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An unusual (at least here in Australia)(and pretty in my opinion) feather color has spontaneously appeared in my flock. I call it "rose" because I don't know what else to call it. I'm tempted to try and create a pure breeding line from it, though I know that I could be on a fool's errand. Is...

Could anyone please tell me the genetic makeup of this feather pattern? The bird is an absolute mutt and every one of this bird's siblings look completely different. Does this pattern have a name? I cant find any reference to the pattern among pure-breed standards, so would I be right in...

One of my hens repeatedly puts its head to the ground and walks backwards for about six paces until it hits something. it appears to be totally involuntary. From what I’ve Googled, it seems to be a condition that can occur in a lot of breeds and other related species. Does anyone know what...

I’ve been having a major problem with my birds going broody. I may have found a solution, based on the theory that after laying about fifteen eggs my chooks tend to always go broody. However, if they loose the nest site before they start incubating they go to a new nest site and start the egg...

A few months ago my mutt chicken gave birth to 30 chicks. Each and every one was distinctly different. Could someone with an understanding of genetics please explain what the mutation in the photo is called? I've been unable to match the features to anything in the charts of recognised breeds...

I crossed a Wyandotte x rooster with bright yellow legs with a buff x hen with pale grey legs. Of the 30 offspring only one chick has inherited the yellow legs. I’m disappointed. Most of the chicks have white or grey legs. I’m looking to breed towards only having yellow legs in the flock. Please...

Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to sex a chicken when it is no more than a minute clump of cells? I did a little research and it appears that the technology is available. However the poultry industry isn’t interested in buying it, because it is cheaper to hatch eggs on an industrial scale and...

What is a quality flock? Should the quality of backyard pet chooks always be measured against “The Show Standards” of “Heritage Pure Breeds?” As breeds, I love Icelandics and Swedish Flower Hens. I love these Landrace birds that have been bred for their utility value in conjunction with their...

This evening I move a broody hen from the communal nest box to sit on a clutch of eggs in a broody box. Two eggs dropped from under her wings as I set her down and I instinctively put them with the clutch. Now I’m wondering if I made a big mistake. The two eggs are likely to hatch three days...

I've crossed my Orange-partridesque mutt-hen "Myra" with my mutt-wild-type gold laced Wyandotte X rooster "Barry" and hope to begin the process of breeding a new line of orange-partridge Wyandottes. I'm new to chook keeping, so can someone tell me if I'm making sense? My reasoning is that the...

Hi I'm new to chook keeping and enjoying every minute. We moved from London to a semi-rural suburb near Sydney in Australia to enjoy county life. We have four hens and a rooster. They are principally pets, and they do produce eggs, and they are part of a partridge wyandotte breeding project ...