Breeding Question: Interesting Turn of Events

[redinator]

After a bit of discussion a friend and I have decided we'll be swapping around a few of our chickens.

He was supposed to get an all pullet flock of Black Jersey Giants for their eggs, but one turned out to be a cockerel. He has a total of 4, one cockerel and 3 pullets, but he can't have a rooster where he lives. I believe he initially ordered a total of six pullets.

Since he can't have roosters and I can, we decided I'd take his Black Jersey Giants for breeding and he'd take my flock of 5 RIR Pullets for eggs. I'm not particularly fond of their temperaments for breeding a friendly flock.

I know the new chickens need to be quarantined, then the look no touch integration method.

In the last week or so I'm starting to realize one of my pullets is a cockerel. I'm not upset because it's an Easter Egger, so I could breed it with my barnyard mixes to get offspring that lay different colored eggs, or at least that's how I understand it.

Now I'm thinking I could put the Easter Egger with the Black Jersey Giant pullets and get LARGE COLORED EGGS!

Has anyone done this? If so what do the eggs look like? This seems like a fun project group of chickens.

 

[DemeterAD9]

I did it in reverse, a BJG roo over EEs. My 2 EEs both have one daughter each and both lay a colored egg. Now when it comes extra large colored eggs, don’t be too excited about the BJG (or their young) laying jumbo eggs because IME they do not. Likely because mine are hatchery quality, a show line may produce larger eggs but who knows? It took till about 1-1.5yr old, their second summer, before the pullet sized egg phase was over and they went from small to medium/large. Both EEs eggs in the middle and their respective daughter’s egg on either side. BJG hen egg top left and my largest layer, a large fowl mutt, on the right.

Mother (cream) and daughter of the left pair of colored eggs. They look identical aside from color.

Daughter of the other EE (she’s brown and grey). Black like the BJG but with a pea comb, no muffs.

Another thing to note, there is no guarantee the daughters from the BJG hens and EE cockerel will lay a colored egg unless your EE has 2 blue egg genes. If he has one brown and one blue then 50% of his young will inherit the blue egg genes and lay a greenish egg. If he happens to have no blue egg gene (it happens) then there will be no chance of colored eggs.

You could have him (and his future daughters) tested for the blue egg genes but of course the fun thing about playing with genetics is figuring out through experimenting. Hatch some eggs, wait about 5 months and see what the daughters end up laying!

 

[redinator]

Defiantly more fun to breed and see what happens. I find it interesting that your mixed breed layed larger eggs than your BBJ. I have a Buff Orpington that lays the largest eggs so far, so I might put her w the Giants and the EE roo.