Brahma Thread

[Roxannemc]

Thank you very much. I have been working on these birds for the past 5 years now and am starting to get somewhere with size and colour combined. These are great birds and I'm very happy with. Hopefully ill be able to come down to the states and show againt birds there. As here in Ontario its the same people I'm showing against over and over Haha
Don

Well at least you know the outcome with the same chickens!!LOL

 

[big medicine]

I have a question. With my brahmas I have lights and buffs. My lights are better in quality than my buffs and I'm not sure how to go about breeding them. I really want to cross the buffs and lights since I have heard that that makes better buff coloring in the hens. Since my buffs are poorer quality than my lights should I just breed up the buffs then cross or cross the two color varities together now? If it matters Ijust got the lights and I have had the buffs for about a year. In the buffs I need wider tails and better diamonds in the saddle feathers. The heads also appear as if they could be a decent amount wider. The lights have the diamonds and wide tails/heads.

You would probably be ahead of the game, money and time wise, getting better breeding stock to start with, figuring the price of feed and all.

But if you where to cross the two colors, couple things to remember. The males of this cross should most strongly resemble lights with some buff/brassy bleed through. These cross males will be able to produce pullets of both colors. Pure colored males will produce pullets the same color as themselves, reguardless if the hen used is buff or light. Pullets/hens will be pure for the color they show.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Here are my only three brahmas. They are a bit shy and reserved, but very sweet. My gold laced, and laced are from a breeder, and my buff comes from hatchery's parents. What do you think of them?

I love them all, but the GL is my fav!

 

[brahmabreeder]

You would probably be ahead of the game, money and time wise, getting better breeding stock to start with, figuring the price of feed and all.

But if you where to cross the two colors, couple things to remember. The males of this cross should most strongly resemble lights with some buff/brassy bleed through. These cross males will be able to produce pullets of both colors. Pure colored males will produce pullets the same color as themselves, reguardless if the hen used is buff or light. Pullets/hens will be pure for the color they show.

Thank you big medicine that was extremely helpful. I think when I pair them up I will ignore weather or not they or buff or light and just try to pay attention more to who would produce the best looking chicks in the long run.

 

[CluckyCharms]

Lockdown was yesterday on the temp-spike effected GLBs. I still don't think any of them are alive...but I'll remain hopeful after reading some posts here. Temp is steady at 100.5 (it's a still-air bator) and humidity is steady at 64% - no 'action' of any kind and my last three hatches had eggrocking at day 18.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Lockdown was yesterday on the temp-spike effected GLBs. I still don't think any of them are alive...but I'll remain hopeful after reading some posts here. Temp is steady at 100.5 (it's a still-air bator) and humidity is steady at 64% - no 'action' of any kind and my last three hatches had eggrocking at day 18.

 

[big medicine]

mama4my4....I agree with Steve234....definitely male.

Could any of the many here with genetic expertise advise me on this little chap please? He's mainly Blue Partridge Brahma.....leg feathers a bit scanty etc, but I love the colour....he genuinely DOES look blue rather than grey.

He looks very like a 'Splash' cockerel that has, I believe, a 25% probability of turning up with crossing two Blue Partridge Brahmas. This Splash is due to two 'blue' genes giving the white, but this guy has blue feathers replacing the white which would be seen in a Splash.

Is he worth keeping/breeding from given the genetic variation that there is with the 'blue' gene? If so, what would he be best bred with?

There can be a considerable range in the darkness of blue, some so dark they may at first glance appear black, to a almost powder blue. Similar variation can sometimes be seen in splash as well. My impression is your youngster is splash.

Shot of a couple young splash cockerels I took this afternoon.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

I think my babies are 50/50 Roo/Hen
Am I correct in thinking that the blacks are Roos?? And they are slow on getting feathers than the others.

 

[pgpoultry]

Thank you, Big medicine for clearing up the feather question on my cockerel.

Sally S I've always found my cockerels to feather up much slower than the pullets.

 

[CluckyCharms]

I have 6 pips on my GLBs so thanks to those who told me not to give up on them because there wasn't any signs of life after that nasty temp spike. I don't know if they will hatch out 'normal' or not though...or at all..but at least my hopes are up now with 6 ginormous pipped eggs. Thanks again.