Hoping she is wrong.

[debid]

The white one is 100% a cockerel, pullets don't get feathers like he has. As for what to mix him with, There's a chicken genetics calculator that you could put different combinations into and get some idea of how the cross may look but I'd just pick the best layers and figure they'll be cute no matter what.

 

[lazy gardener]

I have a hobby farm, I don't want everyone's roosters, and my extras get eaten. We don't want everyone's cats either.

Agreed. Every now and then, I have some one who wants me to take their chickens. Nope. Not gonna happen. Closed flock here.

my youngest boy won't go out at all.

Time to eat that trouble maker roo and replace him with this gorgeous youngster.

So my follow up question will be. What can I mix him with for pretty babies? I own white rocks, buff Orpington (2 Of which I'm fighting broody right now), RIR, a white laced buff polish, dark Brahma, silver laced Wyandotte, speckled Sussex, and barred rock. ADDED and EE

All of the above! I love barn yard mix chicks.

 

[Krazyquilts]

I got them for my Aunt. They are at her place. I have 2 roos that I got for protection but the dominant one has earned the nickname "The mean one". My older kids won't go outside without jeans on and my youngest boy won't go out at all. I got after the roo and locked him away from his girls 2 days while he had to watch me be in with them. He has bowed to me ever since. I've had my big boys push him back and keep him separated for 30 minutes until all the chickens were gathered. If he ever starts pushing back he's gone. Then I will take this one.

Wow, sounds like your rooster wants to go to freezer camp! I have a rule that if a rooster does a unprovoked attack, he's gone the next butcher day. There are too many "city people" and kids that come around my farm for me to risk a potential lawsuit, and too many nice roosters that need homes for me to keep mean ones.

And I feel your pain about getting roosters. Just found out last week that an entire hatch of six is all boys!!! And I'm trying to start an egg business so I really needed the layers. I'm also concerned that the second one of the "probably pullets" two Olive Eggers I bought a few months ago are starting to look awfully rooster-y. The first one is definitely a rooster. And I don't think I can keep him even for breeding because he's got a single comb and from what I've read, the blue egg gene is linked with pea combs. So freezer camp for him too.

I feel a little bad about butchering the pretty roosters, but I can't afford to feed them all and people rarely want to buy roosters and it seems counter-productive for me to give away a rooster for free that I've feed and housed etc and then go to the farmers market and buy an expensive farm-raised chicken for Sunday dinner.

 

[lazy gardener]

A bit of searching turned up this: I assume the guy knows what he's talking about:

Post #10 on the following thread:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/does-having-a-pea-comb-on-an-ee-mean-blue-eggs.173099/
The pea comb gene and the blue egg gene are closely located to each other, and are usually inherited together, whichever alleles of each are present in a parent bird.

Let's assume that an EE hen is het for blue egg and for pea comb. That genotype is Oo Pp. She has one blue-egg gene and one not-blue-egg gene, and one pea-comb gene and one not-pea-comb gene.

If the two genes were not closely linked, there would be equal probabilities of her contributing any of the following gene to her progeny:

O P (blue & pea)
O p (blue & not-pea)
o P (not-blue, pea)
o p (not-blue, not-pea)

With linked genes, the more closely located they are on the chromosome, the more closely linked they are. It is still possible for the genes to be inherited separately, but the probability is less. Someone else has done the math based upon the distance these genes are apart and there is a 3% chance than they will be inherited separately. When that occurs, it is called crossover, and getting it to cross back is equally unlikely.

Find and read any poultry genetics book or website and you will find this information.

Post #11 on that thread is also good info.

 

[debid]

Wow, sounds like your rooster wants to go to freezer camp! I have a rule that if a rooster does a unprovoked attack, he's gone the next butcher day. There are too many "city people" and kids that come around my farm for me to risk a potential lawsuit, and too many nice roosters that need homes for me to keep mean ones.

And I feel your pain about getting roosters. Just found out last week that an entire hatch of six is all boys!!! And I'm trying to start an egg business so I really needed the layers. I'm also concerned that the second one of the "probably pullets" two Olive Eggers I bought a few months ago are starting to look awfully rooster-y. The first one is definitely a rooster. And I don't think I can keep him even for breeding because he's got a single comb and from what I've read, the blue egg gene is linked with pea combs. So freezer camp for him too.

I feel a little bad about butchering the pretty roosters, but I can't afford to feed them all and people rarely want to buy roosters and it seems counter-productive for me to give away a rooster for free that I've feed and housed etc and then go to the farmers market and buy an expensive farm-raised chicken for Sunday dinner.

I just have to point out that cream Legbars have single combs. The gene for egg color lies close to the one for comb type and they like to travel together. So, you'd need to know what comb type the blue egg parent had. If it was a pea combed EE, then you're correct that he doesn't likely have a blue shell gene. If it was an "Ameraucana", then the Am wasn't pure and ditto.

 

[Krazyquilts]

A bit of searching turned up this: I assume the guy knows what he's talking about:

Post #10 on the following thread:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/does-having-a-pea-comb-on-an-ee-mean-blue-eggs.173099/
The pea comb gene and the blue egg gene are closely located to each other, and are usually inherited together, whichever alleles of each are present in a parent bird.

Let's assume that an EE hen is het for blue egg and for pea comb. That genotype is Oo Pp. She has one blue-egg gene and one not-blue-egg gene, and one pea-comb gene and one not-pea-comb gene.

If the two genes were not closely linked, there would be equal probabilities of her contributing any of the following gene to her progeny:

O P (blue & pea)
O p (blue & not-pea)
o P (not-blue, pea)
o p (not-blue, not-pea)

With linked genes, the more closely located they are on the chromosome, the more closely linked they are. It is still possible for the genes to be inherited separately, but the probability is less. Someone else has done the math based upon the distance these genes are apart and there is a 3% chance than they will be inherited separately. When that occurs, it is called crossover, and getting it to cross back is equally unlikely.

Find and read any poultry genetics book or website and you will find this information.

Post #11 on that thread is also good info.

What an interesting post! I'll admit that I'm I still a little lost though - genetics are fascinating but confusing! The parentage of the Olive Egger cockerel I mentioned is Black Copper Maran father and Amereacana (sp?) mother. So do you think that the OE cockerel with the single comb probably does or doesn't carry the blue gene?

I'd hate to just experiment with him to see if he does or not, because it would be up to a year before any potential daughters of his would be laying for me to see their egg color. (He isn't mature enough to breed yet.)

 

[lazy gardener]

It all depends on your flock goals. If you're a fly by the seat of your pants person, like me, and he's a good roo, sure, I'd let him play in the gene pool. If you want something specific in your next generation, then... get the roo and hens who will produce that for you.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Just tell me you don't eat the extra cats.

Only if we can catch them.

 

[kesrchicky16]

The white one is 100% a cockerel, pullets don't get feathers like he has. As for what to mix him with, There's a chicken genetics calculator that you could put different combinations into and get some idea of how the cross may look but I'd just pick the best layers and figure they'll be cute no matter what.

Where might I find that calculator?

 

[Stayc]

Very cute