Ranger breeding project

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As I continue to read up on my plans (which for now mostly look like mixing the NH Reds and the Brahma, bringing in the Comets as a poor (but in hand) substitute for half the White Rock for the first generation) and look forward to future years of reinforcement and culling, I have lots of time to read and am obviously surrounded by those far further along on this project than myself.

Can anyone recommend more good resources and websites like this one? Extension Service Poultry Genetics Essentially, I'm looking for the math - the letters, charts, etc with concrete examples in pictures, and eschewing the specialized language of genetic biology. Not that I can't pick up the language, but I need to be able to communicate with my wife about what I'm doing and why without having to translate first. She's brilliant, but you want her repairing your cardiac catheterization lab in the hospital or repairing a critical circuit board, not running a Bene Gesserit breeding program for chickens.

End goal is a 7-8# bird laying medium large or large eggs, around 200/yr that suited for free ranging and the FL heat/humidity, but can take a bit of cold while ranging, since I am near the AL border (USDA Plant Hardiness 8A). Color and pattern, except to the extent that they help with the heat are unimportant to me. Same with egg color. A little broody, with better than average maturity would be welcome, but I want nothing resembling the CornishX or other fast, heavy breeds with growth related health issues. and if that's not enough, I'd like to do it with relatively common birds, since my choice of breed stock is currently limited, and can't be counted upon in specific future years.
 
Can anyone recommend more good resources and websites like this one? Extension Service Poultry Genetics

You might fined this helpful. It's only about feather color/patterns but it can help you get a handle on how chicken genetics work. It is fairly simplistic as there are several nuances it does not cover but knowing the basics can help a lot.

Cross Calculator

http://kippenjungle.nl/Overzicht.htm#kipcalculator

Your link was an interesting read. It is also pretty simplistic but it's meant to be. A few comments. They highlight that some genes are dominant, some recessive, and some co-dominant. They mention another one later, the modifiers. Some genes only act if other genes or conditions are present. I'll use what I consider a mistake in their write-up to explain. The genetics experts I've read say there are only basic feather colors, black and red. White is not a basic color. White is produced by modifying ether a red or black feather. The Dominant White gene turns black feathers white. It does not have an effect on red feathers. The silver gene turns red feathers white, no effect on black feathers. Both these genes are dominant. The Recessive White gene turns every feather white, whether it starts out as red or black. But since it is recessive it has to pair up before it has any effect.

Their comb discussion brings up something else about modifiers. To clear up possible confusion the walnut and cushion comb are the same thing, there is a difference in their write-up and the drawings. The pea, rose, walnut, and single combs are purely due to the way the pea and rose combs combine or are absent. But they mention those other three. Those three are modifiers. What effect they will actually have will depend on whether they are modifying a pea, rose, walnut, or single comb. You can get a lot of different combs in appearance than just those seven. The reason I mention this is that this is true for a lot of things other than combs. There may be a few certain genes that affect a certain trait, but there are usually a lot of modifiers that can have an effect. That's why you can get so many different results even if you mate the same birds. So many of those gene pairs are heterozygous that you can get all kinds of combinations of recessive and dominant genes even in full siblings. That's something the cross calculator demonstrates in second generation crosses.

I'll emphasize something they said when talking about the sex-linked genes. A rooster gives a copy of one of the genes at each gene pair to all his offspring. A hen does the same thing for her boys, they get a copy of one gene from each of her gene pairs. Plus they get the sex-linked genes from her. The hen does not give the sex-linked genes to her daughters. The practical aspect of this is that the boys get an equal share of their genetics from both mother and father. But the girls get slightly more from their father than the mother. The sex-linked genes make it more confusing.

The rooster has as much or more genetic influence on the pullets than the mother. Size of egg, frequency of laying, how likely she is to go broody, any of that. The hen contributes as much as the rooster genetically toward the body configuration, when they mature, how big they get, and such toward the cockerels. But roosters don't lay eggs. Hens have different body shapes than roosters. It's generally suggested you look to the hens for egg laying qualities and to the roosters for butchering qualities because its easier to see.

Maybe this example will explain that. I once kept a rooster that hatched from an egg laid by a hen that often went broody. When that boy's daughters entered my flock the rate of broodiness in the flock increased dramatically due to that rooster's genetics.

Good luck, it can be a fun journey. But I find the more I learn the less I know. Every time I think I learn something I find out that there are exceptions. That's often due to those darn modifiers, they can really mess up a rule.
 
Cross your rangers to a CX and make a toad..

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@Ridgerunner Thank you, that's a huge help. I've bookmarked for future reference, as well as one of the chick "calculators" I ran across yesterday. I did ok w/ genetics in school and thereafter (we have some significant life-affecting sex linked and recessive genes in my own family), but its been many decades since I had to use the language of it.

I saved this one Chicken Calculator

as to the "toads", its just my wife and I. That looks way too large to be cost effective to feed, even if it could free-range. and if its a very fast grower, too? No thank you.

Though I respect the efforts that resulted in that ?desired? outcome, if I want a bird that size for the holidays, I'll take one of the wild turkey in my back acres. thanks.
 
This is veryyy interesting for me!

I currently have 2 Red Rangers out with the flock breeding, and I have had some neat results. My chicks grow faster and have a nicer sized breast, not like the ranger but better than the hen breed. I got a 5, almost 6lb carcass (gutted) at a little over 4 months old with my Brahma x red ranger cockerel :) im still using them and seeing how the offspring turn out as I'm still seeing how the pullets end up. My goal is to make a heavier dual purpose while still holding good egg laying traits! (Especially with the easter eggers, I want a heavier dual purpose easter egger)
 

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