Dominque crosses

[LikeTurkeys]

I just had 3 chicks hatch out, 2 Dominique x Buff Orpington and 1 Dominque x Easter Egger. The Dominique is the father. One of the Buff Orpington cross chicks is more yellow in the face and has a rose comb, the other is less so, smaller and has a single comb. I can't tell what kind of comb the EE mix is. Can anyone explain the genetics behind this and can the gender be determined based off of the differences? Here are some pics:

This is the first Dominique x BO cross with rose comb.

Second DOM x BO with single comb.

And this is the DOM x EE.

Here are all of them with their mother, just because it's cute:

Thanks!!!

 

[centrarchid]

Some Dominique stocks do not breed true for rose comb, especially at least a couple commercial hatchery flocks as they appear to use a cross that is not of good type and not homozygous for rose comb. Presumably this is to produce more hatching eggs and allow feather sexing where males develop wing feathers much slower than females. Not all the hatchery stock sold carries the single (wildtype) comb allele. Yours may be more of a cross than you know. A picture of him would be informative.

Some show stock may be allowed to carry single comb allele to help with fertility issues associated with rose comb, although I personally have not had birds with that characteristic from private stocks. It been a few years now since I got American Dominiques from several sources at same time to ferret this stuff out.

I have made American Dominique crosses with American Games where the latter are highly variable in terms of coloration. The latter carries alleles that can make either for the brown face on black body or brown body all over. Yours appears to be of the former.

You can sex chicks at a glance when American Dominique is the mother, but when father all chicks same on characters based on coloration. With my stock I can sex with reasonable accuracy by looking at foot size. Even at hatch males have larger feet. Reasonable for me.

 

[LikeTurkeys]

Here is the father:

I'm hoping that I only have one male, because his legs are much bigger than the other two. (He's also much bigger and heavier overall).

 

[LikeTurkeys]

Also, any idea what these will lay when they grow up? I'm hoping olive eggs out of the EE cross and dark brown out of the BO cross.

 

[LikeTurkeys]

Also, any idea what these will lay when they grow up? I'm hoping olive eggs out of the EE cross and dark brown out of the BO cross.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Olive eggs are a good possibility but I don't see anything dark in those breeds.

 

[LikeTurkeys]

Olive eggs are a good possibility but I don't see anything dark in those breeds.

Whoops, for some reason I thought that Dominiques laid dark brown eggs. Never mind then...

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Whoops, for some reason I thought that Dominiques laid dark brown eggs. Never mind then...

That's cool. Dark laying breeds, in order of lighter to darker are Langshan, Barnevelder, Welsummer, Empordanesa, Penedesenca and Marans. (but not all Marans)

 

[LikeTurkeys]

What's the comb of the EE cross? or is it too young to tell.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

It's hard to tell with crosses so I'd say it is too young.
That said, if it is a cross, there is no real way to tell what the comb will be in future generations.