Blue wyandotte leg color?

[ceadar post]

I know this was covered a few months ago, can't find the thread. My blues aren't giving me the nice yellow legs soo wanted. It was said to breed brown into them to help. Wondering if blrw would work or is a partridge needed ? Thanks Mike

 

[Mrs. Turbo]

we are using a black wyandotte roo to help with the leg color....not sure about everyone else.......

 

[ceadar post]

I was told that leg color in blacks was good for just one sex rooster or hen. And that good yellow legs just appear in one or the other. Is that true ? Thanks for posting. Mike

 

[blackdotte]

Firstly Blues are Blacks with one copy of the Blue gene.
To get good Blacks/Blues you need two types of fowl, one to breed exhibition pullets - Black pullets with black to the shin undercolour and clean yellow legs + cockerels that will be Black, with grey to white undercolour, possibly white at base of tail & clean yellow legs.
A second line to breed exhibition cockerels - Black cockerels with black to the skin undercolour, nearly clean yellow legs , and pullets which will be Black, with black undercolour & dusky to black legs.
A quality Black/Blue yellow legged breed is a difficult proposition for most people. I often hatched 500 of each type per year to get 10 show birds.
David

 

[ceadar post]

Thanks, David Wasn't exactly sure how all this goes together in the chicken world.

 

[encorepistol]

i was told to use gold laced to improve the leg color. search my posts and youll find the info

 

[blackdotte]

Use of Gold Laced or Partridge could re-introduce the Dermal Inhibitor if it has been lost, but it also is likely to remove the melanisers, giving a break through of red in the hackle & shoulder of the Blacks,
Sorry it may give a temporary fix but will not produce a true breeding line,
David

 

[ceadar post]

Thanks much for posting thats kinda what I was thinking didn't know if it would breed true. Mike

 

[tadkerson]

The reason the breeders are getting black legs is because someone has used extended black or birchen to produce a black bird (blue). The wyandottes in the USA are brown at the E locus and carry the pattern gene with some black extenders; melanotic is one.

Males have two sex linked dermal melanin inhibitor genes which makes for clean yellow legs; females have only one dermal melanin inhibitor gene therefore the dusky yellow shanks and feet.

I was the one that suggested the gold laced wyandotte be used to reintroduce the brown gene, pattern gene and melanotic into the blacks. The breeder should be able to produce black (blue) birds with clean yellow legs in 3 generations. For me that would take less than 2 years.

Tim

 

[ceadar post]

Tad would this work glw male to blue female then f1 to f1 and pick the best. And breed from this? genetics really kick my butt. Thanks Mike