The "Ask Anything" to Nicalandia Thread

[JacinLarkwell]

Hey, I have a question. Does this chick look silkied? There’s something weird going on with it‘s feathering for sure, but I keep going back and forth with myself. I have another chick it’s age, and the feathering on that one is completely normal, plus I’ve raised chicks from the same pairing and all the others have had normal feather texture at this age. It’s about 2 weeks old, and it’s feathers look “frayed”, especially on the tail.
Neither parent has silkied feathering but there may be a chance they carry it.

Wing-
View attachment 3426478
”Whole” chick-
View attachment 3426479
Tail-
View attachment 3426480
Leg-
View attachment 3426481

Silkied

 

[MtCleod]

I am planning to get this Faverolles cockerel and the person that bred him as informed me he is growing some white feathers on his head. The breeder hasn’t mentioned if there is other white feathers hiding on him.

I cannot view him as he’s a plane ride away! He’ll be transported in a couple of weeks via small animal courier.




I was being hopeful in thinking some of the white was pin feather sheaths.

I understand this is a fault for this variety, but he is otherwise promising. Also, this breed is very hard to find in my area, let alone this colour.



Is it known what causes the occasional white feather growing on a black bird? As his sire also has white feathers on the same location (see image below), I feel it’s fairly safe to assume it’s a dominant trait and not a juvenile plumage issue.

Could there be test matings to confirm whatever is happening genetically? Or culling subsequent birds with the white feather fault is sufficient?



Thank you once again!

 

[I Like Turkeys]

Does anybody know if side sprigs are dominant or recessive?
Photo for reference to what I mean below, where extra points shoot off of the side of the comb.

My rooster has them, none of the hens im breeding him to do, but I feel some of the offspring are already forming side sprigs too.
Is it just a 50:50 chance whether the offspring have them, or should I expect this to show up in my line again?

 

[troyer]

Does anybody know if side sprigs are dominant or recessive?
Photo for reference to what I mean below, where extra points shoot off of the side of the comb.View attachment 3426943
My rooster has them, none of the hens im breeding him to do, but I feel some of the offspring are already forming side sprigs too.
Is it just a 50:50 chance whether the offspring have them, or should I expect this to show up in my line again?

If you breed it in, it will show up somewhere along the line later, if not immediately.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Hey, I have a question. Does this chick look silkied? There’s something weird going on with it‘s feathering for sure, but I keep going back and forth with myself. I have another chick it’s age, and the feathering on that one is completely normal, plus I’ve raised chicks from the same pairing and all the others have had normal feather texture at this age. It’s about 2 weeks old, and it’s feathers look “frayed”, especially on the tail.
Neither parent has silkied feathering but there may be a chance they carry it.

Wing-
View attachment 3426478
”Whole” chick-
View attachment 3426479
Tail-
View attachment 3426480
Leg-
View attachment 3426481

Yep, it's silkied.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Just popping in to give a quick update on my Black To White Experiment.

Will be incubating some eggs from the mother of Chameleon hen #1, soon. Just got 2 more eggs to collect, then I also gotta sanitize, & stabilize the Incubator.

 

[I Like Turkeys]

If you breed it in, it will show up somewhere along the line later, if not immediately.

Is it possible to breed out? Should I expect all of his offspring to have side sprigs too?

 

[troyer]

Is it possible to breed out? Should I expect all of his offspring to have side sprigs too?

It is possible to breed out. Not all his offspring will have side sprigs. The quickest way to get rid of it is to only use breeders that don't show it.
If your only option is to use the rooster you now have, use him this year and then get rid of him. Use a cockerel that has a good comb free from sprigs and go from there. With close attention to the possibility of sprigs and selecting against it you can mostly get rid of it after several years. I've heard some longtime breeders discussing it and from their experience it can still occasionally show up unexpectedly. Just keep an eye on it and when you see it remove it from the breeding pen.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Speaking about side sprigs. Dino has them, but don't show them in current pictures(Frostbite, & hen pecking). None of his offspring ended up with side sprigs. So, I don't think you'd have to worry about it popping up, at all, or at least rarely.

Old pictures.

 

[3KillerBs]

Here is a teaser from when he was 5 months old, yes he was going through his really ugly stage back then

I have another question... Will breeding him to those splash hens lighten the blue colour in some of the offspring?

That's a question I can't answer.

They say that breeding blue to blue lightens the color but it's unpredictable.