Sumatra Thread!

[flyingmonkeypoop]

I have some blues that are nearly black but they have good lacing. I was told by a great sumatra breeder that when your blues get too dark, breed them to each other to lighten the color up some. We have an adorable blue (looks black) cockerel that will be bred to some blue hens to try to lighten it up. Even if we keep a splash from that and mate it to blacks, it should work.

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

The blue sumatra lines in the US that I have seen are great in type but lack in lacing. They were originally created by breeding blue andalusians to black sumatras but for some reason the lacing was never improved.

Here's a few US laced birds... but yes for the most part I agree, they are just a plain blue bird

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

Oh I'm not the one who made that cross. It was a few different people who did it years ago. But peacomb is dominate so it shouldn't have taken that long. But I don't know how long it took to breed out the single spurs and red face. They had to keep breeding back to black sumatras to improve the sumatra features and that why the lacing was mostly lost.

That's right, you'll have the comb about right on the F1 chicks, it's all they type correction from the crossing that's tuff. Plus the multiple spurs, yellow feet etc...

 

[redandalusian]

That pullet does have nice lacing and that is how they should be laced but she does look a little to dark

 

[gallo4319]

That's right, you'll have the comb about right on the F1 chicks, it's all they type correction from the crossing that's tuff. Plus the multiple spurs, yellow feet etc...

I think it only takes 5 generations to get back to a close perfect type, in sumatras Id say 4 to five years
As far you keep breeding the birds with peacomb and multiple spurs and the color desire back to the your pure sumatras you can achieve your goal.
Is really simple with the blue or splash color

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

That pullet does have nice lacing and that is how they should be laced but she does look a little to dark

the rooster has it too, just elongated due to the lenght of the feathers makes it somewhat harder to see, but every feather on him is laced in dark blue. It's also the dark blue lacing that makes them look darker than they are, pretty much spot on on body color with the near black ( blue) in the laced part. That and it's pretty dark in the coops .

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

I think it only takes 5 generations to get back to a close perfect type, in sumatras Id say 4 to five years
As far you keep breeding the birds with peacomb and multiple spurs and the color desire back to the your pure sumatras you can achieve your goal.
Is really simple with the blue or splash color

it all depends on how far off type of a crossing you make. There's no set number. on the 4th generation you will be 15/16 back to pure, so that's pretty darn close. But I have outcrosses in various birds that were close to type to start with and some times 2 will have you pretty darn close. A long time, or tuff is in the eye of the beholder. For me 4-8 years of work is no big deal, to others 2-3 years is unheard of. On my bb red sumatras, I think they are at year 6 or so. With that you have a type correction, plus the head ache of keeping the color. So you have to do a year on type then back cross those chicks the following year to get your color back, then go back to the solid sumatra and do it again. So with a color cross like that you have to double the years needed due to the color you are working with. Same with any recessive genes too, takes a back crossing year to get them back if they arent present in the primary breed you are working on.

Black to blue or dun is easy though, half should be the color you want that way, select them, then just continue with the type correction...much quicker

 

[jeremy]

it all depends on how far off type of a crossing you make. There's no set number. on the 4th generation you will be 15/16 back to pure, so that's pretty darn close. But I have outcrosses in various birds that were close to type to start with and some times 2 will have you pretty darn close. A long time, or tuff is in the eye of the beholder. For me 4-8 years of work is no big deal, to others 2-3 years is unheard of. On my bb red sumatras, I think they are at year 6 or so. With that you have a type correction, plus the head ache of keeping the color. So you have to do a year on type then back cross those chicks the following year to get your color back, then go back to the solid sumatra and do it again. So with a color cross like that you have to double the years needed due to the color you are working with. Same with any recessive genes too, takes a back crossing year to get them back if they arent present in the primary breed you are working on.

Black to blue or dun is easy though, half should be the color you want that way, select them, then just continue with the type correction...much quicker

Are your BB Reds wild type or wheaten?

I considered outcrossing to Cubalayas to create a Dun Wheaten colored Sumatra, the project just never took off.

I'd love to see photos.

 

[championsumatra]

Quote: I called him and asked him how he did it he was really nice to tell me how he got the lacing on his sumatras. He said to have both of the parents to be blues and that way it will make the lacing stronger on my birds. I also told him about my sumatras and now he really wants to to look at them. I had sent some photos of my birds to him to see what he thinks of them. I have not gotten the letter yet so I can not tell you guys right now what he thinks of them. but ones I do get it I will let you guys know.

 

[championsumatra]

I agree with redandalusian the pullet is dark and I think the rooster is dark too. I like there body type.