Getting a Mauve Orpington Chick from Chocolate parents.

[Redhead Rae]

I'll be posting pictures as the little cockerel grows and if I hatch more.

 

[The Moonshiner]

As for the original question.
No blue can be carried sight unseen. If one of your adults had a blue gene they would be expressing it and be mauve.
Nothing looks to be involving the blue gene in any birds pictured.
Never worked with dun so no help there.

 

[Sneebsey]

Test-breeding will be worth it to improve the line, for sure, and those split-to-choc cockerels you'll produce would be great to increase genetic diversity in your Chocolates. You could even go on to create a pen of dun/khaki Orps, if you so wished. (Apologies that I'm suddenly encouraging you to add at least two extra pens and a lot more birds )

 

[Redhead Rae]

Test-breeding will be worth it to improve the line, for sure, and those split-to-choc cockerels you'll produce would be great to increase genetic diversity in your Chocolates. You could even go on to create a pen of dun/khaki Orps, if you so wished. (Apologies that I'm suddenly encouraging you to add at least two extra pens and a lot more birds )

I'm considering dropping Orps except for hobby purposes. But I do like that chocolates can produce non-hybrid sexlinks.

I'm working on Dark Cornish, Blue/black Cochins, and Chocolate Orps at the moment. I have mutts too, but they are mainly for flock/egg color.

Next year I'll have two pens for my Dark Cornish, One for Cochins, and One for Orps.

 

[Redhead Rae]

I have another off color baby.

 

[Redhead Rae]

So, I've done some reading and thinking. If I want to eventually remove this off color in my breeding program, I just cull any chicks (sell, use for layers, eat, but not for breeding) displaying the trait since it is dominant, but doesn't show in adult plumage. Once I get rid of the parent stock, I should be fine moving forward. Am I correct?

 

[Sneebsey]

If you can identify the culprit then yes. As it's incomplete dominant (incomplete as two copies of the gene results in a different appearance than just one) it shouldn't be too difficult to breed out, only complicated by the similarity in adult plumage. Trap nesting is also an option, to help you identify the mother of each egg.

For the time being, I'd leg band or otherwise mark the possible dun chicks, both to observe their progression to adult plumage and to keep them separate from the chocolate chicks. They ought to sell fairly well as pets or backyard layers, as the colour is so unusual.

 

[Redhead Rae]

For the time being, I'd leg band or otherwise mark the possible dun chicks, both to observe their progression to adult plumage and to keep them separate from the chocolate chicks. They ought to sell fairly well as pets or backyard layers, as the colour is so unusual.

I'm considering getting a toe punch. I'll be hatching from two different groups of Dark Cornish next year and I want an easy way to ID individuals from each group. I'm too busy with work and my toddler to change leg bands as often as needed on growing birds.

I thought selling them as layers would work, and eating the males.

 

[Redhead Rae]

Oh, good news, the 5 babies that hatched yesterday were adopted by my Broody White Leghorn.

 

[Redhead Rae]

@nicalandia I saw your post in The Moonshiner's Leghorn's post mentioning dun. Could you give your opinion on my birds here?