LF Cornish - Crossing White/Dark to work towards White

[Redhead Rae]

Update: I'm turning this into a story thread so people can follow my progress going forward.

I got one LF White Cornish Pullet out of a batch of shipped eggs I got last year. Two chicks hatched but the cockerel that hatched with her died of suicidal stupidity.

These are the best images I have of her currently (taken about 4 months ago).

Ideally, I'd like to get a white male to work with, but I'm trying to simplify things this year. I have a baby due in June.

I got a trio of really nice LF Darks last year and I will be putting the two hens from the trio with a cockerel I hatched from the trio. My cock bird will be with 4 of his daughters from last years hatches.

My question is, if I put my white pullet in the breeding pen with my Cockerel (and two hens), how hard would it be to work their offspring back to white? Also, what kind of breeding plan should I use to accomplish this? Also, the offspring from the white crosses should be obvious, correct?

 

[Redhead Rae]

Ok, so here is the plan. I'm going to isolate her with the Dark cockerel I will be using this year, collect some of her eggs and hatch them. I'm not going to wait the full month until her system clears out before hatching because the only other option for egg fertilization is my Black Cochin cock bird (my avatar) and any of his offspring will be a good test of her white coloration and be good eating.

People who I think might be interested in following this.
@Molpet
@Texas Kiki
@Fairview01

 

[Redhead Rae]

Some of my possible keepers. The dark is Robinson the first lonely chick.

 

[Molpet]

Ok, so here is the plan. I'm going to isolate her with the Dark cockerel I will be using this year, collect some of her eggs and hatch them. I'm not going to wait the full month until her system clears out before hatching because the only other option for egg fertilization is my Black Cochin cock bird (my avatar) and any of his offspring will be a good test of her white coloration and be good eating.

People who I think might be interested in following this.
@Molpet
@Texas Kiki
@Fairview01

yes the whites can be confusing
with the f1 white cx mix/ white cx mix, I got white or barred or black.. no barred birds were used in the mix
the f2 are white or black

 

[Ridgerunner]

I don't know if your LF Cornish is Dominant White or Recessive White. If it is Dominant White then it is based on solid black and you should be able to tell which offspring belong to her, assuming she is pure for those genetics. The offspring should be white as those genetics are pretty dominant.

If you are trying for a dominant gene it is easy to tell when it is present but really hard to tell when the corresponding recessive gene is gone. About the best way is to do a test mating with something else to see how the genetics with the offspring turn out. If it were me I'd mate that pullet with one of her sons to get the white started, then work on getting rid of any hidden recessives.

If it is Recessive White there is no telling what colors or patterns it is hiding. Depending in what is hiding under that white you might or might not be able to tell which are her offspring. It might be a good idea to isolate her and hatch only her eggs so you know which are hers. Again, cross one of her sons back with her so any white chicks from that cross will be pure for white.

I understand about the baby, congratulations by the way, but I'd probably have one hatch that was only her eggs. That way you would know.

 

[Redhead Rae]

I don't know if your LF Cornish is Dominant White or Recessive White. If it is Dominant White then it is based on solid black and you should be able to tell which offspring belong to her, assuming she is pure for those genetics. The offspring should be white as those genetics are pretty dominant.

If you are trying for a dominant gene it is easy to tell when it is present but really hard to tell when the corresponding recessive gene is gone. About the best way is to do a test mating with something else to see how the genetics with the offspring turn out. If it were me I'd mate that pullet with one of her sons to get the white started, then work on getting rid of any hidden recessives.

If it is Recessive White there is no telling what colors or patterns it is hiding. Depending in what is hiding under that white you might or might not be able to tell which are her offspring. It might be a good idea to isolate her and hatch only her eggs so you know which are hers. Again, cross one of her sons back with her so any white chicks from that cross will be pure for white.

I understand about the baby, congratulations by the way, but I'd probably have one hatch that was only her eggs. That way you would know.

She’s been in my main flock pen with a LF Black Cochin and a few Dark Cornish males. I could sequester her (and maybe add a Dark male) for a few days to get just her eggs. Even if the chicks are part Cochin, I should be able to tell if she is dominant or recessive white. Where it gets really interesting is if she is both.

 

[Redhead Rae]

yes the whites can be confusing
with the f1 white cx mix/ white cx mix, I got white or barred or black.. no barred birds were used in the mix
the f2 are white or black

I know you want some of my eggs once I stop hatching for the year. Will you be wanting any of these eggs or just the straight Dark eggs?

 

[Redhead Rae]

Thanks for thinking of me
I wouldn't want any eggs until March at the earliest... we have snow in April regularly and i would want to get them outside at the earliest may...Later is fine
Thanks

No worries. I’ll probably be hatching in March/April.

 

[Redhead Rae]

Just finished my third hatch from the group containing my White hen. Out of 13 eggs set, 8 were fertile, 7 made it to lock down and hatched. Of the 7, 5 are from my white girl. I think she likes hop-a-long better than the two Dark hens. I now have 7 chicks from the Dark/White pairing.

This little one has the cutest spots!

 

[Redhead Rae]

I've got a couple of nice looking chicks in the grow out pen.