"Snowy" Calls

[adubsroit]

Just yesterday I bid for and subsequently won two, female Snowy calls at the Idaho Bird Breeder's Association Spring Auction. I have never seen a Snowy (just Greys, Whites and Bibs), and upon googling and searching breeder/info/breed sites (i.e. Holderread, Feathersite, BYC) I am positive now that I have been duped.

The color looks like a failed attempt to breed an actual Snowy call, but makes me thinks they could have resulted from some sort of Grey and Mini Silver Appleyard, or Snowy mix. My boyfriend swears that the breeder auctioning them off created them (as he overheard) by crossing whites and greys. They're my first calls, and it has only been about a day and a half but they're already adapting to being around the boyfriend and I.

Also, if I was to breed them, what do y'all Call people out there recommend?? We have figured to just breed them back to a Snowy male eventually, or maybe a Mini Silver Appleyard. Anywho, please spare me the public humiliation

, but what color are these two really??

 

[easttxchick]

They look like 2 Silver Appleyard hens to me.
Get a male Silver Appleyard Call drake. Don't feel bad, Silver Appleyard Calls are wonderful.

...unless they are regular Silver Appleyards...

 

[adubsroit]

Quote:
Is it just me, but they sorta remind me of the Green Headed Australian Spotted from the Holderread site:

How is it you tell the difference between any of these colors?? Lol, they're adorable but this color thing is much more difficult than I expected. If Mini Silver Appleyards: aren't they a little darker than what most look like??

 

[easttxchick]

Welcome to the world of Call breeding and genetics. It's a world of wonders all Call breeders aren't bald from tearing their hair out.

Some of the differences are pretty subtle.
Let me see if I can find a picture of my Snowy hen...bear with me and if I have one, I'll post it for you...
OK, that's her on the right(I'm not a mean Call keeper, this was right after I got them home-they are now in a large breeder pen

).
Just so you know they aren't mini Silver Appleyards, they are actually Calls. They probably have the absolute best personality of all of the varieties.
There is some good info out there on varieties, but VERY little on genetics and color breeding.
See the color of the bill on the Green Headed Australian? Not like a Call.

 

[duckluck]

I'd say you lucked out and "too bad, so sad" for the person selling them...they're on the beaky side but they look like Silver Appleyard Calls to me, and look like they have great color to boot. Find a nice male for them! I might have one here myself soon, hopefully...a few of my Appleyard Calls are laying, but they are being stingy about it. I have another pen of them who will hopefully start laying soon.

 

[duckluck]

Edited because it submited twice. Sorry!

 

[duckluck]

Quote:
I seriously doubt they were created by crossing whites and grays. A lot of things *could* happen, but their color is really nice and there are much more likely things that could pop up out of those two colors. Definitely look for a Silver Appleyard Call male for these two, the color is too rare to not work with them!

 

[adubsroit]

Thanks for the great news!! My boyfriend and I have been looking for calls for quiet sometime and even though the birds were one of the last lots in the auction (waited almost 3.4 hours) there was no way we were leaving without trying!! I understand Calls aren't the best layers, but do Mini Appleyards do any better??

Just looked at your website duckluck and was wondering if you'd maybe have any Mini Appleyards for sale this season?? Anyone else out there with them aside from Holderread?? REALLY stoked about these two girls!!

)

 

[duckluck]

Quote:
No mini Appleyards, only Appleyard Calls. All I have in poultry are Call ducks. But hopefully I will have some more coming...the two hens that are laying now were only recently moved into a breeding pen with an Appleyard drake and it took them a while to feel comfortable around him. I have some eggs in the incubator now that hopefully will be fertile, and I have one other pen of Appleyards that will hopefully be laying soon. So we can keep our hopes up for a few males (and females!).

 

[jbourget]

i raise pastel calls white gray and snowy....ill buy them