Leia Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 Hi Everyone. I would like to know if the dna testing of african grey parrots is acurate when the cag is really young. i had her tested when she was 8 weeks old with the blood test method where they look at the dna sample. The vet told me its the most acurate and safest way of testing as apose to the surgical method. But since i've tested her i've had people say some strange things like the birds sex changes as they get older so its not acurate. or that my bird is definately a male, they can tell by its head. I personally dont believe them but i wouldd like to know if they could possibly be right? It doesnt really make a difference whether she is a male or female, but i would like to know what really is true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moobu Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 DNA testing is pretty much fail proof as far as I know. The people telling you that the bird will change sex as it grows older are 100% wrong. It's a bird, not a tree frog. I've heard of a less reliable, less expensive method that involves using a lost feather for them to extract the DNA from. But yeah.. basic genetics knowledge of chromosomes should pretty much self explain why DNA testing is as accurate as you can get. They look to see if the chromosomes in the DNA strand are XX (female) or XY (male). Those are human sexing chromosomes but I assume they are the same in birds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casper Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 The feather method involves freshly plucked feathers from the chest area, it wont work with lost feathers or blood feathers. Ive used this method with mine it is a cheap and easy way to Dna. If your baby has been blood Dna'd this is accurate so nothing will change as your baby gets older. The appearence of greys can be different from one to another. I have two Males and their head shape, size etc are completely different. I would definetly trust the Dna. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moobu Posted August 30, 2009 Share Posted August 30, 2009 Oh? I misunderstood the procedure. I assumed feather plucking would be frowned upon and you just picked a feather out of the bottom of the cage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 DNA sex testing is the only surefire way to determine sex other than the surgical way and who wants to have that performed on their bird, certainly not me and I presume the test can be done as soon as they have feathers so no age limit. BTW, don't listen to those people who say strange things about your grey or that they can tell the sex by the shape of the head and so forth, they don't know bullcrap from apple butter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moobu Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 I was once told I could tell the sex of my birds by looking at the eyes. And that females had much more oval eyes. To this day I still say Linus and Barney have well.... eye.. shaped.. eye. So yeah, urban myths are pretty fun lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvparrots Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 DNA testing in the way to go! Just enjoy your baby girl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinner Posted August 31, 2009 Share Posted August 31, 2009 As stated, DNA testing is extremely accurate. The DNA labs have even taken steps to reduce the prospect of human error. I did find something interesting that I might use with the next clutch - they can use the DNA material left in the egg to tell the sex of the bird! Apparently, there's enough vascular material left in the egg to be as accurate as blood or feather DNA sexing. The only issue is keeping track of which bird had which egg. B) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terminalxs Posted September 4, 2009 Share Posted September 4, 2009 Out of curiosity, how much does DNA testing usually cost (in the US that is...)? One of the babies I'm interested in hasn't been tested, and thinking I might want to do that up front, so I don't have to name it something universal. Sounds trivial, I know, but I am that guy sometimes...hehe. I had a Cockatiel growing up named Rooster that started laying eggs...so yeah. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spinner Posted September 4, 2009 Share Posted September 4, 2009 DNA testing price varies so much, I'd contact your vet or breeder to get pricing. Your breeder should be willing to get this done if the well-check vet visit hasn't been completed yet. Of course, expect to pay for the check. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
judygram Posted September 4, 2009 Share Posted September 4, 2009 I think you can get the kit for testing from www.avianbiotech.com and it cost around $25 so that is not expensive but it is if you have your avian vet do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JungleDreamz Posted September 4, 2009 Share Posted September 4, 2009 I dont think the Feather plucking procedure is frowned upon, I mean, How much worse is it than cutting your birds toenail too short to where they bleed, It is like, Would you rather pluck 6 hairs out of your head or cut one of your nails too short and it bleed then has to heal? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terminalxs Posted September 5, 2009 Share Posted September 5, 2009 Wow, yeah, looks like $25 at www.avianbiotech.com That's GREAT! Thanks Judygram! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now