Mini BLRWs...

[Madie'sOddFlock]

Okay, so the last 2 years I've hatched BLRWs from my aunt's flock. Hers are all average/standard size. Last year I hatched out only 1, and she was tiny, not quite as small as a bantam, and she was normal size when she hatched out. I believe she is actually crossed with ameraucana during a project of my aunt's(BLR color, green eggs, since BLR and EEs are super popular around here, so why not put the 2 together?). She grew up with red and blue barring up until she started laying and then she quite suddenly became BLR...
Now this year I've hatched out 6, these are all definitely 100% BLR. 5 of them are perfectly normal, average-sized birds... Then there's one who's the same size and growing at the same rate as my sebright chick... Has anyone seen or heard of things like this happening? Do you think I could make a bantam line of them by breeding those small ones... Or do you think it's just a fluke in how they developed...?
Thanks,
Madie Thew

 

[NatJ]

Has anyone seen or heard of things like this happening? Do you think I could make a bantam line of them by breeding those small ones... Or do you think it's just a fluke in how they developed...?

Two small ones out of seven chicks so far is a rather small sample size, so I can't be entirely sure--but it might have a genetic cause. If it is, you probably could make a bantam line by breeding from them.

Bantam Blue Laced Red Wyandottes do already exist, but sometimes it's fun to try things and see what happens

Are the small ones opposite genders? If so, you could try breeding them together and see if you get more.

You said the first one is a female: you could try breeding her to her father.

If the small size is caused by a recessive gene, you should get more small ones by either of those methods. Probably all small ones if breeding two together, half small ones if crossing back to the normal-sized parent. Or a chance of small ones by breeding to a normal-sized sibling.

And, if you just hatch more eggs from the same parents--you might get more small ones that way.

For any breeding project, be prepared to eat a lot of chickens, because you will produce quite a few that are not quite what you are aiming for