Heritage White Dorking Thread

[3riverschick]

Hi,
Please can someone tell me the genetic formula for the proper white Dorking?
Thanks,
Karen

 

[Yellow House Farm]

They're a dominant white--at least mine are. I think they're either E or ER.

 

[3riverschick]

They're a dominant white--at least mine are. I think they're either E or ER.

Oh well crap. Sigh. Great for you, not good for any plans for me. No Dorking x Sussex cross for me. Maybe I could have dealt with the comb and 5th toe issues, but crossing alleles is not something I want to venture into. Oh well, onward we go...
Best, Karen

 

[Yellow House Farm]

Oh well crap. Sigh. Great for you, not good for any plans for me. No Dorking x Sussex cross for me. Maybe I could have dealt with the comb and 5th toe issues, but crossing alleles is not something I want to venture into. Oh well, onward we go...
Best, Karen

You might find, though, that it's just a two generation thing. Meaning make the cross, then crossback, a percentage will be eWh. It's like when I crossed out Anconas to Wht Leghorns: 1st gen = all white. Second gen = percentage Ancona. Keep, then only Ancona, and recessive to recessive means all recessive, as you know. I've never seen a white again.

In theory, it would all be in the chick down.

 

[3riverschick]

You might find, though, that it's just a two generation thing. Meaning make the cross, then crossback, a percentage will be eWh. It's like when I crossed out Anconas to Wht Leghorns: 1st gen = all white. Second gen = percentage Ancona. Keep, then only Ancona, and recessive to recessive means all recessive, as you know. I've never seen a white again.

In theory, it would all be in the chick down.

Hi Joseph,

Ok, I can see that. But if both breeds are basically white, how do you tell which ones are eWh and which are Dominant White? Is there a difference in the chick down? A properly colored LS is a yellow chick. what color chick is a White Dorking? Is there some kind of sex-linked down difference or something which lets you know which are 1/2 and 1/2?
Also on the rose comb/single comb thing? Did you get intermediates or was it one or the other? Did any intermediates spring up later?
Thanks for all your help!
Karen

 

[neen]

My Michigan contact was able to provide 22 hatching eggs, set on August 1st in the incubator. Now one of my hens is breathtakingly broody! I can hear her shrieking at the other hens from a hundred yards away. She makes me think of an overdone bride, draping her wedding dress over the entire nest box. I swear I could fit 2 dozen eggs under her pancakeness.

It's too early to judge fertility from this source, but I've been struggling with poor hatching, even of fully developed chicks. I've had chicks pip,and zip and still not get out of the egg. It does not appear to be a humidity issue. I'm stumped. So, when I see how many of these eggs are developing, and if I can move Her Broodiness successfully to a private location, I think I'll give her the eggs.

I plan to use a clan mating system, and was going to separate these chicks based on distinguishable shell characteristics. Hatched under a broody, I'll lose that opportunity. Since it's my first year, is separation of maternal lines important enough to keep a group of eggs in the incubator (risking non-hatch)? Or should I arbitrarily assign surviving and acceptable chicks to clans at the end of this season, and then maintain careful division beginning next year?

For clarity, I have 3 adult hens; 2 chicks from them of known paternity, different from paternity of the incubating eggs, but currently unknown gender; and 22 incubating eggs from outside hens that I can confidently separate into 2 maternal lines based on egg characteristics. All the adults were 2014 Yellow House Farm chicks. If anyone has suggestions re creation of clans from this collection, I would appreciate it.

Mary

 

[RiddleMe]

 

You might find, though, that it's just a two generation thing.  Meaning make the cross, then crossback, a percentage will be eWh.  It's like when I crossed out Anconas to Wht Leghorns: 1st gen = all white.  Second gen = percentage Ancona.  Keep, then only Ancona, and recessive to recessive means all recessive, as you know.  I've never seen a white again.

In theory, it would all be in the chick down.

Hi Joseph, 
Ok, I can see that. But if both breeds are basically white, how do you tell which ones are eWh and which are  Dominant White? Is there a difference in the chick down? A properly colored LS is a yellow chick. what color chick is a White Dorking? Is there some kind of sex-linked down difference or something  which lets you know which are 1/2 and 1/2?
 Also on the rose comb/single comb thing? Did you get intermediates or was it one or the other? Did any intermediates spring up later?
 Thanks for all your help!
 Karen

Hi Karen, I think at one point you were also considering a Chantecler cross, was there a reason to ditch that idea? I'm only on my second generation with the breed, but based on chick down and some test crossing this year, mine are eWh and recessive white, which I suspect is pretty standard for the breed. I do have one cock that might have both dominant and recessive white, but my others appear to just be recessive.

 

[3riverschick]

Hi Karen, I think at one point you were also considering a Chantecler cross, was there a reason to ditch that idea? I'm only on my second generation with the breed, but based on chick down and some test crossing this year, mine are eWh and recessive white, which I suspect is pretty standard for the breed. I do have one cock that might have both dominant and recessive white, but my others appear to just be recessive.

Hi RiddleMe,
Well I thought about it a lot and decided the Dorking's body was closer to what I was ultimately trying to accomplish That deep, full body and robust breast and long level back. So that's why I was considering the Dorking. There is the rosecomb issue in Dorkings but after a lot of thought, I was thinking the gains in body type would be worth it. We are very late this year and just starting to collect eggs tomorrow. So the chicks will hatch the 1st week of Sept.
best,
Karen

 

[RiddleMe]

Hi Karen, I think at one point you were also considering a Chantecler cross, was there a reason to ditch that idea? I'm only on my second generation with the breed, but based on chick down and some test crossing this year, mine are eWh and recessive white, which I suspect is pretty standard for the breed. I do have one cock that might have both dominant and recessive white, but my others appear to just be recessive.

Hi RiddleMe,
 Well I thought about it a lot and decided the Dorking's body was closer to what I was ultimately trying to accomplish That deep,  full body and robust breast and long level back. So that's why I was considering the Dorking. There is the rosecomb issue in Dorkings but after a lot of thought, I was thinking the gains in body type would be worth it. We are very late this year and just starting to collect eggs tomorrow. So the chicks will hatch the 1st week of Sept.
 best,
 Karen

That makes sense, and like Joseph mentioned, you will be able to select you eWh from chick down. It will be an interesting project.

 

[neen]

My broody would not settle in a new location. She's back with the flock and only half hearted in her setting. My injured rooster got his stitches out today and should be ready for graduated return to normal activity in a week or so. Of the 22 eggs, only 6 are developing, but if they hatch and survive, it will feel like a small but real step forward toward a viable flock of White Dorking. I'm looking toward 2016 with perhaps irrational optimism.