OMG! Twins!? Now what??

[Xanthus]

Ok, I'll be taking my new lovies to the vet tomorrow and either I'll get the vet to harvest some feathers for DNA, or I'll do it myself shortly thereafter.

I have been, so far, keeping track of who's who in the cage by the fact that one bird still had some pretty well-defined baby beak spots.

Problem is - both birds have taken a liking to rubbing their beaks on a small blue sand perch I put in the cage - and they've polished off their beak spots!! Or at least scuffed up their beaks so I can't tell who's who anymore. :rofl:

The only way I can tell now is by the fact that one's much more tame than the other - but hopefully I'll be deleting that difference as well! :(

So, how can I differentiate between the two, especially for DNA sexing? My vet doesn't do banding, as he's had bad experiences with the bands getting caught in cage bars and such.

Is there any sort of bird-safe permanent mark I can apply to them? Like maybe a dot of food coloring on one's back or something??

Or if I can't, then should I try to get one/both banded? Or is it really dangerous as my vet suggests? If it's safe - then where can I get the bands, or get them banded? :confused:

[bellarains]

Even though they look identical, there is usually some slight difference somewhere. It might be the shape of their tail, the spot of color in their tailfeather. Their maskes or bands may be different, say one cover more of the neck are than the other, and also the eyes may be a little different in shape, or in your case, the eyerings may be slightly different. I'd try to find that difference before banding if possible, as they are grown, and the only band you could use would be an open band, and those do tend to get caught in things.

I'm sure others may have suggestions of something to use to tell them apart, but most any type of food coloring, etc... will be temporary.

[Albe]

From the pictures they look like they have a little diff coloring but i bet thats just the picture. No two birds are the same! there has to be a slight difference.

[Kathryn]

Make the distinguishing method easy for you

Bird #1 clip 5 flight feathers on each wing - the normal cut. Take the DNA sample. Write the description down on paper and use a code for the DNA form (ex LB 1)

Bird # 2 clip the five flight feathers except this time, leave the second feather 1/2 inch longer on each wing. Take the DNA sample. The clip is slightly noticeable, but not harmful to flight.

As you become more familiar with your birds, you will notice other differences that will help you identify each bird.

Then at home, you can identify the one that is more tame by it's wing clip. Once the sex determination is in, you will also be able to distinguish which bird is male or female if that's the case. If it's two males or two females, it may not matter as much.

[mjm8321]

Temporarily, you can also use a drop of food coloring on their backs as well. As you become more familiar with them, you will know them apart by personality, the way they perch, mannerisms, etc...

[Xanthus]

From the pictures they look like they have a little diff coloring but i bet thats just the picture. No two birds are the same! there has to be a slight difference.

Me and my wife have been looking for one for almost 2 weeks! :confused:

The only noticeable difference so far is their personalities. And that's more a matter of one's tame(ish), one's not, right now.

We were hoping to have something more easily distinguishable to use - even if only temporarily till we get to know them better.

I'm fairly certain dying a feather would work (i.e: the color would stick) and it seems like it would be safe, as it can be in their food and toys. I'm more worried that they might try to get rid of the mark by plucking feathers or something. :(

[Eliza]

Check the birds' wee feetsies -- Seriously! Sometimes a bird will have one nail that is lighter or darker than all the rest. With 8 nails per bird, you might get luck and have 1 bird with a distinguishing birthmark of sorts.

As for banding... I don't know much about that, other than most breeders band their birds when they are REALLY young and therefore, easy to band. And it seems to me that many vets recommend removing the band as they get older (unless, of course, the client wants to keep the band). Breeders, for example, keep bands on their birds for record keeping purposes (among other reasons, I'm sure).

Beetle came to me banded but after discussing the pros and cons w/ my avian vet, I decided to have him clip it off. My AV feels that there is always the risk, however small, that the bird could get caught on something b/c of the band. I don't know the statistics of accidents or deaths caused by bands but I felt that I didn't want to take the risk.

Regardless, I wish you the best with your lovely pair of masked lovies! They really are beautiful.

-e-

[DebSpace]

I like the wing clipping idea. I hate the leg bands. One of my babes caught her legband between cage connectors, so I have had first-hand experience with that nightmare. With my masks, once they achieved adulthood one's mask became lighter than the other. Personality traits definately help, too. I don't think you will need to consider giving them a marked difference for long.:)

[Xanthus]

Ok, do birds' foot marking generally change much or at all?

One bird's got a lot of 'freckles' on it's foot, and a rather large one on it's right ankle, while the other's mostly 'freckle'-less.

If that's not likely to change, that may be a good way to tell them apart. ;)

[Xanthus]

According to my Avian Vet (who my birds had their first wellness exam with today), the marking or "freckles" on their feet should not change significantly - so this is a reasonable way to tell them apart! Yay! :D

[Kathryn]

Great! Toe freckles don't change with age.

Now you are waiting for the DNA results, right?
Let us know too, Please.
Oh and then the naming process starts...have you and your wife thought of any possibilities yet?