What breed is my grey hen?

I have fourth generation hens of my grandma's grey chickens.
Yes, they may have been mixed with other breeds since she gave me her orginal hens.... and maybe her hens were not entirely pure.

However, I consistently hatch these grey hens... with very solid and definite traits, so some of the original breed must be coming through strongly.

Here are a few distinguishing traits:
**steel, blue grey, very little if any lighter grey feathers.
**grey legs and top of toes, with white/light grey feet
**very upright, fanshaped tail
**small, short, pointed comb, extending back over head
**grey/blackish beak
**good mothers, although not particularily broody
**excellent layers, long production
**hardy in our cold climate

I get very few roosters... am hoping one little grey chick keeps on looking like a rooster!



Anyone have an idea on what this breed was originally????

Don't have a clue but she sure is a pretty girl.

I have an upcoming little grey hen as well. She's the same color and almost 6 weeks old. She is an EE and Cochin mix.

It's a purtty blue sumthin

She looks like a cross to me. The color is blue so if you mate them with a black rooster you should get 50% blue and 50% black. My first thought on the cross would be a blue andalusian with a black australorp. The andalusian would explan the color and the white earlobes, the australorp would explain the type. What color eggs do they lay?

Looks like an andalusian mixed with something. Beautiful bird!

I'm going to say those are probably self-blue/lavenders because "I consistently hatch these grey hens."

Definitely a darker shade of lavender, but if it were blue the heads and hackles would be darker, and black and splash would also result. Could be that both genes are involved though, which would turn the blacks to lavender, and smooth splashing to some extent.

I would say the bird has a bit of the orpington shape to it, but not quite a match.

Can the original birds be Delawere Blue Hen Chicken?

First, a correction: I should have said 14th generation of my grandmother's hens, not fourth!!
Secondly, I do realize that these hens I have at the present, are not 'pure' by any means... if nothing else, simply because of incidental change due to the many years.

These hens lay very lightly tinted, very very light brown eggs... maybe could be called an off-white. (Okay, I used tons to different terms there!!! Just what is a 'tinted' eggs, versus 'off-white'?)

I never thought of the Deleware Blue Hen... and had eliminated the Andalusians, (because of photos like these:
http://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/product/blue_andalusians.html ) but just looked at these photos:
http://www.mypetchicken.com/Andalusian-B15.aspx )
and it is a very distinct possibility!!!
My chicks look like the chick photo on the McMurray Hatchery page.

Since I have been trying to keep a closed 'herd' and breeding for traits of the Austra White, for 20 + years..... I cull/keep for these traits:
Austra White was originally a cross with a Black Australorp hen and a White Leghorn rooster.... so, I try to keep suitable black hens and a white rooster. The black hens didn't look quite like the BAustralorp but when small, the chicks that will turn black do look very similar to the BAustralorp chicks. However, I now think my black hens have similar traits to the Blue Andalusian!!!
I also keep any hen or rooster that is white with black specks.
Plus, I am keeping any solid grey hen or rooster.

So, at any one time, I will have a solid white and a solid black roosters.... plus any white/with black speckles rooster... and any grey rooster I may get.

I have only had one solid grey rooster that looks like this hen ... usually, most of the grey chicks are pullets. This spring, I used a 'grey' rooster that was about 40-55% grey feathered... mostly on the wing, tail and hackle.

SO>>>>>
after reading about the Andalusians on the McMurry site.....
I am wondering if some of the 'white', 'black', and 'splashed' chicks would be from the grey hens' eggs... when I was assuming those eggs would be all grey!!!!!!!

I think I need to do some more hatching, and
I need to ask some questions!!!

QUESTIONS:::??
1) Just what is 'self-blue'?
2) I didn't realize there was 'lavender'!!! blue would have darker feathers, and lavender doesn't????

OH How Neat! She is awesome. I couldnt believe how pretty she was. Makes me want one, or two or three!
So pretty.