Orpington hatch. pullet eggs, cold eggs, and color of chicks

[Pyxis]

No other rooster. We got rid of our lavenders last fall. Could it be the black pullets are a real dark blue? One or two have some different breast feathers. I will get pictures of them and better pictures of the chicks tonight.

No, even that wouldn't work. A pure splash rooster just cannot throw black chicks. Are you sure you don't maybe have a juvenile blue or black cockerel lurking in with your pullets?

The only other thing it could possibly be is that your 'splash' rooster isn't really genetically completely splash.

Edit: After more research, I'm certain that's it. Your splash rooster must have been from an outcross of your BBS birds to your lavender birds, which has created a bit of a genetic mess. Check this post for info.

That's also why some of those chicks look like they are self blue, aka lavender - it's because they are. Your colors have gotten mixed and tangled up. That means some of your hens are from your lavender breedings too.

 

[4stakes]

We bought him as a chick about 5 years ago from a breeder, now we're wondering about this " breeder". We're thinking he has some odd genes in him. Trial and error. Thanks for everyone's input. More pictures tonight

 

[4stakes]

One other piece of the puzzle is we bought the pullets from a different breeder last August. So bad rooster I'm thinking

 

[Ravynscroft]

One other piece of the puzzle is we bought the pullets from a different breeder last August. So bad rooster I'm thinking

It's not just him if you've got some lavender (self blue) chicks as well as black in those... it takes 2 copies of lavender to show... were some of the black pullets from a breeder of lavender and black splits?

 

[4stakes]

I will have to look

 

[4stakes]

Here are more pictures.

 

[4stakes]

I found out the pullets we have could have a lavender gene in them. So I think we start over with some different breeders. Thanks for everyone's help on this.