scarlet macaw dna testing help?!

[hNicholeh]

Hi i have a scarlet macaw assumed to be male he is about 7 or 8 years old and i want to know for sure if he is male or not. I live in gray court sc and i was wondering the price of a dna test? Also is the pelvic feel a reliable or semi accurate method of testing? Can males have a small gap also? I tried it and my scarlet has just a slight gap and im not sure if i should trust this method. Please help

 

[Kiwibird]

You can either have a avian vet do a DNA test OR order a home kit and send it out for a lab to do the test privately. I have never heard of the feel of the pelvic region of a bird being a method of determining gender. Even if it were, you'd have to have felt multiple birds of known gender to have any kind of comparison of what a male vs. female felt like. There used to be a method where they would use a surgical probe to gender test birds before DNA, but I am not aware of anyone using that invasive procedure anymore (perhaps that's what your talking about?).

 

[RavensGryf]

Avian Biotech is a well known company for DNA kits. I did it years ago and required about 5 plucked breast feathers or small amount of blood from toenail. I forgot the price, but was reasonable. Check their website.

As mentioned above, in order for the pelvic bone method to be close enough to accurate, it would require comparison to a group of other Scarlets. Basically though, it's the male who should have the narrower 'gap'.

 

[ACE209]

Yeah pelvic exam aren't very reliable. Not sure your location but you can definitely do an at home dna test. Either by plucking feathers or clipping a toenails quick and getting blood. With a macaw I would imagine feather plucking would be easier. On rare occasions they can't get a proper sample from feathers so only blood is guaranteed to give you results. I have used zoogen and avianbiotech. Zoogen gave me faster results. The lab is also 3 hours away so look for a lab close to you.

 

[hNicholeh]

I've looked up on the pelvic feel and its not completely accurate but sometimes it is. No its where you feel the birds pelvic bone and if its got a gap it May be a female bc it allows room for the egg to pass through but as i said its not completely accurate. I do not have any experience with this method so Im going to get a blood test to check. Also do female macaws lay unfertile eggs when they have a nest box or when the times right? Since my scarlet is 8 or 7 if he was a female would he have layed an egg by now??

 

[hNicholeh]

Im thinking about going to a avian vet in Clinton that is near me but not sure

 

[RavensGryf]

Not all pet hens lay eggs, or it can happen sometime in the future if diet and conditions are "right" to stimulate the process.

 

[hNicholeh]

Okay my scarlet loves dark places like under blankets or other things. Do most macaws do that? Male and female?

 

[SilverSage]

Google avian biotech and order a test kit. It's $25 per test, and you can also test for diseases this way, which I do every time a new bird comes home. All it takes is a few blood feathers OR a tiny amount of blood on a card from a clipped nail, my birds don't even notice it has been done once it is over.

 

[hNicholeh]

Ill look into it thx also do male scarlet do a little ritual dance of sorts to attract their mate??

 

[thekarens]

FWIW my vet charges $45 to do a DNA test. I wasn't willing to pluck the feathers or cut the nail myself.

 

[hNicholeh]

Yes Im not sure i wld be willing to do it myself either. Im going to check with a vet near me and see the price but if that doesn't work then Im going to use one of the avian dna testing labs i found

 

[SilverSage]

With a bird as big as yours, if you end up doing it yourself make sure you have at least one other person helping you. Also, if you choose to clip the nail and your bird typically submits to nail clippings without a fight, consider covering your birds head BEFORE you bring out the nail clippers, so as not to associate them with the pain of clipping the nail too short.

 

[hNicholeh]

I usually clip the nails myself but i cover his head with a towel and say soothing things to him. He doesn't like it but with his head covered he wont bite me and make it difficult. Hes gotten pretty good with them tho. Yes ill have someone there if i do it bc i dont want him to flip and hurt himself or me if it hurts alot. Also do you have to put something on it to stop the bleeding? Or to help stop the bleeding?

 

[SilverSage]

I use Kwik Stop which I buy at the pet store.

 

[jde2]

To add to the list of suggested sites/companies for DNA sexing, I’ve used dnasexing.com for all my macs and many of my friend’s birds and had no issues. They’re pretty inexpensive as well… $19.90 for 1-4 birds and $17.90 for 5+ birds. I did the feather plucking method. Plucked from their wings and tails but didn’t pluck any feathers that would have caused major discomfort. Plucked like the smaller feathers that would have small amounts of blood or tissue in them.

 

[hNicholeh]

Which one would be easier on the scarlet? The feather pluck or the nail cut? I wanna go with the least painful one

 

[hNicholeh]

And what about the company Healthgene? Wld tht be a good company to do it from?

 

[JerseyWendy]

Which one would be easier on the scarlet? The feather pluck or the nail cut? I wanna go with the least painful one

IMHO clipping the nail a wee bit too short to get a few drops of blood is quite simple. I've had some Amazons and my B&G sexed this way.

And what about the company Healthgene? Wld tht be a good company to do it from?

Never heard of that company. As suggested to you earlier, Avian Biotech is a GREAT company. Here is their website:
Avian Services Center: DNA sexing and disease testing for all species of birds.