The Legbar Thread!

[blackbirds13]

ChicKat - x2 thanks on that re-post
Those familiar with color genetics - if the UK boys are so pale is that why the corresponding female hackle has to be so cream? That birds pictured looks more slender in type than mine also.

I'm going to re-read my copy of "Genetic Studies In Poultry" It does appear that these birds, especially the rooster should be more 'golden' or chestnut than appears to be sought by the UK breeders and UK SOP. What's a girl to do?

 

[Miss Molly]

All I got to say is my Cream Legbars are Laying.

Im incubating the babies. I am a Happy Camper...

I think each and everyone is Beautiful... I love love love them...But, Im just a crazy gal having fun...

 

[WyoChickenMamma]

Here are some pictures of my chicks, they are now about 6 weeks old. I posted them on the UK fb page and was told very nicely that they are probably not pure, the coloring is all wrong. What do you guys think?

This is my lightest colored girl. She is just getting some salmon color in her chest.


This is my dark girl. As you can see she has a lot of the dark color on her chest and a huge crest.


This is one of the boys.


Here is one of all six, with some other brooder mates hanging out in front. The lightest girl and the darkest girl are to the far left.

For those of you who have joined the fb group, you can see the comments made over there. In a nut shell the first comment is that they are not legbars. Makes me sad, I feel a bit taken and used. I guess buyer beware.

 

[Time-Out]

I don't mean to rain on your parade, but aren't you getting your legbars mixed up? The description in that book sounds to me to be of a Gold Legbar, not a Cream Legbar. You also have Silver Legbars and Cotswold Legbars (but they're not a true breed).

 

[blackbirds13]

I don't mean to rain on your parade, but aren't you getting your legbars mixed up? The description in that book sounds to me to be of a Gold Legbar, not a Cream Legbar. You also have Silver Legbars and Cotswold Legbars (but they're not a true breed).

Time-Out I've got the umbrella out and you are correct.

I re-read that genetics pamphlet last night - it is talking about the "brown class" and there is no mention of the Aruacana or blue eggs.
I have not studied genetics but this is what I'm getting out of it and the book on poultry breeding that I am also currently reading and what I am going to theorize about my own birds (can you tell I'm on summer break and am squandering my coop building time? - I find this like a mental/visual quest

)


This is what i am going to theorize and since I lost more than half my girls and have to start over I need a plan going forward - This is my working plan and if anyone with genealogy knowledge can pipe in please do - I need help in that area

For solid cream you need 2 genes - I am going to breed this pullet with no gold at all to my alpha rooster because I am going to surmise given his color he has 1 copy of the recessive gene, I'm going to say 1 copy because he still has come chestnut color on his shoulders (beyond that I don't have a clue

)
she has a beautiful white hackle with a light colored crest




dark gold means 0 copies of the cream gene
This is one of the 2 offspring I have left from mating my older layer to my alpha - she is definitely a darker gold on the hackle and dark crest




light gold means 1 copy of the cream gene
This is the second of the offspring pair - there is an observable difference in her and her sister's hackle color - hers is more diluted for the gold and sports some cream but she has no crest





This is my rooster - he had a floppy comb (a fault) when he arrived that did straighten up quite a bit once he was out the box for a few days.



he is not as white as those on the UK sites but very pale in comparison to what else I've seen out there as being to dark or gold plus he's what I have on hand and I'm not buying a new rooster

These are my 2 boys side by side for comparison on color. Even the barring on my alpha is lighter and not as black/gray as that on my younger boy. He's just all around more diluted....what a turn of events for this guy who was destined for Camp Kenmore. He's not perfect but...








this is my alpha when I first got him - day one out of the box - here too he appears lighter than my current junior rooster


and in winter with frost bite - a straighter comb


in the back of the image below is my second rooster - nice straight comb but I think he would be too gold - my current breeder hen is on the right next to my alpha - i do not know if she has any cream genes as I am still trying to wrap my head around this.... I will keep her for producing layers to sell locally and to test out any theories as I go forward.



These are the offspring pair side by side so you can see the difference in the hackles - kinda neat now that I'm getting more of a solid footing on this - wish I had the other girls to really compare a batch. I try not to think too much about what I've lost these last few weeks it is very depressing.




These are my boys side by side - definite difference in the hackle, saddle, shoulders and wings even the chestnut color is darker on the younger one



and these are my boys at about the same age I guess - day 1 alpha on the left and juvie on the right



It's funny that my alpha is the keeper since there was such a dust up about his floppy comb when I first posted him but I've got to work with what I have. Hopefully my younger girl does not throw the whites (no offense to anyone) but I'm interested to see what comes of it since they say the male plays such a big part in color. I guess I will be watching for straighter combs and keeping with my original thought about creamier birds. I may grow out the younger lighter hackle girl and breed her back to her father to see what comes of it color and crest wise. I will try to keep more copius notes this time. Both my original birds had small crests when they arrived but the females, though bigger seems to have suffered the same as her back and you gotta get close to see the spikes on the boy...

Went out and separated junior this morning so I'll be hatching eggs again in a few weeks -which gives me time to build my second coop - 6 x 8 or 8 x8 then I may separate into 2 sections inside so i can keep 3 breeds separate over winter - build 3rd coop next year so I can keep the Marans, Orps and Legbars. If I don't get a keepable Marans rooster then I'll only need 2 coops and will try for that next spring.


Sorry to be so pic heavy and to hog the thread like I am with all my musings

but I gotta start hatching again in order to be where I had wanted to be next spring, though I had planned on quitting until my Jubilees were ready...The adventure continues and hopefully I'll find a way to wrap up my super large pens so that the hawks that have nested on the property don't have anymore take-out meals at my place.
Have a great day y'all

 

[lonnyandrinda]

Blackbirds- I love it! The photos are so useful so I know what to look for as mine grow up, good luck you seem to have a good plan in place.

 

[WyoChickenMamma]

Blackbirds- I love it! The photos are so useful so I know what to look for as mine grow up, good luck you seem to have a good plan in place.

X2

Thank you for sharing the photos and explaining what your plan is going forward. Speaking only for myself, I feel there is a lot to learn and I am a very visual learner. It helps me to see the pictures. I believe that not everyone who has chickens cares, nor wants to take the time to learn about what they have. They get to of breed, through them together, and sell the eggs and chicks. I don't want to do that, I want to be as educated as I can. I feel a bit behind the 8 ball so to speak because I think my birds are inferior (my own fault for not doing more research).
I have talked to more than one person who has thought that since all the CL in the US should be coming from GFF, that they would be "good" birds, regardless if they came from person A or person B. I have also been now told that another group or farm has an imported line too? The Rocky Mountain Line? Anyone know of this? I have searched all over and can't find any evidence of that.

I have some more eggs coming and I am hoping to be able to get at least one breeding pair. I think we are in such a perfect place right now as far as working towards a breed standard. It is hard to not have something steadfast to tell us, but I think between all the great people here and on other sites when our version of the CL gets accepted to the APA it will be an outstanding bird. Ok....off to go learn some more.

 

[Time-Out]

I'd definitely put the first lady to your alpha roo. Does your alpha have any sort of crest? If he does, you may as well put him to the girl with no crest and see what you get from that lot. You have some very good birds to start with. I wouldn't be put off by the lack of quality birds in the US. Don't forget that any new variety is started from scratch, at least you have a good base to work from

 

[Trish44]

I've been monitoring the site on FB that is the Cream Legbar site in the UK & they keep saying that all of our birds from Greenfire have the wrong coloring. So I'm wondering if Greenfire got taken on the birds they imported, were they sold inferior birds to get rid of them or what? They're supposed to have 3 different blood lines now at Greenfire & so far from what I've read none of the birds have the correct coloring to meet the UK standard of perfection. They're saying that all of them are too dark, the cockerels have too much color coming through, the hens have too much gold around their necks & are too dark in color. But if you look at some of the birds in the UK they also don't all meet those standards, so are they seeking to get the breed lighter in color than even their own birds? I was told that the hens should have cream neck hackles, not gold & should be a lighter brown with only a light salmon breast. The cockerels should be all cream & grey with no rust coloring coming through & should also be lighter in color. They tell us that we should not be breeding these birds from Greenfire because we're spreading incorrect birds for the standard. I made the comment that we only have one source right now to buy birds, so we have what we have.

 

[rc50]

or you do two things... don't use these birds .. or do this I try to make my birds better than the last hatched if I can't I keep hatching eggs and culling until I get what is correct....
all any breeder can do, if there is no outside source of new better blood....


Keith
SC
USA