The Plymouth Rock Breeders thread

[uphilljill]

Finally had a nice weekend here (33 and sunny) so I spent some time going over the birds and considering breeding match-ups. One of the 9 mo old cockerels I was growing out is showing split wing, so I took some pics to share here. He will be culled soon with some others not being used, to make room for chicks.

Split wing:

Good wing (different bird):

 

[Beekissed]

I can see those changes in the tail angles....Fred, do you know why they changed those? Was there reasoning behind it~such as function~ or just a change in tastes/fashion?

 

[Beekissed]

Finally had a nice weekend here (33 and sunny) so I spent some time going over the birds and considering breeding match-ups. One of the cockerels I was growing out is showing split wing, so I took some pics to share here. He will be culled soon with some others not being used, to make room for chicks.

Split wing:




Good wing (different bird):

Thank you for showing these pics to illustrate this trait...I never thought to look at a wing for such a thing but will from now on if that's something that is a fault.

 

[chicken pickin]

...

Finally had a nice weekend here (33 and sunny) so I spent some time going over the birds and considering breeding match-ups. One of the cockerels I was growing out is showing split wing, so I took some pics to share here. He will be culled soon with some others not being used, to make room for chicks.

Split wing:

Good wing (different bird):

[/quoteThese are such great wing pictures. I can see the difference in the wings that you are showing. Thank you for sharing these. That I know of I haven't had split wing yet so I appreciate the visual.

 

[uphilljill]

I've heard you can sometimes tell split wing in chicks. Does anyone know how reliable that is? How early or what to look for?

And since this is a breeding thread: I've culled other birds from this mating for wing issues earlier this year. Does that mean at least one of the parents was a carrier of the gene?

 

[chicken pickin]

It took me some time but I finally finished reading this thread in its entirety starting at post 1. I read every single post along the way, some days getting so lost in all your discussions that I found my self sitting for a few hours to read. This thread is amazing and all of you that contribute are just as amazing. This thread is a great learning place for any breeder not just Rocks in them selves. I took great pleasure in reading this through and a little bummed Im caught up. I very much look forward to all the discussions to come and maybe one day I will be a contributor here also.

 

[uphilljill]

2015 Breeding Plans:

I spent most of the evening researching the genetics of split wing. This is my current understanding of it and I hope more experienced breeders can confirm or correct my thinking here.

For newbies, a pretty good intro to the genetics of split wing can be found here: https://willowcreekfarm.wordpress.com/2013/07/23/the-genetics-of-split-wing-part-1/

Basically split wing is a recessive gene that is not always apparent but can be expressed if two carriers of the gene are mated together. It can spread though your flock pretty rapidly, so the recommendation is usually to cull all birds with split wings as well as the proven carriers, to avoid problems in your breeding program further down the line.

Since I used a single pair mating last year, I can determine pretty certainly that the hen used was a carrier (Rr) with normal appearing wings, and the cock was also either a carrier or affected (Rr or rr.) I no longer have him so I cannot check, but I'm pretty sure he was affected due to the percentage of offspring showing visible wing issues. (Missing it then was my beginner mistake.) In any case, to be on the safe side I have to consider all their non-affected offspring to be carriers.

I really love the look and vigor pullets coming out of my carrier hen and am not prepared to scape her whole line. I do have a cockerel from another line that I was planning to cross into my stock this year, but before I do that, I need to verify that he is not a carrier himself. To that end, I am going to use an affected split wing pullet (rr) to do some test matings. If he is normal (RR), their offspring will all have normal appearing wings but be carriers of the gene. If he is a carrier (Rr), some percentage of their offspring will show split wing.

If the test matings prove the new cockerel is normal (RR), I will go ahead and breed him to the carrier hen and her 2 pullets (Rr). This should result in 50% normals and 50% carriers, but no affected. I will then take any likely breeding pullets from those pairings, and pass them under the split wing cockerel (shown in the photos above) for more test matings to determine which is which. At that point I should be able to cull all affected and carrier birds, keeping only proven normal birds, and move forward.

So my original setting up family lines/rotational breeding fantasy for 2015 was tossed, and I will be replacing it with single pair test matings. With any luck (and great record-keeping) I should be able to remove the split wing from my flock by next spring.

 

[chicken pickin]

Sorry to hear you are going to have a set back in your breeding plans. Your new plan for 2015 seems wise and I wish you luck in this task of eliminating split wing from your flock.

 

[uphilljill]

A set back for sure, but a worthwhile one if I can correct for it now. To my mind, that's what "breeding" is... dealing with unwanted recessive genes. Dominate genes are relatively easy to cull for. Granted, this is a pretty big problem being a DQ, but I think it's not impossible at this stage given my small flock size. (Assuming the new cockerel tests normal, of course.) It's actually good to have something to focus on. Really simplified my breeding goals for the year. 2015 is now going to be the Year of the Wing.

 

[chicken pickin]

A set back for sure, but a worthwhile one if I can correct for it now. To my mind, that's what "breeding" is... dealing with unwanted recessive genes. Dominate genes are relatively easy to cull for. Granted, this is a pretty big problem being a DQ, but I think it's not impossible at this stage given my small flock size. (Assuming the new cockerel tests normal, of course.) It's actually good to have something to focus on. Really simplified my breeding goals for the year. 2015 is now going to be the Year of the Wing.

Is it safe for me to assume you will not be selling eggs or chicks this year? This is something you need to focus on and try to breed out. If you would like you can PM. I just want to get my ducks in a row so I can plan my year