The Moonshiner's Leghorns

[The Moonshiner]

Is it worth trying to make my own line using a Gray (SDW) Gamecock over a Brown Leghorn hen, then breed a golden duckwing F1 male from the pair to another brown leghorn hen next year, then mate the BC1 birds together to create the F2 SDW Leghorns?

That'll take too long. I was about to tell him plug those incubators back in and hatch SDW all winter.
I knew at one time he had access to SDW females just didn't know about males.

 

[Chookwagn]

That'll take too long. I was about to tell him plug those incubators back in and hatch SDW all winter.
I knew at one time he had access to SDW females just didn't know about males.

I would if they were laying!

 

[Chookwagn]

There are a bunch of local poultry shows coming up here .... im going to go scouting for some good SDW leghorns and see if I can get some contacts to get eggs from.

 

[The Moonshiner]

I would if they were laying!

They just need more light. Move them into your house.

 

[The Moonshiner]

So when crossed it still should be that easy?

Yes it'll still be that easy. I've done it several times.

 

[KF0002]

Ya I'm thinking sex linked. I much prefer autosexing but would need to protect my investment. If they were autosexing any Tom, Dick or Hairball could buy a few and start selling them.
At least sex linked would slow them down and they'd have to maintain two different flocks to make the cross.

Agreed. And the Crele Leghorns you are working on will be autosexing also once you get the males coming double barred. So you would have it covered both ways. And if you only sold day old pullets, no one would be able to breed the crele leghorns without a rooster unless they actually know how the barring gene works, what to breed the crele pullet to in order to not junk up the variety, and it would take at least 3 years for them to breed them back to getting double barred males even if they did know how to properly breed them. Which not many backyard breeders know how to do anyway.

 

[KF0002]

Yes it'll still be that easy. I've done it several times.

Yes because silver is sex-linked and a female can only carry one copy of silver and pass that copy to her sons only. So the females would hatch looking like brown leghorns and the males would be golden duckwing (silver/gold), and they look very much like SDW at hatch.

 

[KF0002]

Oops I meant to quote @Chookwagn on that last post. My bad.

 

[The Moonshiner]

Agreed. And the Crele Leghorns you are working on will be autosexing also once you get the males coming double barred. So you would have it covered both ways. And if you only sold day old pullets, no one would be able to breed the crele leghorns without a rooster unless they actually know how the barring gene works, what to breed the crele pullet to in order to not junk up the variety, and it would take at least 3 years for them to breed them back to getting double barred males even if they did know how to properly breed them. Which not many backyard breeders know how to do anyway.

Oh ya I've been left alone in my head for like a hour already. I'm so far ahead on this idea that I even scare myself.
I'm at 3 different ideas that would slow someone down and add years to catching up on the needed parent stock.
Sometimes I even amaze myself.

 

[Chookwagn]

Yes it'll still be that easy. I've done it several times.

So gold male / silver hens will give me gold pullets

And silver male / gold hens will give me silver pullets

Is one way better than the other?