If you have partridge and an opposite gender silver gened bird, you can get greys; it may take a few generations to get all the genes lined up correctly, and you will also produce chicks who carry entirely the wrong gene mix. A silver gened white may be useful, as traditionally silkies tend to be e^b based; however, as more and more varieties are being bred into them, the e-allele is becoming less predictable. A silver gened black (preferably with silver leakage) would probably be another useful choice.
If the male is silver gened, half his chicks will receive a copy of silver. On the girls it will be obvious; on the boys, less so as they will be het. for the gene (one copy of silver, one of gold). Breed the girls back to their father and/or to their het. brothers. You should get pure silver offspring of both gneders from the first scenario. In the second, all males will receive silver from their mother, and about half will receive it from their father. About half the females will receive silver from their father.
What I've not included in this is the work to get proper penciling and pattern. A partridge with good patterning sill go a long ways towards giving you this, and it is the reason I suggest that a silver gened white may be a good choice as there is a fair chance that they may carry the pattern gene. However, it is also possible that they do not. Using a silver gened black is less likely to carry Pg.
) She really wants to breed some gray silkies, but doesn't know what colors to cross to get gray birds. I don't know anything about gray silkies, I just raise accepted colors right now. Thank for advice, she really wants to breed some
