Silkies - They’re simply SPECTACULAR!

[ChloeSilkie08]

What got me thinking about this possibility was the AustraWhite hybrid, which is a leghorn (dominant white) over black australorp. Chicks are essentially paint, white with black flecks.
So, if Jane is dominant white, then there should be a possibility.
Genetics are so cool, and I am still waiting for that coffee to brew!

I have one of those and they are gorgeous! I agree you should ask Lynn because I asked how to breed paints and I'm pretty sure that wasn't how she said to breed them. I honestly hope I am wrong because I have a dominant white rooster and a black hen and am DYING for a paint silkie!

 

[LadiesAndJane]

I have one of those and they are gorgeous! I agree you should ask Lynn because I asked how to breed paints and I'm pretty sure that wasn't how she said to breed them. I honestly hope I am wrong because I have a dominant white rooster and a black hen and am DYING for a paint silkie!

How do you know your white roo is dominant? Have you test bred him on other colors to see what would happen?

 

[LadiesAndJane]

I found this in the threads doing a search. Clarifies things somewhat, but possibly also confuses.
If the white is dominant white, it can also carry recessive white (each bird has two copies).

Hi @tadkerson, found this from one of your 2012 posts. Thanks!

"If the white bird only carries recessive white

white x black = non-white (any color plumage other than white); this is true if the black parent does not carry an allele for recessive white

ratios should be 100% for chicks with color or

if the black parent is a carrier of recessive white then F1 = 50% color and 50% white ( white down without any black spots) down color can vary with recessive whites- grayish down can be associated with extended black chicks but not always, down may also have a faint reddish tinge to it




If the white bird carries reccesive white and dominant white

recessive white and heterozygous dominant white x black = 50% color and 50% white (same as if black parent was a recessive white carrier); if some of the chicks have black spots in their down this would indicate a parent was carrying one dominant white allele and that the white chicks are not due to the recessive white allele

also when the chicks get older- if the white adult males develop red in the pyle region, it is an indicator the parent was dominant white. Females that develop red on the head and breast is an indicator of dominant white. This all depends on the genotypes of both parents and may never appear in the offspring. Heterozygous dominant white adult male birds can also show partial black feathers or large portions of a feather that contain red color (see my avatar); females may just show black spots in their feathers.

Recessive white and homozygous dominant white x black = all white chicks with many of the chicks having black spots in their down. If the black parent is a carrier then you will get some white chicks but you could also get the same with dominant white heterozygotes in the F1."

 

[LynnaePB]

Thank you for your reply, I appreciate it!
Well I do know that they were originally created when a mutation appeared when a dominant white silkie was bred to black, though I think it i more complicated then that. @LynnaePB are you around? I know you are focusing your breeding program on paints.

Looks like you pretty much already found the answer but thought I'd verify that paints could be possible if he is dominant white.

Heterozygous dominant white over black is what makes up paint to my understanding. Sometimes the dominant white is more leaky than other times so spots may or may not show up. Austrawhites are a great example of how you can get spotted babies crossing a bird that is dominant white over a black bird.

Dominant white chicks tend to be more yellow looking than recessive white chicks. The gold based ones can be more gold tinted for sure but I've found it is the gold based recessive white chicks that really look more like buffs as babies. I would guess from your description that Jane is probably recessive white but you never know. I guess the babies should offer some insight anyway!

Here is a recessive white chick I hatched on the far right (I believe gold based). Ignore the one labeled partridge....I was guessing at what they would be and though I was right about the rest the one I thought was going to be partridge turned out to be more blue looking than anything else. From what I've read a lot of recessive white babies are partridge underneath the white so those sort of lighter stripes you can see on her back I'm guessing are from some partridge influence on the chick down.

And here are some of my chicks hatched from paint parents. Both the paints and the pure yellow/white are carrying at least one copy of dominant white. The little silvery white one I'm not exactly sure what it is other than silver based (it turned white I'm just not sure if it is dominant or recessive white.....it looks more similar to the silver based recessive whites I've seen though).

I have one of those and they are gorgeous! I agree you should ask Lynn because I asked how to breed paints and I'm pretty sure that wasn't how she said to breed them. I honestly hope I am wrong because I have a dominant white rooster and a black hen and am DYING for a paint silkie!

Hmmm I wonder if I assumed your white was a recessive white. Most white silkies are and you can't make paint with a recessive white over a black. If your rooster is dominant white and you have him with a black hen than paint babies are definitely possible.

Sorry if I made things confusing before!

 

[LadiesAndJane]

Thanks for your feedback, I appreciate it and you!
Jane was more yellow then gold as a chick. He was as yellow as my little leghorn/RSL cross chick. I just meant he was "gold" as opposed to "silver". We just assumed he was buff, as we did not know any better at the time! This is a fun experiment. Can't wait to see what we end up with!

 

[LynnaePB]

Thanks for your feedback, I appreciate it and you!
Jane was more yellow then gold as a chick. He was as yellow as my little leghorn/RSL cross chick. I just meant he was "gold" as opposed to "silver". We just assumed he was buff, as we did not know any better at the time! This is a fun experiment. Can't wait to see what we end up with!

Hmmm well that sounds like it certainly could be dominant white then. It can be harder to get good dark pigment when they are dominant white. If Jane had light skin as a chick, has light eyes, or has any pink on the bottoms of his feet then that would be more signs of dominant white. Dominant whites can have good pigment it's just a little more difficult with them. I can't wait to hear about what chicks you get from him and your olive egger!

 

[ChloeSilkie08]

How do you know your white roo is dominant? Have you test bred him on other colors to see what would happen?

It's more of an assumption to be honest. This spring I will definitely find out though.

 

[ChloeSilkie08]

Looks like you pretty much already found the answer but thought I'd verify that paints could be possible if he is dominant white.

Heterozygous dominant white over black is what makes up paint to my understanding. Sometimes the dominant white is more leaky than other times so spots may or may not show up. Austrawhites are a great example of how you can get spotted babies crossing a bird that is dominant white over a black bird.

Dominant white chicks tend to be more yellow looking than recessive white chicks. The gold based ones can be more gold tinted for sure but I've found it is the gold based recessive white chicks that really look more like buffs as babies. I would guess from your description that Jane is probably recessive white but you never know. I guess the babies should offer some insight anyway!

Here is a recessive white chick I hatched on the far right (I believe gold based). Ignore the one labeled partridge....I was guessing at what they would be and though I was right about the rest the one I thought was going to be partridge turned out to be more blue looking than anything else. From what I've read a lot of recessive white babies are partridge underneath the white so those sort of lighter stripes you can see on her back I'm guessing are from some partridge influence on the chick down.

View attachment 2429140

And here are some of my chicks hatched from paint parents. Both the paints and the pure yellow/white are carrying at least one copy of dominant white. The little silvery white one I'm not exactly sure what it is other than silver based (it turned white I'm just not sure if it is dominant or recessive white.....it looks more similar to the silver based recessive whites I've seen though).

View attachment 2429143




Hmmm I wonder if I assumed your white was a recessive white. Most white silkies are and you can't make paint with a recessive white over a black. If your rooster is dominant white and you have him with a black hen than paint babies are definitely possible.

Sorry if I made things confusing before!

If I got hens from a My Pet Chicken that are white would they be dominant?

 

[LynnaePB]

If I got hens from a My Pet Chicken that are white would they be dominant?

As far as I know all hatchery white silkies are recessive white. Homozygous dominant whites come about from paint to paint breeding around 25% of the time. Since paint was only recognized by the ABA fairly recently I don't think any of the big hatcheries breed paints so there is probably very little chance of getting a dominant white from a hatchery.

 

[ChloeSilkie08]

As far as I know all hatchery white silkies are recessive white. Homozygous dominant whites come about from paint to paint breeding around 25% of the time. Since paint was only recognized by the ABA fairly recently I don't think any of the big hatcheries breed paints so there is probably very little chance of getting a dominant white from a hatchery.

Thanks so much Lynn! I'm hoping I can figure this out and get some paints. They are just so pretty!