Chick Sneezing Blood- 6 Week Old Delaware

[Cetawin]

Kathy you will not find a written article on it as the study is ongoing. But a blood sample and dna sequencing and other tests showed Fattie's double dwarf gene. Cannonball was fine...and she was the one I though was a dwarf but she is merely petite. Last I spoke to the vet, he has 50 test birds he is working with...studying this dwarf and double gene and the resulting offspring in a controlled study.

Cyn, you know Ike has a home if you need to rehome him. DH will build.him a.coop of his own.

 

[joletabey]

Cetawin, how is that double gene placed in the DNA sequencing, do you know? I am not sure that is significant, but I want to understand this better than I do now.

 

[speckledhen]

Cetawin, tried to send you a message back, but I get an error message, so I can't use the PM system, darn it. I reported it in the Staff section so when the guys on the west coast wake up, hopefully, it will be fixed.


Thing is that even if Isaac had the gene, he would pass it on to only 50% of his progeny, I read. Could be only Georgie has a double gene just like Fattie did, but the point is that we don't know for 100% certainty without testing. Fattie's test results showed a double dwarf gene is possible. Wish testing was more readily available, but just to be sure, they won't be reproduced again, none of them, just in case, including Tasha. Shame, too, because I think she'll be very typey.

 

[Serrin]

Cyn! What's all this talk of sending Ike away?!?! Have you lost your grip on the roost there woman?!?! Ike ain't going nowhere and you know it! He's your buddy! He's one of the best roosters you've ever had and certainly ranks at the top of the list of "Best Roosters The World Has Ever Known". No matter what his genetics might indicate, he is an awesome protector of the flock. And he's your friend. So let's be done with all of this crazy talk of finding a new home for Ike. He doesn't need one! All Ike needs is a nice little coop with room for him and four or five of his favorite ladies. So long as you're still in his life Cyn, I know he'd be the happiest boy on earth!

 

[joletabey]

LH, I know you posted part of that vet report long ago, but for the life of me, I cannot pull it up.

What exactly is a double gene? I have so darn many questions about this - my understanding of genetics is that you get one gene from each parent per location, how do you get a double gene that gets passed from only one parent? And if that is confusing, its because I don't even understand this enough to frame my questions correctly.

Is there any way we can contact this vet and see if he would let us print part of his report on the Del club site? I do think everyone should be aware of it.

You know, Cyn, I am sorry you had to be the person caught in the middle of this , but you are doing the breed an incredible service by being so open about this - you really are. Kudos to you!!!

 

[speckledhen]

This is just one of those surprises that many breeders encounter when genes combine. Since you can't see genes unless they're expressed in a bird, this is not something that is my fault, Janet's fault or anyone's unless they knowingly did not cull dwarf gene carriers from their breeding programs way back in the lines used to make this line. I was as perplexed as anyone who ended up with one of these dwarfs, but after testing and culling three hens, including the hen who mothered Fattie as well as that hen's daughter, we were positive the gene was gone.

If I had definitely known it was a possibility that another dwarf would hatch, there is no way I would have incubated any of the eggs again. I'm sure that anyone who knows me knows that. I guess some people would just hide all this from their customers but everyone needs to know what they're looking at when they see one of these poor little critters. There will be no more coming from here. Could be they'll never show up again or one may pop up down the line somewhere, but it won't be because of me. Not all progeny will carry that gene, either, since it isn't passed on every time. And there has to be two genes to express it. The little monkey wrench that one bird may carry two (and they can carry two copies of the blue gene to be splash, so why not two copies of a dwarf gene?) is what no one anticipated.

LH, I would miss Ike terribly if I had to rehome him. You know how much I love Ike, Zane and Suede, but if it came to that and you and your DH still wanted him, he'd be yours. I can't see him going anywhere else.

 

[kathyinmo]

Carrying 2 copies of blue to get splash still comes from BOTH parents .... one from each parent to get it.

The genetic code in DNA, is virtually identical across all living organisms. Chickens have 78 chromosomes, made up of 39 pairs of chromosomes (one from each parent). Chromosomes are long strands of genes. *Chickens have 16,736 genes, (a number which will likely grow as scientists put the finishing touches on the chicken genome).

Our bodies (and chickens') are made up of millions of cells. Each cell contains genes. Not all genes are "active" in every cell. Some genes are "switched off," and others are, "switched on." Genes can change, as well. Changes to genes can occur with (human example here) radiation or chemicals (medications), or even aging. As our bodies age, our cells need to be continually replaced. The cells are copied over and over again. Sometimes mistakes occur in this copying process. This is called a "mutation."

All living organisms are born with several "faulty" genes. This can be beneficial or it can be a problem. When faulty genes are contained in the egg or sperm cell, they can be passed on to the child (inherited). The faulty gene may be in these cells because that organism (human or chicken or whatever) inherited it from one or both parents. Sometimes, however, a mutation can occur for unknown reasons and may cause a genetic condition, and this person (or chicken) will be the first in the family to have the condition which may then be passed down to the children and future generations.

 

[PepsNick]

Luna is alone in the dog crate, ready to be culled. Will do this evening, I think.

 

[joletabey]

Absolutely NO ONE should be thinking you or Janet did this on purpose. Good grief! And I doubt anyone does. It is not either of your faults that this happened. Like I said, I am sorry it showed up in your lovely birds, but maybe there is a silver lining to the cloud in that we can all learn about this now, and help eradicate it.
Breeding is difficult. Anytime you bring in stock from the outside, you will be dealing with hidden traits for several generations. It is just the way it is. I am reading a book by Ralph Sturgeon right now that says the fourth year is the toughest, because a lot of the bad hidden traits will pop out in that year, and you just have to hold on tight and keep working.

Nick, I will be thinking of you.

 

[speckledhen]

What is sad is that Georgie produces more great chicks than deficient ones, but you just can't keep hatching babies, knowing full well that you'll have to cull 25-30% of them from every batch. Better to never hatch from her or Ellie or Isaac again.

I'm sorry, Nick. I really am. In some ways, knowing that the chick will never get better and probably won't live long anyway should help just a tiny bit.