anyone working on a white-egg laying Easter Egger? (or other white-layer cross)

[Tahai]

OK, so I've made my decision for my next flock (about 4 years from now) - I'm going to have 55 Flowery Hens and Lemon Owlbeards for my white layers. Hopefully the cost of the Owlbeards will come down in the meantime :O $70 for a chick is mind-blowing. If they stay at that price, I'll have to get eggs and hope for a rooster and a hen. Maybe I can sell hatching eggs! If I were to try to create my own designer bloodline of white-egg layers, I have no guarantee of success, and the cost involved would be much more than just buying some Owlbeards.

The Owlbeards have most of the characteristics I am looking for. I could wish they were a bit more prolific, but 150 - 200 is respectable. I could always try to select for the better layers. Combined with the 55 Flowery's, who are prolific layers, I should have enough white eggs for my "needs". LOL

I also toyed with the idea of raising Dorkings for the freezer and the eggs. I don't know if I can bring myself to eat my own birds though, especially ones that take so long to mature to butcher age- by the time I would need to butcher, they would have become pets But that's a topic for a different thread..

Thank you all for your thoughts and insight. You were tremendously helpful.

 

[NatJ]

Hopefully the cost of the Owlbeards will come down in the meantime :O $70 for a chick is mind-blowing. If they stay at that price, I'll have to get eggs and hope for a rooster and a hen. Maybe I can sell hatching eggs! If I were to try to create my own designer bloodline of white-egg layers, I have no guarantee of success, and the cost involved would be much more than just buying some Owlbeards.

Good point, about the cost of creating your own, compared with the cost of buying some (even if the ones you buy are very expensive compared to other chickens, they can still be cheaper than a many-year breeding project.)

I also toyed with the idea of raising Dorkings for the freezer and the eggs. I don't know if I can bring myself to eat my own birds though, especially ones that take so long to mature to butcher age- by the time I would need to butcher, they would have become pets But that's a topic for a different thread..

Raising a large number at once can help with that. It is much harder to get fond of each one, if you have a dozen or more that look alike (or almost alike), as compared with having just a few. Having 50+ makes it even harder to get fond of them. But raising & butchering large numbers will bring it's own set of problems-- housing, feed, time to tend them, time spent on the actual butchering, and there may be more total meat than you want.

 

[NagemTX]

Spitzhauben lay medium white eggs. I have them mixed in with Ameraucana, Phoenix, Orpington and a bunch of bantams with no issues.

 

[NagemTX]

From research and liberal use of the chicken gene calculator pea comb is not so linked to the blue egg gene that in a few breedings it can be undone.

 

[NatJ]

From research and liberal use of the chicken gene calculator pea comb is not so linked to the blue egg gene that in a few breedings it can be undone.

From what I've read elsewhere, there is about a 5% crossover rate. That means 95% of the time, the blue egg gene and the pea comb gene do stay linked.

Much easier to start with the correct linkage of pea comb with blue egg or not-blue egg, rather than betting on finding a 1 in 20 crossover.

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

I don't think the chicken calculator takes such gene linkages into account when calculating results, unfortunately. At least, if you're referring to the kippenjungle one.

 

[NagemTX]

I don't think the chicken calculator takes such gene linkages into account when calculating results, unfortunately. At least, if you're referring to the kippenjungle one.

I was, and that update to my info its good to know.

 

[RennaeHanson]

Does anyone have a source for White Dorking chickens?