Black Australorp Buff Orpington Cross

[Greg88]

bummer that you lost the two....

 

[thatotherfarmer]

Just to give an update,

we did have three of these crosses: offspring of a buff orpington rooster and a black australorp hen. Two of them were unfortunately killed when they got out of their enclosure and the neighbour's dog found them. The last one has tried to mate with the hen who hatched him every morning this week, so I am thinking it's a rooster, even though it has the buff/black colouring, and lovely wide feathers (not the lacey saddle feathers of a rooster yet, but perhaps he is still too young)

Cheers

That's interesting, because one of the three I hatched (all buff and black) let out a yelp that somewhat resembles a crow the other morning. Might have just been a squawk, but it's possible. The comb of it is bigger than the others, but I've had hens with the same scenario. I thought the roosters were supposed to be white?

 

[junebuggena]

Just to give an update,

we did have three of these crosses: offspring of a buff orpington rooster and a black australorp hen. Two of them were unfortunately killed when they got out of their enclosure and the neighbour's dog found them. The last one has tried to mate with the hen who hatched him every morning this week, so I am thinking it's a rooster, even though it has the buff/black colouring, and lovely wide feathers (not the lacey saddle feathers of a rooster yet, but perhaps he is still too young)

Cheers

The thing with Black Australorps is that you can't tell, by looking if the hen is silver or gold. The black pattern gene is covering the base color. Your crosses can't be sexed by coloring, unless you have already proven by a test breeding that your hen is silver. Considering that you've got only black/buff chicks, it's a fair bet that your Australorp hens are gold based, not silver.

 

[saiko-zombie]

Thanks Junebuggena, that makes a lot of sense.
Thatotherfarmer, yours might have come from a gold based Australorp too then?

Greg88 thanks for the sympathy, we were pretty gutted. We lost another pure Orpington chick in the same fiasco, and it is the first time I have lost chickens - for any reason- and it was all the worse because we felt like we were to blame. :-( Ah well, live and learn.

 

[thatotherfarmer]

Well now that we're on the subject, what would you get if you bred a black based cross rooster with a hen? I know if you crossed either with a BO or BA it would be the breed crossed with, but what about the cross over cross?

 

[jgeer]

I could determine the gender of my BOxBA at hatch. The pullets had a gold chin whereas the roos we almost entirely black.

They are now 3 weeks old and very diferent in coloration.

all of the blackish ones are the crosses the others are cream legbars

 

[junebuggena]

I could determine the gender of my BOxBA at hatch. The pullets had a gold chin whereas the roos we almost entirely black.

They are now 3 weeks old and very diferent in coloration.
all of the blackish ones are the crosses the others are cream legbars

Those chicks are too young to sex.

 

[jgeer]

The one on the left is a pullet, the one on the right is a roo.

 

[junebuggena]

The one on the left is a pullet, the one on the right is a roo.

Still much too young to be certain.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Does anyone have pictures of Buff Orpington Australorp cross chicks at 2 days old? I want to know if I have on.

The one with yellow face.