Black+White=Brown?

[Minniechickmama]

I just hatched my own Jersey Giant eggs. I am totally stumped. I am not anything near an expert on color crossing, but I am going to get what has been recommended to do some of the figuring out on my own.
Okay, the deal is this.... I have 3 Black hens and a Black roo, then I have a White hen in with them as well. I just got 6 chicks and 2 of them are Black with Brown markings. Can I assume these are the chicks that would be out of the White hen? I know these are clean eggs as these birds have been penned separately for about 2 months, maybe longer.
If I need to I can take pictures later and post them, but I am really confused. Anyone who can shed light on this, please help this desperately confused person out?
Thank you!

 

[tadkerson]

White birds can be black under the white or any other color. No one can definitely say which birds are from which hen. Put the hen with the male once every few days, isolate the hen and collect eggs when she is in isolation. Hatch the eggs. Now you know if they are from the hen.

Tim

 

[Minniechickmama]

This is chick #1 with the brownish fuzz and horn colored beak, and you can see in the second picture, even the feet/legs have a brownish hue, though are close tot the olive/willow that is desirable in the JG.

Chicky #2

I am not trying to figure out IF these chicks came from the White hen, I want to know if the cross variety of White and Black can/will produce chick with this coloration?
If it does, then there is no doubt both are from the White hen.

 

[Chris09]

Do you have pictures of the possible parents?
Chick #1 has incorrect comb type for a pure Jersey Giant.

Chris

 

[suzettex5]

I agree with Chris09- wrong comb. I have hatched chicks that look just like that and I KNOW they werent pure bred, but are half jersey, half something else from my flock.

I wonder if there is a possibility that one of your hens or roos are not pure-bred (especially if they are hatchery stock, those are often way off what they should be), or maybe your hens have been exposed to a different roo? You said they have been with pure roos for only 2 months? Are you including the time it has taken for those chicks to hatch? If yes, then they have only been with a pure roo for 1 month and a week, a hen can retain the DNA from a previous rooster for up to 2 or 3 weeks (from my understanding, but it could be slightly less time, feel free to correct me anyone who knows better!), so, I think its possible you have a mixed breed chick. Your chicks do look half Jersey to me, but not full. However, I have never personally had a white Jersey in my flock, so I am not 100% sure on colors to expect from them.

Super cute chickies though!!!!

Go to the Jersey Giant thread for more info- you will find the color mixes and possible colors for offspring, or maybe do a search here on BYC- I know the info in on here!!!!

 

[JulieNKC]

Your chicks look just like my la fleche x delaware chicks. They are almost 3 weeks now. One is feathering out barred, another mostly black with a little brown, and one with a whole lot of brown. I thought they would be all black, but guess not.

 

[Minniechickmama]

They had been isolated for more than a month, more like 6 weeks before I tried these eggs.
Yes, they are hatchery stock, but the parents are obviously pure JGs.

As for the incorrect comb, I am not sure that is true. I thought so at first too, but it is a little spiky, just hard to tell. I am waiting to make that call until it is a little older.
Right now, I am just wanting to know about the color.
Thanks.

 

[chickendales]

the first one has the wrong comb thesecound one is a single comb

 

[Chris09]

Quote:
Please dont take this the wrong way but;

but the parents are obviously pure JGs

How are they, "obviously pure"?

As for the incorrect comb, I am not sure that is true. I thought so at first too, but it is a little spiky, just hard to tell

From what I can tell from the picture the comb of the first chick looks like a very narrow Rose Comb and not a Single Comb.

Right now, I am just wanting to know about the color.

It is going to be hard to say what color there going to be but, I do know that they will not be White nor do I think that they will be solid Black and if the are Black they might have a lot of Gold showing through in the feathers.

Now I would like to ask;
One which hatchery did you get them from, two what do they weigh, three do you have a picture of the parents, what color are the legs of the White Jersey Giant?

Chris​

 

[suzettex5]

One problem with hatchery stock is that they breed for quantity, NOT quality. They have also been known to have crosses (unintentional, Im sure). Yours could very easily have Australorp or even black sex-link in their blood-line, and you would never know it until you hatch the chicks and see specific characteristics. It does happen, and probably more often than any of us know. I am NOT hatchery bashing, Ive just seen and read too many stories about this happening to folks, so, never assume a breed is pure JUST because they come from a hatchery.

Heck, even home breeders can have accidents, sometimes a really sneaky roo will manage to get into the wrong pen and do his thing with the resident hens that are NOT his breed and the owners may not even know till the chicks pop out!

I think the thing we are seeing with the comb on the first chick is that it is too wide and flat and spikey- definately not something I have ever seen on pure Jersey Giant chicks, not even on young roos.

Hope you arent feeling bashed about your chicks- they are very cute and very worth growing up to see what they look like as adults! Have you gont to the Jersey Giant thread yet to see the pics of the chicks and adults?