Bresse Chickens

[ronott1]

pardon me, I'm sure they are technically coated, but it is certainly not a thick coating that easy to mar, as with the super-smeary marans.

Yes, that is true. Sorry to not have made that clear.

The darker the egg the easier it is to smear it. I have had Production Reds, Penedesenca and a couple of other dark egg layers lay eggs that lost the brown--especially when boiling them.

Bresse are white shell layers with a coating. Look at your own eggs--if they are tinted they have a brown coating.

 

[tbird9]

If you search GFF's twitter account (or maybe it was their blog), they show a picture of a splash Bresse baby chick. I think they made it by crossing a white Bresse and a black Bresse. Although I thought you usually get splash from crossing a blue and a black

The text above that twitter pic says "So we crossed a white Bresse with a black Bresse and got...."

That has happened here a couple of times, and not on purpose. I posted a few pics of the crossed chicks here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/173461/bresse-chickens/220#post_11442225
Those have since gone into the freezer, but we have another set now due to a broody showing up with them a couple months ago.

I really don't have a good grasp of chicken genetics yet, but I do know the White Bresse have the I gene which is dominant for white, so even when crossed with black they are mostly white and the black splotching is very random looking, some don't show any. I'll get pictures of the ones we have now when it gets a little more light outside. Anyway, I don't find it an attractive feature and don't personally see the point of crossing the two.

 

[Arielle]

Quote: Good catch!!!

THe marans coating scratches easily doesn't it? Even my olives don't look so nice if not carefully handled to prevent scratches.

I've not had a problem with the color coming off on other (non-marnas) dark eggs. Somehow the dark pigment is built into the calcium layers rather than an applied paint. I have just a few eggs that are dark, not sure if it is the production reds or another breed.

Quote: IMO Culling on egg color is probably not a good thing at this stage in the game. We need to get the numbers up before tackling that .

On the dominant and recessives, the difficulty might be more based on what the proportion is in the gene pool. If half the stock carries the recessive then progress can be made fairly quickly in either direction. Eliminating all the recessive is the hardest. Eliminating all the dominants is easier. I don't know a lot about shell colr but it is likely to have modifiers that also effect the tints and spots.

Eggs taste the same no matter the color. lol

 

[Arielle]

Quote: Ron, I can't wash off all the brown coatings. Just the marans eggs. I need to go find a dark egg and test it . . . .

 

[ronott1]

Ron, I can't wash off all the brown coatings. Just the marans eggs. I need to go find a dark egg and test it . . . .

the closes to being laid by the hen, the easier it is to get it off.

 

[Arielle]

Quote: THen in theory scratching should mar the coating.

 

[tbird9]

The text above that twitter pic says "So we crossed a white Bresse with a black Bresse and got...."

That has happened here a couple of times, and not on purpose. I posted a few pics of the crossed chicks here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/173461/bresse-chickens/220#post_11442225
Those have since gone into the freezer, but we have another set now due to a broody showing up with them a couple months ago.

I really don't have a good grasp of chicken genetics yet, but I do know the White Bresse have the I gene which is dominant for white, so even when crossed with black they are mostly white and the black splotching is very random looking, some don't show any. I'll get pictures of the ones we have now when it gets a little more light outside. Anyway, I don't find it an attractive feature and don't personally see the point of crossing the two.

I ended up taking a video. I got myself set up with a vimeo account and uploaded it there, but now I'm having trouble embedding it in a post. Here is a link to it:

Maybe that will work?

Anyway, there are five birds featured in the video, all are from a White Bresse hen x Black Bresse roo and only one has obvious black spots. The others do have subtle black markings on a few feathers, but it is hard to see if you don't know to look for it.

 

[ronott1]

I ended up taking a video. I got myself set up with a vimeo account and uploaded it there, but now I'm having trouble embedding it in a post. Here is a link to it:

Maybe that will work?

I'm also trying to upload it to youtube, but it's telling me 178 minutes remaining!

Anyway, there are five birds featured in the video, all are from a White Bresse hen x Black Bresse roo and only one has obvious black spots. The others do have subtle black markings on a few feathers, but it is hard to see if you don't know to look for it.

Go to the vimeo video and click on share. Select the iFrame code. Go to BYC and reply or quote in a thread. There will be an edit bar at the top. look for the movie tool, next to the insert a picture tool. Paste the vimeo iFrame code into the field and click on submit.

I hope this helps!

 

[Arielle]

I know only a little about the white genes. THere are two. ONe is dominant and one is recessive.

I have dom white in my easter eggers. If I have a bird carrying red, it leaks thru on the girls as a cream color, with the neck a slightly darker cream. In my one boy that is one of these crema hens with a blue AM father, the boy was splatered with black spots and then developed the red in his back area with the black. OVerall he is white except for the bakc and wings.

recessive white require 2 rece whites to show. ANd that is the limit of what I know.

 

[tbird9]

Go to the vimeo video and click on share. Select the iFrame code. Go to BYC and reply or quote in a thread. There will be an edit bar at the top. look for the movie tool, next to the insert a picture tool. Paste the vimeo iFrame code into the field and click on submit.

I hope this helps!

hmm, nothing happens when I click on share, but the video shows up in your quote of my post? Whatever, I got the youtube one to work and edited it in. thanks!