The Evolution of Atlas: A Breeding (and Chat) Thread

[speckledhen]

I also think a little more time would help before deciding.

Of course. I just can't believe I'm possibly back here again with this issue. Good grief, I'm tired of curveballs.

 

[holm25]

So you think he could be a dwarf? Does the dwarf gene only appear in males? The chicks are looking good!

I remember Rocky and Jet. They sure were cute little guys

 

[speckledhen]

So you think he could be a dwarf? Does the dwarf gene only appear in males? The chicks are looking good!

I remember Rocky and Jet. They sure were cute little guys

I think it's possible he is. The gene isn't only in males, but I've only seen males here. I think it was Yard full 'o Rocks (Scott) who got a female dwarf. Seems mostly, with this type of dwarfism, the hens carry the gene and the males express it. That would make sense in a way, since hens pass genes to their sons and not their daughters, in other situations. But, considering what the vet researching dwarfism told us, that Isaac's double-carrier daughter would always produce dwarfs, seems that she would pass the gene to all her progeny. She certainly would produce daughters on occasion, but we don't know for sure because her eggs were never hatched because of the genes.

They are cuties. I snapped a couple pics yesterday of Brandy's crew, but the sun was so bright, they're not the best. These are the younger batch, 3 weeks old. The pullet on the left is a lot smaller and shorter-legged than her brother, but not sure it's dwarfism yet. She is much slower to react to things than her brother or the Brahma chicks, that's obvious. She lags behind when they go places, as does Piglet in the other group.

 

[speckledhen]

I took a few more photos, trying to get better comparison pics with the brother. Sigh. I'm leaning toward dwarfism. Crap.








This photo is the brother.



Here is the one I was hoping to get. Click to get the close up. Now, the toes are not crooked on Piglet, which you see more often than not with a dwarf, but the apple-shaped head, droopy eye, short, curved beak, short legs, smaller comb than the brother are all there.

 

[holm25]

Ooooh I see how that works now!

The pics arent bad at all! The little one does look dwarfed! his head is soooo smushed!

 

[speckledhen]

Ooooh I see how that works now!

The pics arent bad at all! The little one does look dwarfed! his head is soooo smushed!

For someone who has never encountered it, the "look" around the head and eye might escape them until later on. But I see sweet little Rocky in this chick. I noticed Rocky was a dwarf before I saw it in Jet, who was Delaware colored so for some reason, it was not as obvious at the beginning. The head is so rounded, too round, that if you look at it from the front, it almost has a division/ditch down the center from the back of the comb toward the back of the head, like a part in your hair. Hard to describe, but if you've seen it once, you never forget. I'm not 100% sure of the pullet that is six days younger, but she is so slow and so short, it seems that she may be as well. Never had a dwarf pullet here.



ETA: Someone in Atlas's group is making up for her long absence from laying. This egg is 3.4 oz (w/o the quarter on the scale).

 

[Wyatt0224]

Hey Cynthia, sorry I haven't posted in a long time. I got caught up in school work now that I have math again. I'm really sorry to hear about Piglet looking like a dwarf more and more everyday. I hope the little guy turns out alright. Even if he is a dwarf I know he will live a very happy life. All of the other chicks look good, hopefully the other barred rock chick turns out to be a pullet in disguise. If you do have to sell Apollo someone will fall in love with him being a friendly rooster.

 

[speckledhen]

Hey Cynthia, sorry I haven't posted in a long time. I got caught up in school work now that I have math again. I'm really sorry to hear about Piglet looking like a dwarf more and more everyday. I hope the little guy turns out alright. Even if he is a dwarf I know he will live a very happy life. All of the other chicks look good, hopefully the other barred rock chick turns out to be a pullet in disguise. If you do have to sell Apollo someone will fall in love with him being a friendly rooster.

Hey, Wyatt! I knew we were missing someone. No worries, school is more important!


Apollo is a good guy. He still doesn't like to be touched and he did bite DH twice, not sure why unless it was just spring fever. He is fine with me, eats out of my hand, does what I tell him. I think he's a good boy and he's filled out a ton lately. It's obvious that I have at least two of his sons here, plus Piglet and the little pullet, who may also be a dwarf but I'm not calling that one yet. I love Apollo's head and eye. Someone ought to take him. He may have a dwarf gene, but as long as he is bred with unrelated hens, that won't be much of an issue. Plus, it's self-limiting in that they end up culling themselves at a certain age, as terrible as that sounds.



Oh, Hector. That Hector. I let them outside later in the day for their second time out. Thea and Ro were in a dust hole together, while Jill was in a nest in the back storage area where she likes to deposit hers. Hector kept hanging around inside the barn so I shooed him out, said, "Hector! Get outside! Go dustbathe with your girls!" Next thing I know, he was in a dust hole, singing to himself, LOL. He's a smart guy, that Hector.

 

[1muttsfan]

Sorry Cyn, bad news for sure, both for Apollo and for his girls.

 

[speckledhen]

Sorry Cyn, bad news for sure, both for Apollo and for his girls.

Yeah, me, too. Door #1 Rooster with dwarf gene; Door #2 Rooster with sucky tail carriage, which one do you choose? Well, of those two, which would you choose? I can still put Athena and Zara with Hector, though I'm not 100% sure which is the culprit, though I do think it's Athena. After all this time and all these chicks, I am just not happy that the gene is still here.

I said something to my husband about it upsetting my apple cart and he said, "It didn't upset my apple cart because I don't care anything about breeding." But, he's miffed with Apollo for biting him and he doesn't care if I sell Apollo. Both boys are fine, temperament-wise. It still amazes me how a gene like that can hide in robust, healthy, normal size birds. But, this also means that Atlas is a carrier as well because Ida is a Stukel Rock so the gene had to come to Apollo through his dad. I can use one as a laying flock free range protector, but I dont need both Atlas and Apollo if I can't risk breeding either of them. Then again, it took a lot of chicks before it showed up again. I can't see which are carriers, of course, so it can happen again...and again. If I keep hitting roadblocks like this, I may eventually give up on my Rocks altogether. But, I love my Rocks. It's just very disheartening. I do have Hector and I can hope his tail carriage is not perpetuated too much.