Improving feather shredding gene in lavenders

[Marigoldfarmsllc]

Is it possible to take a rather sad looking Lavender Orphington who’s has very shredded feathers and cross her back to a black bird and get offspring without that trait? If I crossed that offspring with a lavender again would it just dredge the feather gene up again??

 

[SourRoses]

It takes many generations. Breeding Lavender to Black (without Lav lineage) is the route to fix it, but it's not a quick fix.

Ideally, one would start with a large batch of Lavenders to choose from, and pick only the cleanest feathering.
Then cross to Black. Hatch a lot, because only a few will be worth breeding.
Match up those siblings, or put them back over a parent.
Rinse, Lather, Repeat.
You have to keep a line of Blacks free of Lav, because the black offspring that are split to Lav can also carry the shredding gene. Don't cross to other, shredded Lavenders.

Shredding comes in degrees, so you want to pick the least shredded. You won't get totally clean feathers in two or three generations.

It's honestly a lot cheaper to pay for birds that already have clean feathering. Some breeds don't have that option. I could not find any English Orpington breeders offering Lavenders with clean feathering.
On the other hand, Ameraucana breeders have put in the time and work, so nice clean ones are available.

 

[NatJ]

It's honestly a lot cheaper to pay for birds that already have clean feathering. Some breeds don't have that option. I could not find any English Orpington breeders offering Lavenders with clean feathering.
On the other hand, Ameraucana breeders have put in the time and work, so nice clean ones are available.

I wonder: are the Ameraucanas enough better that it would save time to re-create Lavender Orpingtons from Black Orpingtons and Lavender Ameraucanas? Or is it overall faster to work with Lavender Orpingtons and Black Orpingtons and not mix in another breed?