Expert: Roger Lederer - 8/8/2011

Question
Can someone tell me the correct way to sex my white doves...
We have a large walk-in aviary. At first we had doves laying a lot of eggs,but these never hatched .Someone told us they needed privacy ...so we made little individual nesting boxes out of (well cleaned)cat litter pails.We cut off one side, laid them down where the cut off part is on top ,then put a perch on the front  ,and a nest in it ,with pine needles and sand in each nest,there is no cover over the top..this way the doves can get in and out easily and still guard the nest....These were made more than three weeks ago..Since we made these ,not one egg has been laid.We keep the aviary clean,feed them well,and keep fresh water ,and a bowl for bathing...What more can we do ,to get them to breed? OH , we have 15 white doves....
Thanking you in advance for your help ...
Kitty

Answer
Well,I presume you have Ringneck Doves. Without seeing your setup or knowing anymore that what you told me, I can't analyze your particular situation. But I can lead you onto some information on the www. First, you can go to this site http://www.ringneckdove.com/Wilmer's%20WebPage/ventsexi.htm - it's an old one but tells you how to sex doves a couple of different ways. Second, here's a site of general information about doves.
Doves generally breed in pairs, away from other doves, so I agree that they need privacy. So 15 birds might just be too many for this cage.
In addition to the correct food, water, and nesting materials, the light regime (photoperiod - amount of light per day) needs to be correct. Too much or too little light could affect the situation.