The Aloha Chicken Project

[tazcat70]

Here is the hypothesis:

1. All chicks should be Mottled, because both parents show Mottling.

2. Half the chicks should be Barred, because Dad has Barring.

3. The "unknown" factor is: Will this Buff color be light enough to give us chicks that look "Not Sussex" in one generation?

This could be valuable info for us to use down the road!

All roosters from this group will probably be culled - this guy really is too small. All barred hens will (probably) be culled. Hens with no barring will be grown out to see how they differ from the 1/2 Sussex crosses that we've previously hatched out. So far, all other 1/2 Sussex have visually looked almost identical to 100% Sussex. In a nutshell, we're trying to see if we can break that trend using a rooster like this.

If it works, we'll know that any future Buff Mottled roosters would be extremely helpful to cross with pure Sussex. If it doesn't work, we can ignore Buff Mottled roosters, and realize that dangit, everything out of a Sussex is going to look like a Sussex on generation one, and then go pick roosters based on other factors besides Buff color. Like body size, shape, comb, and percentage of mottling.

Can't wait to see! We will set eggs from this group on April 13th. That's almost three weeks, hopefully enough time to have this guy's DNA only in the hens. (Previously the hens were with Butterscotch, so they will all be Aloha x Sussex crosses, regardless.)

Do you know what his parents looked like?

Here is the thing. Barring is sex linked. So a barred male can have 1-2 doses of barring. IF he is homozygous (has 2 doses) all the chicks will have some barring. IF he is heterozygous (only has one dose) barring then 50% of males will be unbarred, 50% of the males will be heterozygous. The females will be 50% barred and 50% unbarred.

Clear as mud?

I will try and find out the genetic code for a SS. I am sure that they have mahogany (which gives then the dark red color.)

 

[runsw/scissors]

Actually Tazcat what you are saying is perfectly clear! Here is one way of seeing what you are trying to explain... http://anthro.palomar.edu/mendel/mendel_2.htm What you are describing is a "simple" punnett square.

 

[tazcat70]

Actually Tazcat what you are saying is perfectly clear! Here is one way of seeing what you are trying to explain... http://anthro.palomar.edu/mendel/mendel_2.htm What you are describing is a "simple" punnett square.

EXACTLY!

 

[alohachickens]

He should only have one copy of the Barring gene. My "Confetti" hens (there are three of them) carry Barring, but until this guy came along, I have never kept any Barred roosters to breeding age.

I am guessing due to his size and color, that his mom is my smallest and most golden Confetti hen. I think I have a photo of her as a youngster:



She was a neat baby, but grew up to be really small. She is the hen that snuck off and sat on a group of eggs that resulted in four chicks that hatched around October 25th, 2011. The only rooster that should have been old enough to breed in that pen was Cheeto, but there is a chance the father of this chick is Flame, who was just a bit younger than Cheeto.

You can see the family resemblance between her and this early photo of the barred mottled rooster that I think is her son:



This is that same rooster as a chick.

And here he is today:



As you can see, the "baby photos" of him and his mom (?) are nearly identical.

But if Cheeto was indeed his daddy, even that big fellow couldn't overcome the hen's small size.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

Guess what I have this morning! Oops. Where'd he go?



One minute he's there, the next he's gone!


There's the bouncy little scamp!


Pretty little dickens is all over the place and peeping loudly, looking for some buddies to hang with! Look at those toenails!



My first hatched chick -- and it's at least part Aloha! This is awesome! Isn't it just pretty? Welcome to Kansas pretty bird.

 

[stuckinthecity]

Omg he's beautiful!!!

EVENTUALLY, the goal is spotted to spotted, ha ha! But unfortunately, first we have to improve size . . . .

So aside from the Speckled Sussex, other large breeds don't have spots. That means you are stuck crossing spotted to solid for a bit.

And if you just use ONLY Speckled Sussex . . . . everything looks like Speckled Sussex!!! Ha ha ha.

You'll have to pick some "other stuff" to add yellow legs, red colors, light colors, big bodies, and so on. I am a big fan of NHR. The influence can be seen in "Flame" really well:



The Sussex influence is seen in the arrangement of his spots, and in his pink legs. But the New Hampshire Red shows in his newly improved brighter red color. His body shape and comb reflects a bit of Leghorn look thanks to early Exchequer Leghorn blood. (He's about 1/4 New Hampshire Red.)

I chose Buff Rock over Buff Orp, because Buff Rocks are more "meat" and less "fluff". And of course we now have actual Swedish Flowers to mix in, which I haven't tried yet. But I do have a quartet of Swedish Flowers here to experiment with! If all goes well, this fall we will see the first Aloha x Swedish Flower crosses. Boy won't that be interesting?

 

[alohachickens]

Go, Babies, Go!

Hatch Hatch Hatch!

That is a really LIGHT chest . . . pretty golden color . . . Spots later, I hope??? (

Guess what I have this morning! Oops. Where'd he go?



One minute he's there, the next he's gone!


There's the bouncy little scamp!


Pretty little dickens is all over the place and peeping loudly, looking for some buddies to hang with! Look at those toenails!



My first hatched chick -- and it's at least part Aloha! This is awesome! Isn't it just pretty? Welcome to Kansas pretty bird.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

Wouldn't it be awesome if it had spots? And feathered in with flaming red/orange? It's calling to the other guys so maybe that will encourage them to break out of their little shells. It's just amazing how an egg starts with just a bunch of goo and comes out like this. I can't wait to see the others. Tonight, we'll check and see if it was Sommer's or Laree's.

If I could put any weight on this sprained ankle, I'd go do the chicken dance in the street, I mean road.

Hatching neurosis is tough but once you pass that first hurdle it just turns into a plain hatching addiction, doesn't it? I mean WoW, that's just incredible. I'm so glad I had the nerve to be the weirdo in my family, it's great for the kids and for me. If Mom can see me, she's probably doing this funny little jig she used to do when she was super happy. So cool.

Thanks guys, for the eggs and for delivering them to me. This is just the best thing!

Okay, back to hatching neurosis now. Come on chickies!

Thanks Sommer & stuckinthe city!

 

[alohachickens]

Wouldn't it be awesome if it had spots? And feathered in with flaming red/orange? It's calling to the other guys so maybe that will encourage them to break out of their little shells. It's just amazing how an egg starts with just a bunch of goo and comes out like this. I can't wait to see the others.

It is how people become "hatchaholics". It's like MAGIC. Even more so with this project, because unlike some nice, sane, predictable breed, where you know what the parents look like and what you're going to get, I never know what will pop out of the shell, ha ha ha!

 

[tazcat70]

Adorable! I set mine a day after you and as I was moving them to the hatcher tonight, I have a pip. It is in a Sommer egg.

I have all of Sommers in one tray and Laree and Rays in another. I hope to mark them when I take them out.

Here's to lots of little Alohas in a couple of days!