Cochin genetics questions...

[chicken_china_mom]

Ok, I have my bantam cochins, and I am interested in knowing what I would get if I combined certain colors. I had someone explain to me the genetics of crossing a mottled roo over my splash hens. I think they said after I bred the babies back to each other I would start to get blue mottled chicks, which is definitely something I want to work on next year. Here is what I have, can anyone tell me what I can combine, and what I would get?

1 pair of white cochins

1 pair of mottled

1 pair of barred cochins (barring is weak though and looks more cuckoo in pattern)

1 partridge cochin hen

1 splash roo and 4 splash hens

3 frizzled cochins, all hens, one red, one white, one black

I know if I take my white roo and put him over my white frizzle hen, I can get white frizzle chicks. But what if I put my white roo over say, my red frizzle? Or what if I put my splash roo over my white hen? I am interested in trying to get a grasp on the genetics. Next Spring will be my first time breeding and if I end up with a lot of chicks, I want them to be something people would be interested in buying. I know some colors come out "ugly" and that some people won't find them desirable. Any ideas on what I can do with what I have? Or, can you recommend a color I don't have and tell me what I could do with it? I love my bantam cochins. They are the sweetest little birds. I have standard breeds too in my flock, but none are cochins. However, my little barred roo REALLY seems to like my Amber Sexlink pullet! I don't plan to raise those babies though!
Also, I have a standard turken roo, he's partridge in color. Can I cross him over my white silkies, or is he too big? And if I can, what might I get? This feels like science class all over again. I understand dominancy in colors, and I know that even if I bred naked neck silkies, not all the chicks would come out that way, but would instead carry the gene. I am sure as I begin breeding next year I will learn this better, but I would like to get as much information now as possible to prepare myself for next year. Thank you for any information you can give me!

 

[Krys109uk]

If you look at Henk's Kip Calculator you can get an idea of what you would get & build your own virtual chicken.

http://kippenjungle.nl/Overzicht.htm#kipcalculator

The top language is Dutch, English is just below.

Breeding white with anything other than white is unpredictable because the recessive white genes switch off any colour & the bird could be a variety of colours underneath. So neither the calculator nor anyone here can accurately predict white crossed with another colour.
If you breed your white smooth with your white frizzles you ought to get in the region of 50% of each. Frizzle feathering is incompletely dominant but 'pure' for frizzling causes the birds feathers to be over frizzled & the easily break.
Naked Neck is incompletely dominant so crosses from your naked neck will show as naked necks.
Silkie (hookless) feathering is recessive.

Have fun making your virtual chickens.

 

[catwalk]

Here is another version of the calculator, with all the alleles below. So for example, if you know the ancestry of the white birds, and what colors the white may be hiding, you can change those genes on the list. If they are hererozygous for dominant white, you may get other colors in their offspring. I play with this calculator for hours -- it's really fun!
http://home.hetnet.nl/~h.meijers69/kruising.html

ETA: if you come up with millie fleur in your group somewhere, send them on over!

 

[chicken_china_mom]

It took me a little while to get the hang of this website, but it did give me some ideas. I know what I came up with isn't an exact science, since I can't know for sure what is in the background of the birds I have, but at least I have a vague idea of some things that I could potentially come up with. Thanks for the link!