The Olive-Egger thread!

[mstricer]

Quote: I have done both and it is my experience that the blue layers are the ones to use, just because it is a green layer doesn't make it on step closer, mine always set me back, I never got nice olive eggs from my green layers, Now the blue layers I get nice olive eggs from the get.

 

[naturespace]

I have done both and it is my experience that the blue layers are the ones to use, just because it is a green layer doesn't make it on step closer, mine always set me back, I never got nice olive eggs from my green layers, Now the blue layers I get nice olive eggs from the get.

i would guess that a green egg layer already has some brown egg layers in their past, therefore you might have a better chance of getting a single comb or non-blue laying birds. I don't know if this is really true, but i would guess that it is true for F2 generation Olive Eggers too. Does anyone know if that is true?

 

[DMRippy]

Quote: I have done both and it is my experience that the blue layers are the ones to use, just because it is a green layer doesn't make it on step closer, mine always set me back, I never got nice olive eggs from my green layers, Now the blue layers I get nice olive eggs from the get.
I am going to say I share you opinion. The Green egg layers usually only have 1 copy of the blue egg gene and it really gets lost in the next cross. I never have gotten a good olive egger from that cross. The best cross to me is a blue egg layer with 2 copies of the blue egg gene with a dark layer. Just the best cross. I don't find 2nd's are very good either. Unless you are willing to dedicate yourself to breeding Olive Eggers till they breed true.... I will stick with the first cross.

 

[DMRippy]

Quote:
VERY TRUE.

 

[cracrzy4chicks]

I am going to say I share you opinion. The Green egg layers usually only have 1 copy of the blue egg gene and it really gets lost in the next cross. I never have gotten a good olive egger from that cross. The best cross to me is a blue egg layer with 2 copies of the blue egg gene with a dark layer. Just the best cross. I don't find 2nd's are very good either. Unless you are willing to dedicate yourself to breeding Olive Eggers till they breed true.... I will stick with the first cross.

So if I understand this correctly................... blue egg layer x dark layer = olive egger. But, not all will lay olive eggs. They need to have a pea comb which " hangs " with the blue egg gene ??
So what would you get if you crossed the olive egger w/pea comb back to blue layer. Would the egg color lighten ?


This is all so very interesting

 

[farmerChef]

 So if I understand this correctly................... blue egg layer x dark layer = olive egger.   But, not all will lay olive eggs. They need to have a pea comb which  " hangs " with the blue egg gene ??
  So what would you get if you crossed the olive egger w/pea comb back to blue layer. Would the egg color lighten ?
 This is all so very interesting

if you cross a purebred (2 copies) dark brown egg layer with a pure bred (2 copies) blue egg layer, all of these chicks will have 1 copy of each gene, so all will be olive eggers. Its whe you cross them together or back to a dark brown egg layer you dont get as many olive eggers. Thats where the pea/single combed thing comes in, a pea combed bird can lay brow eggs, as can a single comb lay blue/green eggs. But the single combed bird has a very small chance at laying blue. But you have to use a pea combed blue layer and a single combed dark brown layer to use this.

 

[DMRippy]

Quote:
That is were it would get muddy I think. 75% would carry the blue egg gene and 25% would carry dark egg genes and then you could mix the 75% and 25% anyway you want. You would get some green maybe, blue maybe, dark egg layers with no blue are possible, just any combo is possible. That is why 2nd gens are so hard to get right. That first cross just make the best cross..... then you have your work cut out for you to breed Olive Eggers, lots of culling.... like 90% I would think.... small chance of getting it right with a cross to a cross.... then you the the UNKNOWN of the roos from that cross.... just not worth it to me.

 

[buckabucka]

I am going to say I share you opinion.  The Green egg layers usually only have 1 copy of the blue egg gene and it really gets lost in the next cross.  I never have gotten a good olive egger from that cross.  The best cross to me is a blue egg layer with 2 copies of the blue egg gene with a dark layer.  Just the best cross.  I don't find 2nd's are very good either.  Unless you are willing to dedicate yourself to breeding Olive Eggers till they breed true.... I will stick with the first cross.

 So if I understand this correctly................... blue egg layer x dark layer = olive egger.   But, not all will lay olive eggs. They need to have a pea comb which  " hangs " with the blue egg gene ??
  So what would you get if you crossed the olive egger w/pea comb back to blue layer. Would the egg color lighten ?


 This is all so very interesting

All my olive eggers are a cross between an OE roo (Marans x Ameraucana), and a variety of hens, mostly with pea combs, like my roo, and mostly blue or green layers. I did get many shades of green, along with some gray and weird mocha-like colors. He was all I had to work with at the time.

I am wondering if anyone has an Isbar x Marans olive egger and what color egg they got from that cross. I have a few of these in the incubator right now! (shipped eggs).

 

[BullCreek]

Welsummer roo over EE hens got me at least 3 olive eggers. One lays rather dark. One other lays slightly lighter, and the third is lighter with speckles. The darkest is below. Gonna try for a few more this season, though it will be with a new roo. We butchered Dunderhead (nasty rooster), and Big Sexy (his son, a welsummer/maran) will hopefully do well for us. Fingers crossed!
(Sorry about the cruddy camera phone pic!)

 

[nicalandia]

I have done both and it is my experience that the blue layers are the ones to use, just because it is a green layer doesn't make it on step closer, mine always set me back, I never got nice olive eggs from my green layers, Now the blue layers I get nice olive eggs from the get.

you make no genetic sence...



lets make this alot easier for you lot..

what happens when you cross a white egg layer to a Dark Dark brown egg layer? do you get Dark brown eggs? or do you get tan/brown colore eggs?

what happens whe you cross a brown egg layer to a Dark Dark brown egg layer? do you get tan/brown eggs or do you gert dark brown eggs?..

Blue egg shell gene + white egg shell gene = Blue egg shelled eggs
Blue egg shell gene + Tan/brown shell genes = light green/green eggs
Blue egg shell gene + Dark brown shell genes = Olive eggs
Blue egg shel gene + Dark Dark(maran type) shell genes = Super Dark Olive eggs..

so if wish to hatch Olive eggers using a bird that already lays green eggs will help you achieve darker olive eggs

I hope thats easy enough for you guys..

That is were it would get muddy I think. 75% would carry the blue egg gene and 25% would carry dark egg genes and then you could mix the 75% and 25% anyway you want. You would get some green maybe, blue maybe, dark egg layers with no blue are possible, just any combo is possible. That is why 2nd gens are so hard to get right. That first cross just make the best cross..... then you have your work cut out for you to breed Olive Eggers, lots of culling.... like 90% I would think.... small chance of getting it right with a cross to a cross.... then you the the UNKNOWN of the roos from that cross.... just not worth it to me.

your understanding on this matter is very limited .

I am going to say I share you opinion. The Green egg layers usually only have 1 copy of the blue egg gene and it really gets lost in the next cross.

again your understanding on this matter is very limitted, Genes dont get lost, specially genes that are attached to other genes you can see at hatch...

let me try to explain..

BCM Rooster over a True Ameraucana(Blue eggs) = 100% of All of the hens will have just One copy of the blue egg shell gene. but their mother´s white egg shell base genes will Dilute the dark egg genes to a Tan or light brown eggs. adding one copy of the blue egg gene(O) will make them green maybe light Olive.

BCM rooster ove an EE hens that is laying green eggs(the darker the best) = Only 50% of the Females will have the Pea comb. and they will also have one copy of the blue egg shell gene(just the like the cross above) but their´s mother green egg shen genes(many genes at play). will not Dilute the DARK egg genes found on BCM as much as the above cross..

so here is the rundown.

BCM x Ameraucana cross Hen= One Copy of the Blue egg shell gene plus diluted Dark brown egg shell genes will give you green eggs or light Olive eggs.

BCM x EE cross Hen= One Copy of the blue egg shell gene as well. plus a brown egg shell genes will surely give you Olive eggs...




hey how do I go about getting even darker Olive eggers? well thats EASY.. Use the best(darker eggs) F1 hens(BCM x EE) and mate them back to BCMs.. just be in the look out for pea combed chicks. they are the keepers. if you keep doing this you have 95% chance of getting even darker eggs at times goes by and they are simply Black Copper Marans with a Pea Comb(that also lay the Darkest Olive eggs the world has seen)