Breeding lavenders/self-blue

[RooPapa]

Good day all.

I have a question about breeding for the lavender color. We have a trio of beautiful lavender/self-blue Ameraucanas. We were not planning to breed them, but have fallen in love with their coloring and dispositions and a secondary project my daughter wanted to do for Olive Eggers was calling for a blue-egg rooster so we thought we’d look around.

Long story short, all of the Roos I can find have yellowing in the hackle/saddle feathers. Is this yellowing only from the lavender gene turning red into that color, or is this a separate issue with lavenders due to feather quality? Is this a trait likely to be passed on or one that we can select against in the next generation? Trying to decide if we need to keep waiting and looking or take a chance on one of these.

Thank you!

 

[Cyprus]

@AMERAUCANAS4REAL any input?

 

[The Moonshiner]

I've seen birds like you've described and had the breeders tell me its from sun fading.
It's my opinion that that isn't true in the least. I've raised too many lavender birds in the sun that never showed it.
So this is my opinion.
Yes it is red or gold color or leakage that the lavender gene has changed to yellow or straw color.
If I had any choice I would find a rooster that didn't have it to use. Hens can carry the same issue but it doesn't show on them but can be passed to their sons.
It can be bred out but can be a headache and a hassle.
Can it be bred out in a generation? Probably not. It really depends how well you know genetics and what exactly you have to work with. Could take a year or two or you might never get rid of it.
About your post. You mention you have a trio but are looking at roosters. Do you have 3 hens then?
You also mention an OE project so you're looking for a rooster for that? What are you going to bred to?
Just curious.

 

[RooPapa]

Moonshiner that’s exactly what I am being told and I don’t buy it either. My gut told me what you said, which is to avoid and keep searching.

I have a good background in genetics in general but am just learning the genes/dominance/expression patterns for chickens. Thus, Once we decided that we wanted to try breeding our lavenders and I saw all of the local roosters with this strange coloring, I looked up the lavender gene and function and that’s why I think that this is as you said a red orange coming through and being diluted. However, I do not know enough about expression patterns in the genes that cause that red color and why it is more pronounced in the males.

Maybe be a smarter move to try and find a very good black Ameraucana rooster and spend those two years improving the feather quality and only have to watch for any unseen red in my hens.

The OEs would be this roo with a few different dark layers for color variation. We have a few Marans, Barnevelders and one supposed OE that lays a huge dark brown egg. We are also doing the opposite with a Maran roo from a very dark egg over the Ameraucanas.

I also have a lavender project I want to start but that has a multi-year timeline. I have what I need but having a good lavender roo would let me come at it from both directions.

Edit to add yes, our lavenders are hens.