General question about genetics?

[Indigosands]

I don't know where to put this really, since the breeding forum seems to be dedicated to specific breeds and this is a more general simple question. I feel rather dumb asking this but genetics can get really complicated so better ask a dumb question than not at all. I have a Ancona X EE rooster and 2 Ancona x EE hens. If I separate these 3 off for springtime breeding, I will get some crossed, some pure EE and some pure Ancona, correct? I'm really liking what the Ancona in them is bringing to the flock and due to the pleasant temperament of these birds I'd like to work with them a bit.

 

[donrae]

No. You can't get pure bred birds from mixed breed birds. You may get some that heavily favor each breed more, but they'll still have genes from the other breed. All your chicks will be ancona/ee mixes, just like the parents.

Do you have pics of these birds? I've never seen this cross and would like to see what they look like. What color eggs do your hens lay? I guess it depends on what genes the ee parent had, but I've crossed some leghorns with ee and gotten very pale mint green eggs.

 

[Mrs. K]

If you take a cross bred bird, and cross it with a pure bred bird, that is a 50/50% cross and then cross the next generation with a new pure bred bird, then you will have a 75%/25% cross..... and so on....getting closer and closer to pure bred.

A lot of times, with careful breeding, you can get a superior bird closer to the sop, from having a bit of something else in your gene pile, often times this is done to strengthen some blood lines.

However, mixing cross breds with cross breds often has the reverse results, and they get less production and farther from the sop.

If you like what kind of birds you got, what I would suggest is make a long term plan, and cross with one of those breeds in a pure strain, and after a year or two, then cross with the other breed. In other words, I would cross with the pure bred Ancona, if I could get one for a couple of years, then cross those daughters back to EE if you want.

Mrs K

 

[humphrey farms]

If you take a cross bred bird, and cross it with a pure bred bird, that is a 50/50% cross and then cross the next generation with a new pure bred bird, then you will have a 75%/25% cross..... and so on....getting closer and closer to pure bred.

A lot of times, with careful breeding, you can get a superior bird closer to the sop, from having a bit of something else in your gene pile, often times this is done to strengthen some blood lines.

However, mixing cross breds with cross breds often has the reverse results, and they get less production and farther from the sop.

If you like what kind of birds you got, what I would suggest is make a long term plan, and cross with one of those breeds in a pure strain, and after a year or two, then cross with the other breed. In other words, I would cross with the pure bred Ancona, if I could get one for a couple of years, then cross those daughters back to EE if you want.

Mrs K

x2

 

[Indigosands]

No. You can't get pure bred birds from mixed breed birds. You may get some that heavily favor each breed more, but they'll still have genes from the other breed. All your chicks will be ancona/ee mixes, just like the parents.

Do you have pics of these birds? I've never seen this cross and would like to see what they look like. What color eggs do your hens lay? I guess it depends on what genes the ee parent had, but I've crossed some leghorns with ee and gotten very pale mint green eggs.

If you take a cross bred bird, and cross it with a pure bred bird, that is a 50/50% cross and then cross the next generation with a new pure bred bird, then you will have a 75%/25% cross..... and so on....getting closer and closer to pure bred.

A lot of times, with careful breeding, you can get a superior bird closer to the sop, from having a bit of something else in your gene pile, often times this is done to strengthen some blood lines.

However, mixing cross breds with cross breds often has the reverse results, and they get less production and farther from the sop.

If you like what kind of birds you got, what I would suggest is make a long term plan, and cross with one of those breeds in a pure strain, and after a year or two, then cross with the other breed. In other words, I would cross with the pure bred Ancona, if I could get one for a couple of years, then cross those daughters back to EE if you want.

Mrs K

Well I'm glad I asked, how fascinating! The only pure bird I have access to is their Sire, so that's out. I will have to find a pure Ancona hen with good bloodlines to cross back to my rooster.

The hens started out speckled and those feathers fell out and were replaced with black. Hen #1 looks like a black ameraucana, just narrower in body. Slate legs, pea comb, beard. She lays a cream colored egg. The other is black, has the white ear of the ancona and a pea comb, I think slate legs on that one too but I can't recall. Very long, upright and proud tail. She lays a pale mint egg. Their eggs have not reached full size yet so I can't comment on that but they are every-day layers, can't count on that from my pure ee's.

Hen#1


Hen#2


This is the roo, probably around 4 mos old. He has black saddle feathers, gold leakage on the wing and hackles now and less of the mottling on the body. He is black with a speckled beard and some speckling along his feather tips wings and tail that I suspect might increase a bit after his first moult and he has gold leakage in the wing and neck. Slate legs. Body wise like an Ancona, very tall, stocky and proud. His comb is a cross between pea and single. Rather ugly, but hey he's a great boy.



What all of these crosses look like at hatch:

 

[enola]

You can breed the pullets back to their sire. You will get 75% pure chicks.

 

[donrae]

Breeding pullets back to their sire is an acceptable thing to do in breeding birds, for a few generations at least. It's actually a good way to lock in desirable traits in a line.

 

[Indigosands]

I might do that, then. They meet a lot of my "requirements", good in hot weather, good egg production, excellent temperament and instinct. I'll wait to see if the hens have any broodiness in them before I make a final decision but these might wind up being my go-to gals.