➡ Quail Hatch Along🥚

[Maiahr]

Ok, picture lovers.. what colour is this hen?
Question 2 - which male I cross her with to get good color chicks? I don't have a male this color, she is only one. Males - many and different colours but not like her. English white, tuxedo, Rosetta, golden Manchurian, Pharaoh...?

 

[muddy75]

Ok, picture lovers.. what colour is this hen?
Question 2 - which male I cross her with to get good color chicks? I don't have a male this color, she is only one. Males - many and different colours but not like her. English white, tuxedo, Rosetta, golden Manchurian, Pharaoh...?

she appears to be from the silver collection....snowy would be the closest i could come up with?? I would probably try her with the white male to maintain the silver. (others with more genetics experience may have a differing opinion)

 

[CoturnixComplex]

Ok, picture lovers.. what colour is this hen?
Question 2 - which male I cross her with to get good color chicks? I don't have a male this color, she is only one. Males - many and different colours but not like her. English white, tuxedo, Rosetta, golden Manchurian, Pharaoh...?

she appears to be from the silver collection....snowy would be the closest i could come up with?? I would probably try her with the white male to maintain the silver. (others with more genetics experience may have a differing opinion)

I don't have a better idea! Gonna go with "uhhhhhhh....beautiful?"

In general I do try to avoid pairing silvers together since it's a homozygous lethal gene, but I can't really tell if she actually carries silver specifically vs. a handful of other genes so I say go nuts.

If you had a spare pharaoh sometimes I use them first to get a better idea of what genetics a mystery hen carries. But even that's not foolproof, because even theoretically wild type/pharaoh lines can carry recessive genes hidden for quite a few generations and muck up your results.

 

[muddy75]

my buttons are 9 weeks old today! i’m not seeing any red feathers on anyone, no “male” behaviors, and only 1 (brown one) has mostly solid black chin strap.....possible that all 4 female??

 

[RUNuts]

I don't have a better idea! Gonna go with "uhhhhhhh....beautiful?"

In general I do try to avoid pairing silvers together since it's a homozygous lethal gene, but I can't really tell if she actually carries silver specifically vs. a handful of other genes so I say go nuts.

If you had a spare pharaoh sometimes I use them first to get a better idea of what genetics a mystery hen carries. But even that's not foolproof, because even theoretically wild type/pharaoh lines can carry recessive genes hidden for quite a few generations and muck up your results.

I am being nosy. Is this interest in genetics professional? You've got specific answers to the breeding question. The general comment that only a few lines were imported and the gene pool tends to be shallow also concerns me. I've got some obviously different size chicks in the growout coops. Barely grown compared to thrice the size. Too many to call them runts. Just smaller or slower growing. Separating and tracking would be very interesting, but time consuming. I'd get to that 9+ coops in a hurry. I've gotten to 5 (+ some potentials) in a year.

This strikes me as interesting. I'm not as keen on color, granted they are eye catching like canaries and other fowl. Does the same multiple genetic factors apply to size? From Zack's comments, if you want giants, you gotta breed for size only. A single stray gene, will set your breeding program back generations. The 60% cull rate was surprising to me at first. The more I think about it, they say the same for chickens. High cull rate for desired traits. Color for some, size and growth rate for others.

Cheers

 

[Kiki]

View attachment 1932903 View attachment 1932904 my buttons are 9 weeks old today! i’m not seeing any red feathers on anyone, no “male” behaviors, and only 1 (brown one) has mostly solid black chin strap.....possible that all 4 female??

That would not be fair.

 

[CoturnixComplex]

I am being nosy. Is this interest in genetics professional? You've got specific answers to the breeding question. The general comment that only a few lines were imported and the gene pool tends to be shallow also concerns me. I've got some obviously different size chicks in the growout coops. Barely grown compared to thrice the size. Too many to call them runts. Just smaller or slower growing. Separating and tracking would be very interesting, but time consuming. I'd get to that 9+ coops in a hurry. I've gotten to 5 (+ some potentials) in a year.

This strikes me as interesting. I'm not as keen on color, granted they are eye catching like canaries and other fowl. Does the same multiple genetic factors apply to size? From Zack's comments, if you want giants, you gotta breed for size only. A single stray gene, will set your breeding program back generations. The 60% cull rate was surprising to me at first. The more I think about it, they say the same for chickens. High cull rate for desired traits. Color for some, size and growth rate for others.

Cheers

I have almost always worked with animals somewhere, but the genetics interest specifically is recreational/to help with my hobby breeding.

Yeah, the situation in the U.S. is really not ideal from what I've gathered. Few starting gene pools, little genetic variance, and lots of inbreeding depression in certain lines compared to ones in Europe/Asia.

I have heard WAY better things about certain jumbo lines vs. others (I wish I'd kept track but I have not) so I'd almost say buy eggs from 1-2 more sources and keep the line you like best. Kinda like Cornish cross.

Fancy colors almost invariably both A. restrict size as an actual mechanism and B. Have been bred in a somewhat more haphazard manner. I like that about them - I think the unpredictability is a fun puzzle - but plenty of people do not.

 

[CoturnixComplex]

I think I have probably sold/given away/eaten/retired without breeding closer to 70-80% even. I bought birds/eggs from like 6 sources total, bred them all, evaluated offspring, retired a bunch, and am down to probably 4 birds, their offspring, and some new acquisitions (who will probably get pared down to 1-3 again) in my breeding pens. It is not an efficient process but the results are very satisfying!

 

[muddy75]

That would not be fair.

no it’s not fair! i need at least 1 male to make baby buttons!!

 

[Kiki]