crossing breeds?

[AquaEyes]

Quote:
From what I've learned on the Ameraucana thread, there are three "beard choices" -- 1) having a big beard at hatch and maintaining it through maturation and adulthood; 2) going through a "beardless" or "almost beardless" stage and get their (smaller) beards late; and 3) not having a beard at all. That's how the "incomplete dominance" of the bearded gene comes into play. In "true dominance" there would be no difference in appearance between a bird with one "beard gene" and a bird with two "beard genes." In "incomplete dominance" there is a difference in appearance between a bird with one copy and a bird with two copies, giving the effect of a "double dose" of the gene. What is found with the beard gene is that birds with two "beard genes" look like #1, birds with one "beard gene" look like #2, and birds with no "beard genes" look like #3.

Think of it the way Black/Blue/Splash works. Black is equivalent to "no beard", Blue is equivalent to "one beard gene", and Splash is equivalent to "two beard genes." Being beardless means having no "beard genes", like being Black means having no "blue genes." Knowing that, look at your bearded birds, and follow the pattern for B/B/S breeding. If your Brabanter cock fits the #1 description, he has two "beard genes" and model him as Splash. If he went through a beardless stage, he has one "beard gene" and model him as Blue. If your pullet is beardless, she has no "beard genes" and model her as Black. Then follow the B/B/S pattern of breeding to determine what you'd get.


Hope that helped.

 

[wmsmith09]

I'm trying to mix Silkie Bantams with Seramas, and because the silkies are bigger, I was a little worried for the hen. Should I breed Male Seramas with female silkies, because of the eggs size? I was worried that if I bred them the other way, the eggs might be to big for the hen? I'm not sure if that is an issue.

 

[AquaEyes]

Quote:
Egg size is determined by the female, not the male. She won't lay bigger eggs if she is bred to a bigger male.

What is your goal? If you want to make silkie-feathered seramas, they already exist. If you want to make tiny silkies, you might do better by selecting for smaller size.

 

[wmsmith09]

Quote:
Egg size is determined by the female, not the male. She won't lay bigger eggs if she is bred to a bigger male.

What is your goal? If you want to make silkie-feathered seramas, they already exist. If you want to make tiny silkies, you might do better by selecting for smaller size.

Okay great, cause I know that's an issue with dogs and cats, and I've never had chickens before, so I was alittle unsure.

Well I've found it to be rather hard finding Silkied Seramas and I like both silkies and seramas. So I guess it's a mixture of the two really, Silkie Seramas and/or small Silkies, which I already found a really small silkie wich I plan on breading with my Silkie/Serama, I have now.

 

[hallerlake]

Quote:
From what I've learned on the Ameraucana thread, there are three "beard choices" -- 1) having a big beard at hatch and maintaining it through maturation and adulthood; 2) going through a "beardless" or "almost beardless" stage and get their (smaller) beards late; and 3) not having a beard at all. That's how the "incomplete dominance" of the bearded gene comes into play. In "true dominance" there would be no difference in appearance between a bird with one "beard gene" and a bird with two "beard genes." In "incomplete dominance" there is a difference in appearance between a bird with one copy and a bird with two copies, giving the effect of a "double dose" of the gene. What is found with the beard gene is that birds with two "beard genes" look like #1, birds with one "beard gene" look like #2, and birds with no "beard genes" look like #3.

Think of it the way Black/Blue/Splash works. Black is equivalent to "no beard", Blue is equivalent to "one beard gene", and Splash is equivalent to "two beard genes." Being beardless means having no "beard genes", like being Black means having no "blue genes." Knowing that, look at your bearded birds, and follow the pattern for B/B/S breeding. If your Brabanter cock fits the #1 description, he has two "beard genes" and model him as Splash. If he went through a beardless stage, he has one "beard gene" and model him as Blue. If your pullet is beardless, she has no "beard genes" and model her as Black. Then follow the B/B/S pattern of breeding to determine what you'd get.


Hope that helped.

That's what I was hoping. Thank you.

 

[AquaEyes]

Sorry for not simply answering your questions individually, but I wanted to have you understand the principles and answer the questions yourself.

"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."

 

[WilberClucker]

I got my first flock of RSL in Sept. Now I'm just about to hatch a batch of Red-Sex-Links crossed with my Golden Laced Wyandotte Roo. Will be an interesting colour combo, an still a decent producer. Should be hatching March 25th. This is a first for me.