Breeding silver laced with blue??

[nhanson521]

Hi! I'm looking to separate my bantams from my large fowl this sprinh. I have a silver laced bantam cochin roo with 2 hens, one is a unicolor blue and the other is a partridge. I've tried using the genetics calculator but I'm confused, haha. Will I get blue laced chicks? Or what other cool combinations ? Thanks!

 

[Kev]

Lacing is actually a pattern that depends on being pure for several different genes. So a cross like this will 'mess it up' in the chicks and none will be laced.

It depends on what 'base' the blue is on... but probably expect mostly black or blue with some white eventually showing on hen breasts and backs of the roosters.

With the partridge, probably very mixed patterns, maybe some spangled, semi laced(half moons) or...

 

[nhanson521]

Very cool. Thanks!

 

[Kev]

You could actually make blue laced silvers by breeding the offspring out of the blue back to a pure silver lace, a lot of chicks from this won't have perfect lacing but 'much improved' with a few even coming close to almost perfect.

I've seen pictures of blue laced silvers and thought they were beautiful...

 

[nhanson521]

That's what I wasn't sure if I could do....worth a try though!

 

[Kev]

Oh! Glad I brought it up, go for it!

Projects or just plain crossing and see what happens is always fun for the person doing it. There's a nice thrill in making a goal and reaching it...