lavender = soft feathering?

[klf73]

I have been looking at pics of lavender in different breeds and noticed that many look as though they have the *soft* type of feathering, the type that looks a little loose, not sure how else to describe it. Is this feather type linked to the color?

 

[hinkjc]

I would say yes. And the feather quality tends to be much weaker and breaks easily.

 

[Krys109uk]

Lavender can, as far as I know, be added to any breed irrespective of feather type.
I have read that lavender can affect feather quality, which holds with my experience.

 

[MichiganWoods]

How does that soft feathering compare to silkie feathers? Or are silkie feathers actually more durable?

 

[Poulets De Cajun]

In breeding Lavender Silkies, we are getting what we have dubbed the "lizzard gene." They are hatched with what appears to be a lot of pin feathers, and they also feather out sometimes MONTHS behind their fellow offspring in other varieties. They feather out nicely though...

 

[Krys109uk]

How does that soft feathering compare to silkie feathers? Or are silkie feathers actually more durable?

Lavender birds not necessarily 'soft' feathered, they can be on hard feathered breeds too. On the hard feathered breeds lavender feathers do not look like the feathers of soft feather breeds but their feathers may break more easily than their non lavender counterparts.​

 

[MichiganWoods]

Yes, that was what I meant. Let me rephrase.

Are lavender feathers on a normally hard feathered bird more or less brittle than feathers on a regular silkie?

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

There is a specific gene for hard versus soft feathers. I do not believe it it linked with lavender.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

I hate it when the computer develops a mind of its own

I was NOT finished with that post.

Anyways, I think you are asking about the effect of lavender on hard feathers versus soft feathers, and also on silkie feathers with their hookless structure?

I think we need someone who has dealt with lavender in both hard and soft feathered (and also silkie feathers if possible) to answer that. Otherwise other factors that may be environmental or nutritional or .... would affect the answer, not to mention that comparison would be difficult.

Chris, I think that what you are describing is late feathering, which is yet another gene.

 

[Poulets De Cajun]

Quote:
We researched the "slow to feather" gene somewhat, but we figured that wasn't it. Bren was getting it when she started breeding her lavenders to black and thats what we suspected at first too. But then Deb started getting some I believe when she started the black to lav breeding, and then I did... at that point we associated it with lavender and not the slow to feather.

Now this is all personal observations, and not based on any scientific knowledge, but can three breeders, with completely unrelated flocks all have the slow to feather gene in one particular variety?

We DEFINITLEY need all the help we can get figuring this stuff out.