Iowa Blue, bantam or something else?

[skydancer28]

I bought this mystery chick with her big friend, a Dark Brahma. They stick together, but, while the Brahma is sweet and friendly, this one wants nothing to do with people--or with any of the rest of the flock. She has remained small--four months old, and about the size of a female pigeon. Slate legs, in case the color does not show up well.










Any guesses?

 

[skydancer28]

Wow, the silence is deafening!!!

C'mon, folks, any guesses--or is it so obvious that you don't want to embarrass me? ;-)

 

[my sunwolf]

I have no idea! Is she bantam sized? She looks full grown. If she's small, could be some sort of silver Old English Game bantam. Sorry I can't be any more help...

 

[skydancer28]

Well, she's bigger now...;-) but still bantam sized.

If she did not freak out so badly when anyone--or anychicken (except the Brahma and the Silkie) come near her, I might be interested in adding her to the laying flock. We'll see...

 

[IowaBlueCurt]

She could be an Iowa Blue cross. She does possess some similar characteristics. Would also explain the semi-Iowa Blue coloring.

 

[Shasty57]

She looks like an Iowa Blue cross to me also. How old is she? My Iowa Blue hen is 7 and a half months old and she lays small, beige eggs. Her comb is different though then yours. She has a single comb, not real big but quite a bit bigger than your picture. My Iowa Blue has a different personality than the rest of my girls. She is a little more stand-offish but still demands her treats, lol. Whatever your girl is she is very pretty!

 

[BantamLover21]

Probably an Iowa Blue cross.

 

[Wyandottes7]

I agree, she could be an Iowa Blue.

 

[Shasty57]

She does look like an Iowa Blue

 

[IowaBlueCurt]

Here's a couple pics to look at.

Here's what a traditional Iowa Blue hen looks like as created by John Logston in the early 1920's.

Here's what a hens from Ideal Hatchery look like (Privett, Welp, and Stromberg's drop ship from Ideal's breeding pens).

And here's a copy of the hen in question,


I think if she is an Iowa Blue cross, it's possible she could be crossed from Ideal's line, but I don't think she's a cross from the Silver type of Iowa Blue. I've seen and bred many crosses of the Silver Iowa Blue like the photo on top and I don't think genetically you'd get anything similar to this pullet in question. But, with genetics, nothing is certain! hahaha
I do notice this pullet having yellow legs. This doesn't occur within a purebred population, so that disqualifies her from a "purebred" status.......

As I study this pullet more and more, I'm wondering if she's a Phoenix cross. Look at her tail angle particularly and her head shape. If she had Iowa Blue in her background she'd have a very high (70-90) degree tail angle. Those IB's stamp their offspring with high tails. But this little lady has a low tail angle. Phoenix are also smaller in size......

Thoughts on this pullet being a Phoenix cross?