Easter Egger chick parentage question

[fmernyer]

So if someone is selling me an Easter Egger chick and lists their hens and roosters..and there's no Easter Egger rooster...then what does that mean for the chicks??

I think I know the answer but...

 

[Odelia]

Surprise!

 

[Alaskan]

the chicks are less likely to lay blue or green eggs

 

[fmernyer]

*sigh* I thought so.

I was hoping for some weird math/biology secret that chickens have.

This fella is under the impression that if it hatches from a green egg - it'll lay a green egg...etc. :/

Thanks for the responses! I'm doing more research - chickens are interesting!

 

[Odelia]

If the chicks have pea combs they are fairly likely to lay green/blue eggs. If they were crossed with a breed that lays dark eggs like a marans or welsummer rooster you can get lovely olive green eggs. If they do not have the pea comb associated with the araucana breed then you should plan on regular old brown eggs. Good luck with your mystery chicks.

 

[fmernyer]

Interesting!

These are his roosters:

One Black Austrolorp
One Light Brahma
Two Blue-laced Red Wyandottes

Can you tell what comb they have when they're hatched?

I'm guessing its not likely I'll be able to tell gender if I don't even know who was bred with whom. Am I right?

 

[Odelia]

Interesting!

These are his roosters:

One Black Austrolorp
One Light Brahma
Two Blue-laced Red Wyandottes

Can you tell what comb they have when they're hatched?

I'm guessing its not likely I'll be able to tell gender if I don't even know who was bred with whom. Am I right?

You can easily tell the difference between let say a pea comb and a single comb the austrolorp has. It should be more difficult to tell the difference between a pea and a rose comb that wyahdottes have. I just looked up the comb for brahma's (it is a breed I don't own) unluckly it is also listed as having a pea comb. Hope that helps.

 

[debid]

To further complicate matters, you're likely to see combs with mixed type because the parent birds had different comb types. I have some EEs with really funky, odd combs from pea mixed with rose or single. Mine all lay blue or green but I bought them from an experienced hatchery, not someone breeding randomly. And no, you won't be able to tell gender until they are feathered at the earliest.

 

[enola]

If any of his ee hens lay blue eggs chicks from those eggs would lay green eggs.

 

[debid]

If any of his ee hens lay blue eggs chicks from those eggs would lay green eggs.

Not necessarily. For simplicity's sake, white + blue = blue eggs. If she passes white and the cockerel passes brown, the chick would lay brown. My understanding is that few EEs are pure for blue shell.