Hatcheries and Sibling Breeding

[ZepChick]

All of our chickens are 1 year old and we have started to think about breeding our rooster with one of the hens. We don't really care about the "show traits" especially since our chickens are Easter Eggers. We got all of our chickens from Murray McMurray Hatchery and if we bred Mika (our EE roo), it would be with another EE hen.

What I am wondering is, is there any way too tell if they are siblings?

Do the hatcheries grab X amount of baby chicks (of the same breed) from the same nest when they are getting ready to send them to you?

And if all of my EE hens are siblings with Mika, what are the chances of a mutated chicken? Is it safe to breed brother/sister? Thank you very much!

~Cass

 

[moduckman]

There's really no way of telling if they are sibblings. Really, chances are they are not. Hatcheries have to have a lot of chicks from a lot of different breeds. That means there are several roosters and many hens involved. I would say there is a slim chance of brother/sister relationship. It is not good to breed brother/sister together. Will all the chicks be deformed? No, but the bad traits seem to pop up more down the road.

 

[ZepChick]

So would it be safe to breed Mika with our EEs?

 

[ZepChick]

Anyone?

 

[Buck Creek Chickens]

Should be fine, the probability that they are related is very small

 

[Cuban Longtails]

Yes, you'll be fine. In a couple of years you may want to bring in a new cock from an unrelated line (like a different hatchery, or someone's flock).

 

[ZepChick]

Thank you everyone!!!

~Cass

 

[Oceanseve]

Even if they are related the chances of you having problems resulting from it are slim unless you do it repeatedly.

No I'm not wierd, just went to school in anthropology - It would actually take 3 or more generations of interbreeding even in humans for the undesirable genes to appear. Least that is what the info was when I was in college, it could have changed..... That's why you see problems in purebred dogs because it has been generation after generation after generation of interbreeding.