The Aloha Chicken Project

[draye]

Here are a few of the other NN x Aloha hens. Because the spots are recessive, they appear solid, but all have some "hint" they carry Mottling: This is the ONE hen that shows visible Mottling. Just a few spots. Better than nothing!!! The others appear solid Buff, but you saw their Dad in the pics - he was SUPER colorful so they carry the gene for spotting! In this photo, if you look carefully, you can see the teeny tiny white tip to this hen's tail feathers. All of the "solid" hens have a stray spot hidden somewhere on a tail, body, or wing. Just a hint that tells you the spotty gene is there, in hiding!!!

I love these very very much. Small white spots are a great start.

 

[alohachickens]

I love these very very much. Small white spots are a great start.

Draye, I've got a BIG huge batch of peeps due tomorrow, and I'll let you know how many NN chicks I get from that! Out of the last batch of about 50 chicks only 4 were NN's. I've just been saving the NN's out of the last 100 chicks that I hatched. There are surely all kinds of nice Alohas in these peeps.

The only reason I'm picking out the NN's in particular, is that there has been so much interest in them lately, and also, it will be very easy for me to keep track of the bloodlines on these babies. While I don't know who the daddies are, because everyone is running around willy-nilly, at least I know who the Moms are! LOL. Hoping for a few more NN peeps tomorrow, and I'll post pics of them as they grow both here and on the NN / Turken thread.

If I'm lucky I'll collect a nice batch of NN peeps by the end of this month, and have a cute little flock laying by May of next Spring! Will probably pass the best hens down to my friend Deb in Tucson so she can put them in with that nice roo of hers.

 

[draye]

Sommer:

Here is that Mottled Naked Neck hen:

Side view, full body.

Showing some of the side feathers, see the little white flowers?

Even the feet look mottled.

 

[alohachickens]

Sommer:

Here is that Mottled Naked Neck hen:

Side view, full body.


Showing some of the side feathers, see the little white flowers?


Even the feet look mottled.

Draye, she's lovely! And she's young, didn't you say? (If she is young, you can expect even more white to appear with each year's new feathers.)

I'd say she just needs a bit of Buff Columbian NN lines to lighten up her body color. I've seen a lot of the NN's in that color, which is what I needed for the Aloha program. I guess the "key" to getting a Mille color is Buff Columbian. I'd been trying for years to get that color, but I kept using solid Buff.

Buff Columbian is the buff color - with the black ring around the neck. And black neck feathers.

See if you can find any like this from any turken breeders. The lighter the body color, the better:

With yellow legs like this hen. We also need those.

The hen that I borrowed from the neighbor, was the most beautiful pale buttery blonde!!! Like WAY lighter than a "normal" Buff Columbian (or Buff Sussex.) I think it's the "base color" that makes this amazing color Millies in the D'Uccles:

http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0063/8272/products/MF_female_grande.gif

I always wanted to get that color on the Alohas, but none of the buffs are light enough.

The Mille color in the Swedish Flowers is the darker Mille, a more "orangey" color, that is also seen on some Mille D'Uccles:

http://bantams.the-kozaks.com/WFF/PIC00132.JPG

Which is beautiful in its own right, of course! But I always wondered what it would take, to get that PALE butter-yellow background on a Mille? The neighbor's NN hen that I borrowed, was the that super light color. Breeding her to the Aloha roo darkened her babies up again, but I'm wondering if I breed her to an Aloha x Buff Sussex cross, if that would be light enough to let her babies keep the "butter yellow" pale blonde color.

I hope she can make it through another year in Phoenix so I can find out! I plan on borrowing the blonde hen again this year, to cross with a new rooster and make more F1 Aloha x NN's but she's a great hen and her pale blonde is so unique. And none of her babies showed any weird recessive colors, which was a relief as well. Last year's NN x Aloha test breeding was a total success.

 

[draye]

Draye, she's lovely!  And she's young, didn't you say?  (If she is young, you can expect even more white to appear with each year's new feathers.)

I'd say she just needs a bit of Buff Columbian NN lines to lighten up her body color.  I've seen a lot of the NN's in that color, which is what I needed for the Aloha program.  I guess the "key" to getting a Mille color is Buff Columbian.  I'd been trying for years to get that color, but I kept using solid Buff.


Buff Columbian is the buff color - with the black ring around the neck.  And black neck feathers.

See if you can find any like this from any turken breeders.  The lighter the body color, the better:

With yellow legs like this hen.  We also need those.

The hen that I borrowed from the neighbor, was the most beautiful pale buttery blonde!!!  Like WAY lighter than a "normal" Buff Columbian (or Buff Sussex.)  I think it's the "base color" that makes this amazing color Millies in the D'Uccles:

http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0063/8272/products/MF_female_grande.gif

I always wanted to get that color on the Alohas, but none of the buffs  are light enough.

The Mille color in the Swedish Flowers is the darker Mille, a more "orangey" color, that is also seen on some Mille D'Uccles:

http://bantams.the-kozaks.com/WFF/PIC00132.JPG

Which is beautiful in its own right, of course!  But I always wondered what it would take, to get that PALE butter-yellow background on a Mille?  The neighbor's NN hen that I borrowed, was the that super light color.  Breeding her to the Aloha roo darkened her babies up again, but I'm wondering if I breed her to an Aloha x Buff Sussex cross, if that would be light enough to let her babies keep the "butter yellow" pale blonde color.


I hope she can make it through another year in Phoenix so I can find out!  I plan on borrowing the blonde hen again this year, to cross with a new rooster and make more F1 Aloha x NN's but she's a great hen and her pale blonde is so unique.  And none of her babies showed any weird recessive colors, which was a relief as well.  Last year's NN x Aloha test breeding was a total success.   

Yes, this was her first molt. So I guess she was two in April/May.

I have two if those (red hens), there is a bit of difference in the red and buff from the hatcheries. Buff is more like the "blonde" you describe. Red is just a tad bit darker. Both usually have the black tail, thus the Columbian added.

Have you used Wheaten in the Alohas?
I have this one: rooster

He is Wheaten plus ( I was told) Duckwing. His black is replaced by black. I have six eggs fertilized by him on one if the Red Naked Neck hens in the incubator now. Due New Years Day.

How did that last hatch turn out?

 

[alohachickens]

Yes, this was her first molt. So I guess she was two in April/May.

I have two if those (red hens), there is a bit of difference in the red and buff from the hatcheries. Buff is more like the "blonde" you describe. Red is just a tad bit darker. Both usually have the black tail, thus the Columbian added.

Have you used Wheaten in the Alohas?
I have this one: rooster

He is Wheaten plus ( I was told) Duckwing. His black is replaced by black. I have six eggs fertilized by him on one if the Red Naked Neck hens in the incubator now. Due New Years Day.

How did that last hatch turn out?

I used Wheaten before, it was OK. Not a lot of contrast in the hen's spotting. Not my favorite cross, but eh, not as bad as barred or solid black.

Yesterday's hatch is pretty poor, will have to check the 'bator temp here, may have dropped a degree. Only about half the eggs have hatched so about 10-12 new chicks and looks like one more NN in that batch. I've saved 18 of the NN chicks, just been holding back on the ones that hatch, so I can try to see if they can hitch a ride down to Tucson for my friend's Aloha x NN program.

It could be if the 'bator is a little cool that more may hatch today . . . but a little hatch this time around, it looks like!

Got a full tray of about 80+ eggs for the 23rd of December hatch. So far, about 1 in 10 chicks hatched has been a NN x Aloha baby.

 

[draye]

I used Wheaten before, it was OK. Not a lot of contrast in the hen's spotting. Not my favorite cross, but eh, not as bad as barred or solid black.

Yesterday's hatch is pretty poor, will have to check the 'bator temp here, may have dropped a degree.  Only about half the eggs have hatched so about 10-12 new chicks and looks like one more NN in that batch.  I've saved 18 of the NN chicks, just been holding back on the ones that hatch, so I can try to see if they can hitch a ride down to Tucson for my friend's Aloha x NN program.

It could be if the 'bator is a little cool that more may hatch today . . . but a little hatch this time around, it looks like!

Got a full tray of about 80+ eggs for the 23rd of December hatch.  So far, about 1 in 10 chicks hatched has been a NN x Aloha baby.

Hoping your other eggs hatch.

I'm just trying to figure out how to keep my spots going. What colors work best, etc. trying to figure out what I have that will work, can't afford to buy much else.

I've got a Red Barred Naked Neck. Using him because he has only one tiny feather for his bib.

I have a Blue Copper Naked Neck too. Has a big bib.

Then there is the Salmon Naked Neck Rooster. Has a big bib, but obviously is carrying the mottling gene. I'm hoping that the Wheaten rooster I pictured inherited the mottling gene as the Salmon is his sire.

 

[alohachickens]

Hoping your other eggs hatch.

I'm just trying to figure out how to keep my spots going. What colors work best, etc. trying to figure out what I have that will work, can't afford to buy much else.

I've got a Red Barred Naked Neck. Using him because he has only one tiny feather for his bib.

I have a Blue Copper Naked Neck too. Has a big bib.

Then there is the Salmon Naked Neck Rooster. Has a big bib, but obviously is carrying the mottling gene. I'm hoping that the Wheaten rooster I pictured inherited the mottling gene as the Salmon is his sire.

OK, avoid anything barred. Move on all Barred stuff, it masks the spots.

I'm also avoiding Blue, because Splash chicks look a lot like Mottled so things can get confusing there. LOL.

If the Salmon is carrying the Mottled gene, then yes, he is your best bet.

If you can find any other NN breeders that have Buff Columbian, see if you can build up your flock by trading eggs with them, maybe? An egg swap could be a good solution!

 

[draye]

OK, avoid anything barred.  Move on all Barred stuff, it masks the spots.

I'm also avoiding Blue, because Splash chicks look a lot like Mottled so things can get confusing there.  LOL.

If the Salmon is carrying the Mottled gene, then yes, he is your best bet.

If you can find any other NN breeders that have Buff Columbian, see if you can build up your flock by trading eggs with them, maybe?  An egg swap could be a good solution!   

I mostly watching the auctions. There are usually NN's plenty at them I just don't know who the breeder/breeders are. No one advertises that they have them.

 

[alohachickens]

I mostly watching the auctions. There are usually NN's plenty at them I just don't know who the breeder/breeders are. No one advertises that they have them.

Do you think someone on the NN thread here on BYC might want to swap eggs with you? If you say you're looking for some Buffs and Reds? Worth a shot, right?