He has been with the same hen for about 1 month and half now and still shows no sign of wanting to breed. The hen however is showing signs of wanting to breed. I am going to try and swap out the males from my 2 unsuccessful attempt at pairing.
My other pair that is attempting to mate the male is feeding the hen but the hen has yet produced any eggs. so I am swapping out the males tomorrow.

any pointers on repairing canaries. besides putting them in a divider for a week again to get used to each other? Id just be disappointed if the female is willing again and the males just aren't doing their job or visa versa.