Houdan cross Silkie

[horvatichmaria]

Hello! I’m wondering what my outcome of chicks would be to cross my Houdan Rooster with my Silkie hens! My rooster is a black and white mottled color and my Silkie hens are white!

 

[Rose the Legbar]

@NatJ

 

[NatJ]

Hello! I’m wondering what my outcome of chicks would be to cross my Houdan Rooster with my Silkie hens! My rooster is a black and white mottled color and my Silkie hens are white!

You will probably get chicks that grow up to be black, although they may show some leakage of other colors in their feathers.

There is a chance that the Silkie has different "white" genes than I expect, which would give you might get white or paint chicks instead of black ones.

Chicks should have crests, combs that look sort-of like the Silkie comb, 5th toe like the Silkies, muff/beard if either parent has that trait.

Chicks should have normal-type feathers, not silkie-type feathers.

 

[horvatichmaria]

How about do I introduce/bring in silkie type feathers when breeding? Same question goes for frizzle? As I have a couple of those!

 

[NatJ]

How about do I introduce/bring in silkie type feathers when breeding? Same question goes for frizzle? As I have a couple of those!

Frizzle is a dominant gene, so frizzle feathers are pretty easy to introduce:

Breed a frizzle to a chicken with normal feathers, and about half of the chicks will have frizzle feathers.

For any chick with frizzle feathers, breeding it to a normal-feathered chicken will also produce about half frizzled chicks and half normal.

Breeding a frizzle to another frizzle is not recommended, because some of the chicks will inherit two frizzle genes, which causes them to have poor-quality feathers (frazzle), and they tend to have some other health problems as well.



For silkie feathers, that is a recessive gene.

If you breed a chicken with silkie feathers to one that has normal feathers and does not carry the gene for silkie feathers, all chicks will have normal feathers and all chicks will carry the gene for silkie feathers.

Breeding those silkie-carrier chicks to a silkie will give about 50% chicks with silkie feathers and 50% carriers (chicks that show normal feathers but carry the silkie feather gene.)

Breeding silkie carriers to each other will give about 25% chicks with silkie feathers, 50% silkie carriers, and 25% chicks that show normal feathers and do not carry the silkie feather gene.

If you breed silkie carriers to chickens that have normal feathers and do not carry the silkie gene, about half of chicks will be silkie carriers, and the other half will have normal feathers without carrying the silkie feather gene. You cannot tell which chicks are carriers and which are not, unless you test-mate them with a silkie or a silkie carrier and see whether any of their chicks show silkie feathers.

 

[horvatichmaria]

Frizzle is a dominant gene, so frizzle feathers are pretty easy to introduce:

Breed a frizzle to a chicken with normal feathers, and about half of the chicks will have frizzle feathers.

For any chick with frizzle feathers, breeding it to a normal-feathered chicken will also produce about half frizzled chicks and half normal.

Breeding a frizzle to another frizzle is not recommended, because some of the chicks will inherit two frizzle genes, which causes them to have poor-quality feathers (frazzle), and they tend to have some other health problems as well.



For silkie feathers, that is a recessive gene.

If you breed a chicken with silkie feathers to one that has normal feathers and does not carry the gene for silkie feathers, all chicks will have normal feathers and all chicks will carry the gene for silkie feathers.

Breeding those silkie-carrier chicks to a silkie will give about 50% chicks with silkie feathers and 50% carriers (chicks that show normal feathers but carry the silkie feather gene.)

Breeding silkie carriers to each other will give about 25% chicks with silkie feathers, 50% silkie carriers, and 25% chicks that show normal feathers and do not carry the silkie feather gene.

If you breed silkie carriers to chickens that have normal feathers and do not carry the silkie gene, about half of chicks will be silkie carriers, and the other half will have normal feathers without carrying the silkie feather gene. You cannot tell which chicks are carriers and which are not, unless you test-mate them with a silkie or a silkie carrier and see whether any of their chicks show silkie feathers.

Tha

Frizzle is a dominant gene, so frizzle feathers are pretty easy to introduce:

Breed a frizzle to a chicken with normal feathers, and about half of the chicks will have frizzle feathers.

For any chick with frizzle feathers, breeding it to a normal-feathered chicken will also produce about half frizzled chicks and half normal.

Breeding a frizzle to another frizzle is not recommended, because some of the chicks will inherit two frizzle genes, which causes them to have poor-quality feathers (frazzle), and they tend to have some other health problems as well.



For silkie feathers, that is a recessive gene.

If you breed a chicken with silkie feathers to one that has normal feathers and does not carry the gene for silkie feathers, all chicks will have normal feathers and all chicks will carry the gene for silkie feathers.

Breeding those silkie-carrier chicks to a silkie will give about 50% chicks with silkie feathers and 50% carriers (chicks that show normal feathers but carry the silkie feather gene.)

Breeding silkie carriers to each other will give about 25% chicks with silkie feathers, 50% silkie carriers, and 25% chicks that show normal feathers and do not carry the silkie feather gene.

If you breed silkie carriers to chickens that have normal feathers and do not carry the silkie gene, about half of chicks will be silkie carriers, and the other half will have normal feathers without carrying the silkie feather gene. You cannot tell which chicks are carriers and which are not, unless you test-mate them with a silkie or a silkie carrier and see whether any of their chicks show silkie feathers.

 

[horvatichmaria]

Thank you!!