Crossbreeding dual purpose breeds for sustainable flock

[NatJ]

The weights listed for Bielefelders might be higher but the one I have still grew slower than the NH, both from mcmurray.

In that case, I see why you want to mix in the NH rather than using pure Bielefelders. Personal experience with the specific birds you intend to use is much more useful than internet descriptions of the traits a breed is supposed to have.

 

[ChickenLeg]

Nice! I thought about starting with EEs but they seem to be so mixed and unknown, I wouldn't know whether they were homozygous or not for blue eggs and color and pattern would be a complete grab bag. It seemed faster to start with the ameraucanas and have some known factors going in.
Your birds look nice!

Yeah thats a good point mine arent the cleanest still have some unwanted and unknown genes from the EE mix, especially some unwanted lacing genes

 

[HomesteadNowhere]

Everyone must be hot on ordering their chicks this year. Mcmurray already has alot already sold out for pullets.
I need to ask at the farm store where they get their chicks from and if I can order through them. Might be easier this year.

I started a hatching thread. I set 49 eggs yesterday, added 7 today. I'm sure there will be some duds and quitters. Trying not to sit and hover at the incubator
I haven't separated any, just the escape artists. Those are going to be sold. They are 4 buff orp and 1 partridge rock. They are smaller and no meat to them. Laying fine just not what I need. The eggs are from 1 of the buff orp (who only recently decided to be an escape artist), 1 white, 1 new Hampshire, 8 buff brahma, and the 10 FR.

I'm going to try and make a tractor to separate them. Things just never worked out to use the sheep shed over winter. With a tractor pen I could put one roo, the white, and the brahmas. Then the chickshaw will have one roo, the NH, and the FRs. So I can collect just the FR and NH eggs to hatch. It will also let me feed them differently.

I also want to renovate the chickshaw back to have roll out nests. I still have an egg eater but can't pick them out. I think whichever it is only eats it's own egg though. It's random days so just the one hen. Still annoying.

 

[HomesteadNowhere]

I am playing with the genetics calculator again... I think the two brahmas are double laced and melanized. They have black necks and tails with double lacing on their back. Columbian doesn't make sense because Columbian restricts the black so they wouldn't be able to show black on the body. Which means any chicks from them could have a range of lacing possibilities.

 

[NatJ]

I am playing with the genetics calculator again... I think the two brahmas are double laced and melanized. They have black necks and tails with double lacing on their back. Columbian doesn't make sense because Columbian restricts the black so they wouldn't be able to show black on the body. Which means any chicks from them could have a range of lacing possibilities.

Yes, Columbian restricts black, but other genes can affect how that appears on the chicken. Single Laced chickens (like Wyandottes) usually have Columbian, but they still have the black lacing on their backs.

They might have Co/co+ rather than being pure Co/Co or co+/co+
The calculator says "incomplete Columbian" when I try that (depending on what other genes are in it, of course).
And of course they may be impure (heterozygous) for some other genes, too.

I agree, it will be interesting to see their chicks, and you might get an interesting range of patterns in them!

 

[HomesteadNowhere]

Yes, Columbian restricts black, but other genes can affect how that appears on the chicken. Single Laced chickens (like Wyandottes) usually have Columbian, but they still have the black lacing on their backs.

They might have Co/co+ rather than being pure Co/Co or co+/co+
The calculator says "incomplete Columbian" when I try that (depending on what other genes are in it, of course).
And of course they may be impure (heterozygous) for some other genes, too.

I agree, it will be interesting to see their chicks, and you might get an interesting range of patterns in them!

Ahh ok, that makes sense. I didn't understand that about incomplete Columbian. Definitely going to be interesting to see the different chicks that hatch.

 

[NatJ]

Ahh ok, that makes sense. I didn't understand that about incomplete Columbian. Definitely going to be interesting to see the different chicks that hatch.

I know that "incomplete Columbian" means the Columbian pattern isn't quite right.
But I do not know for sure HOW it is wrong.
And the little image doesn't change to tell me how it is different (as I'm sure you also noticed.)

I know it'll be quite a wait, but I'm looking forward to seeing what the chicks look like after they hatch and grow up, so we can see colors & patterns in their mature feathers

 

[HomesteadNowhere]

Had weird temp change yesterday. Holding good now though. I'm keeping a close eye on it. Definitely need to build my own incubator.

Playing with the genetics again.. any buff orp chicks should have pink legs. Brahma chicks should have feathered legs. I still can't figure out what the white hen is supposed to be breed so it's an unknown if it's rec white or what.

I keep playing with the options for combinations of Columbian and laced. If they are Co/co, Pg/pg..
-25% self red (Co/co, pg/pg)
-25% incomplete transverse penciled Columbian (Co/co, Pg/pg)
-25% incomplete transverse penciled (co/co, Pg/pg)
-25% incomplete Columbian with less hackle markings (co/co, pg/pg)

I obviously have more to learn! Ha.. anyway I'll just have to see what hatches and how they grow up to look. Not like I don't have a bunch of things I should be doing rather than play more with that...

The FR chicks will be interesting too. I'm assuming reds and buffs like they are. But since they are a hybrid it will be interesting to see if anything really different pops out.
It'll be better on the next hatch if I can get them separated and know their eggs for sure.

 

[NatJ]

I keep playing with the options for combinations of Columbian and laced. If they are Co/co, Pg/pg..
-25% self red (Co/co, pg/pg)
-25% incomplete transverse penciled Columbian (Co/co, Pg/pg)
-25% incomplete transverse penciled (co/co, Pg/pg)
-25% incomplete Columbian with less hackle markings (co/co, pg/pg)

Have you been putting in Ml as well? It apparently works with Pg to make some other patterns. And Db sometimes gets involved, too.

I've read that Pg, Ml, and Db are loosely linked to each other-- so they will not assort independently (like Pg and Co will), but they will recombine more often than some of the other known linkages.

I obviously have more to learn! Ha.. anyway I'll just have to see what hatches and how they grow up to look. Not like I don't have a bunch of things I should be doing rather than play more with that...

Sounds like fun!

Yes, genetics can be fascinating to learn, but I agree it can be a big time sink as well

 

[HomesteadNowhere]

Have someone coming tomorrow for the buffs and rock. I've got them in cages temporarily. They have been the escapees from the netting (repeatedly). And they aren't what I'm working towards.

The Bielefelder roo has decided he doesn't like me and has come at me minor-ly a couple times. Last week he really came at me and managed to get me well enough to draw some blood. It was right above my rubber boots and I couldn't tell if it was him trying to spur me or peck me. He did peck me on the arm once, since it is a scratch I'm erring that it was his spurs. Every time has been random and at a time I wasn't doing anything to upset the roos or hens. Once just standing there, away from the flock, watching them eat. He came diagonally kind of behind me. I'd been keeping my eye on him while I was in there. But he just came from eating fifteen feet away to go at me.
So he is in a cage. I need to renovate the tractor pen to be usable. It's so heavy. But then he can go in there and I can split up the hens.

Since the cages will be empty I'm going to catch some hens to cage temporarily to see who is laying and not. The other day I caught two of the FR hens laying eggs. I've been getting some real small eggs though that I'm guessing is from brahma hens. So we'll see.
It will also give me opportunity to get a good hands on evaluation of each one.