How to tell different stock of same breed apart? / What breeds can be bred ...

[DuckyDucklings]

How to tell different stock of same breed apart? / What breeds can be bred that are different colours? / (I know what I mean!!)
This is possibly the most silly question you've read today - if I could but articulate it(!) - but hope you can help?
Previously, with Call Ducks, I knew which ones were and weren't related in terms of breeding because of their different colours and markings. I'd now like to hatch some chickens, preferably bantams, but haven't decided which breed yet. I'd like to hatch eggs of the same breed from different sources to (hopefully) give me a healthy breeding stock ... but how do I, er, tell them apart easily if they're all the same colour? Is there a breed of chicken that different colours can be bred from? (I'm happy with strange colourings etc. but not everyone would be - they're to be pets, but I'd want to sell any extra ones.) i.e., after reading different posts on BYC it seems, with, say, Silkies, that pure bred chickens of one colour when crossed with another which is also pure bred of the same colour should give the same colour offspring....................but you wouldn't usually cross buff with white/any other colour so they're kept pure bred. (The eggs will be in the incubator at the same time so I won't necessarily be sure of which egg a chick has come out of to put a leg ring on/other, and they'll be raised together... If I had some black and some buff and some white life would be much easier!) Sorry - have had a very long day, and it's getting late here in the UK... Any advice? (apart from stick to ducks and get some sleep!!) Jane

 

[3riverschick]

You can mark the eggs with a magic marker before you incubate them. You can toe punch the chicks to ID them. Can also put colored Zip ties around the chicks legs.
here's a diagram and webpage on toe punching chicks:
http://www.strombergschickens.com/prod_detail_list/bird-identification
http://www.dominiquechicken.com/Toe_Punch_Chart.html
Best Regards,
Karen

 

[DuckyDucklings]

Thanks for your reply Karen, much appreciated, but as I say, I might not know which chick has come out of each egg. My question is really about different colours or other obvious differences.

 

[draye]

Try putting dividers in the hatcher tray. Mark your eggs, then you can toe punch or leg band them.

 

[ramirezframing]

my friend puts the eggs in grilling baskets when they go into lockdown. this way all of the line is in one spot and you can than leg band them