Introducing new blood line to blue orps

[halo]

Thanks, Christina, thats what Ill do. The blacks are gorgeous all to themselves.

 

[joebryant]

Quote:
Speckledhen, I am plannning to breed for dark blue only. My eggs came from a blue Orpington rooster X three blue Orpington hens. Out of the fifteen chicks that I incubated and hatched five weeks ago, I got five black, five blue, and five splash. I gave away the five splash ones. I'm keeping the black ones only because I have read the when bl O x bl O, the resulting black ones will lose their blackness with their first molt and become a very dark blue instead. I'm hopeful that that information is correct because it's the dark blue color that I want; if you breed dark-blue Orpington X dark-blue Orpington, you will get 100% dark-blue chicks, and that's what I want to have eventually, all dark blue.

 

[MissPrissy]

Quote:
Please show me where you read this. That defies the rules of genetics.

Blue x Blue = 25% Black 50% Blue 25% splash

 

[Katy]

I'm glad to hear the term dull black. I'm new to BBS orpingtons and I've got 3 blacks, but the one pullet is a much duller black than the two roos. I thought maybe it was just because she's a pullet.

 

[joebryant]

Quote:
Please show me where you read this. That defies the rules of genetics.

Blue x Blue = 25% Black 50% Blue 25% splash

Huh? How do you figure that that "defies the rules of genetics"?


http://www.bufforpington.co.uk/chickens.html

The genetics of the blue feathering means that you get a variety of colours in the youngstock

# almost a black - an iridescent blue/black that is gorgeous [not the same as the Black Orpington]
# a superb smoky colour with each feather darker laced
# or a pale lavender with darker streaks.
# and very occasionally a white will appear [it is likely that this is a splash as it has some shading as a chick and blue legs

for example
dark blue x splashed (speckled) = all blue
blue x blue = 1 dark blue: 2 blue: 1 splashed
dark blue x dark blue = all dark blue
Splashed x splashed = all splashed CLICK HERE

If you want your birds to be ranging outside you need to chose your breeder carefully as some birds will not be not very good at being exposed to the elements. The feathering is too fine, too soft. The utility birds are smaller in themselves and much harder feathered, giving them a greater waterproofing.

In our view the Orpington may not be the most productive of all our breeds - but they are some of the sweetest tempered and would grace any garden, making the cutest pets.

 

[KKluckers]

 

[KKluckers]

 

[speckledhen]

if you breed dark-blue Orpington X dark-blue Orpington, you will get 100% dark-blue chicks, and that's what I want to have eventually, all dark blue.

Doesnt seem right to me, but I am no genetics guru. I would expect some blacks and even a splash from that mating.
I was told that the feather shaft being blue, no matter how dark the bird is, means you have a blue bird. If the feather shaft is black, he's black. I rarely get super-dark blues, but I had one that I would swear was black; I went back and forth till he was about 10 weeks old when I sold him via the feedstore, but now I realize he was a very dark blue.​

 

[MissPrissy]

Dull black is what they are refering to as dark blue. They really are not blue as we see in Suede and Mosby - we call them black at that 'dark blue' color.

"Blue" is a mutation on the black gene that dilutes it. Suede and Mosby are a product of that dilution seeing the 'blue color'.

My dull 'black' cockeral I hatched is what you are refering to as 'dark blue'.

You will have a flock of chickens that look dull black.

If you expect all chicks to be 'blue' like suede and mosby you need the dull black cockeral and splash hens or the opposite - splash roo and dull black hens. This combination throws 100% blue chicks.

 

[joebryant]

Here's someone in England selling "dark blue" pullets. Maybe when I saw pictures of dark blue I was actually seeing "dull black", but they certainly looked an actual dark blue to me, not a washed-out black (plus they were described as dark blue). I'm going to be VERY disappointed if I raise these black hens until they molt and then get a dull/pale black instead.
http://www.pekinbantams.com/community/viewtopic.php?p=149565