Silkies?? on color *pics*

[Poulets De Cajun]

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Lavender Silkies make Lavender Silkies. Thats it... There's no mixing colors, theres no any other way to breed it. The parents have to carry the "lavender" gene, which is really just the self blue gene. And its recessive like the white gene, you have to get TWO copies of it to have a pure lavender. Otherwise all you have a 'mutt' carrying the lavender gene.

 

[Teresaann24]

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Lavender Silkies make Lavender Silkies. Thats it... There's no mixing colors, theres no any other way to breed it. The parents have to carry the "lavender" gene, which is really just the self blue gene. And its recessive like the white gene, you have to get TWO copies of it to have a pure lavender. Otherwise all you have a 'mutt' carrying the lavender gene.

Oh ok I get it, Also can you tell me is the grey in silkies a default color? I mean like is it a bad color to get in silkies?

 

[goldensunriseranch]

Some buffs are very clear in color, and some come out with black or darkish color in the tail feathers and wings and are not as nice in quality for color. You'll want to keep the chicks with the clearest possible color.

And in reference to the possible lavender. Actually lavender is recessive you can breed 2 lavender to get all lavenders out of it of course, but also 2 lavender carriers can bring it out as well. The birds can be black and as long as the recessive gene is present in both birds about 1/4 of the resulting chicks would be lavender, 1/4 black with no lavender gene, and 1/2 black lavender splits (black birds carrying the lavender gene). No way to know the parents carry it until paired with another carrier and some pop out. With some hatcheries carrying lavender now who can tell that they don't breed some of the blacks with their lavenders and create carriers that are sold as blacks.

 

[goldensunriseranch]

Grey silkies are an acceptable color, it is the partridge variety that is also expressing the silver gene, pulling out the red and brown and turning it to silver/grey.
Many greys right now are inferior in type but they are improving.

 

[Teresaann24]

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I have 2 grey chicks. I'll have to get some pics later to see what everyone thinks of there quality.

 

[goldensunriseranch]

Would love to see pics! Though quality in silkies is really hard to tell until they are reaching maturity, alot go through the ugly duckling stage, colors can evolve, and I myself don't count a bird out until maturity unless there is something obviously wrong like wrong # of toes etc.

 

[Poulets De Cajun]

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Isn't that the same thing I said? LOL Its recessive and takes TWO copies of the gene to have a pure lavender, otherwise you just have a mutt carrying the single gene?

 

[goldensunriseranch]

No you said....
Lavender Silkies make Lavender Silkies. Thats it...
And I just disagreed that two non-lavender silkies make lavender just fine if they carry it. Your statement came across as that only 2 lavender colored silkies could produce lavender.
And I do not count a black carrying lavender as a mutt, it is a black in phenotype and perfectly acceptable. In fact I will be using black heavily to improve type with my lavenders. Keeping them marked as carriers.

 

[Poulets De Cajun]

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If you would have read her original question, my answer fits just fine. No other color but Lavender will create a Lavender. Your not going to get a Lavender colored bird from a white to black cross. (unless they each carry one copy of the recessive gene)

I was just trying to explain that its not like mixing paint in kindergarten. The white, with a touch of black dont make gray......

 

[goldensunriseranch]

I just believe any question deserves a full answer or multiple answers from anyone who would like to respond, not to treat the person like they are in kindergarten or that they are simple and can't understand the full reason. After 10 years of working with genetics and helping ALOT of people along the way it comes naturally to offer as full an explanation as it warrants. Most people are appreciative to get as much information as possible.