Wanna see some ugilleeeeeeee chicks?

[Cindi]

Well, this is not showing off my favourite breed, this is showing off my most un-favourite breed.  During two incubations, I also incubated some eggs that I suspected were a cross breed.  It was when I was gathering eggs for incubation of the light Brahma.  The Brahma eggs are quite a different shape than most of my other eggs, they are more round than anything, (wonder if this is typical of all brahmas, no matter what the colour).  Anyways, these eggs I would place a ? on and amazingly enough, these eggs always hatched.  I have kept track of these and let tell you, in my eyes, the crosses that have occurred are, in my eyes (and yes, I know, beauty is in the eye of the beholder), these crosses are two of the most ugileee birds I have ever seen.

One light Brahma, rooster, Ivan lives with 4 barred rock, 3 buff orpington and one australorpe hen and a silver laced wyandotte, that I don't have any more.

Clearly there was a barred rock X light brahma present in the hatchlings, and possibly buff Orpington crosses

I think that the white chicks that look very similar to light Brahmas, (believed to be buff Orpington X light Brahma) right down to the grey lacing on the hackle feathers, to the feathered legs and the black on the tailfeathers, but are displaying a single comb.  By the way, all these crosses are cockerals, not a single pullet emerged.  The buff Orpington cross has hideous colouring on the hackle feathers.  Not grey, but kind of a washed out gold and doesn't look nice, it looks very dirty, like they dipped those feathers in light coloured mud.  Not a nice cross, in my eyes, and I won't gather these eggs ever to incubate again.

The ones that are barred look just like a barred Plymouth rock, with a pea comb, and feathered legs, very thick legs, unusually thick, looking more like stumps and has massive feet, quite aggressive cockerals actually.  If there ever was any scrapping going on with those 12 little dudes (light brahmas and the crosses, I am growing them to take to the auction, what else can you do with roosters when you don't want to eat them, all the pullets are sold) it would be the barred rock crosses starting it.  In my eyes, another very ugilleeeee bird. Anyways, just wanted to show some pictures of what I think look like the birds from the outer space.  I would love to hear what others think, maybe it is just me.

I will have more picture gender comparison of the Cochin chicks as time goes by, just gotta assemble the chicks in that line up to do it, smiling.....  Have that most wonderful and greatest of days, with that health, Cindi

This is what I believe to be the buff Orpington cross light Brahma, not 100% positive, but I think so, I know that silver mated to red inhibits the red gene showing up -- hence all white chicks, regardless of gender, with some red (gold) colouring on them.  this is showing up in that awful colour on the neck feathers, it really is not a nice colour, period.



This is what I believe to be Barred Rock cross light Brahma



Same crossing



Does anyone know what a silver laced wyandotte hen crossed to the light brahma rooster would look like?  That would really make me curious, there was one in there, but have sold her now, so I would never know.

[hardwood]

Cindi,
 I read through your post before actually looking at the pics so I was a little at what you're calling ugly! OK, so they might not be winning birds at the fair this year, but they're no turkens or guinnies! I've got lots of mutts around here (along with the pure-breds) that get a little getting used to, but they're all good natured and solid layers.

Keep up the pics...I love 'em all!

Scott

[Natalie]

If you want to see ugly look at those naked necks. I wouldn't be able to keep them unless I knitted them all some scarves. :-D

They don't look so bad, the first one's coloring is a little muddy but he has a good build. I would say
that the first one is the brahma/orpington cross. I say this because the orpingtons are more of a
blank canvas with their light uniform coloring allowing the brahma's coloring to show through, the cape  and tail feathers are the distinguishing marks of the brahma.
The silverlaced wyandotte has alot going on with their coloring and I don't think the brahma would be able to compete with that.
I have crossed my orpingtons with my black copper marans rooster to see if I could get more of a brownish color but there is no middle ground there, she is as black as ink.
I know someone who got a brown orpington but it was done through crossings with a rhode island red.
The second one is definitely a barred rock cross, see how the one with the heavier markings shows through when you make crosses. The barred coloring covers the brahma coloring.
He doesn't look so bad though, not that far off a barred rock.
They both have pretty good form. Who knows what they will look like when they are grown or even after their first moult.
Glad you are having fun with the hatchings. Sometimes mutts are the most fun.
                                               

[Michael Bush]

They look like chickens to me... I like mutts.  They always seem to be the hardiest.

[doak]

Those naked neck chickens are good layers. :)doak

[Brian D. Bray]

Cindi, on the Brahma/Orpington cross, the 1st generation should show Buff roosters and white hens (brahma markings), the 2nd generation should show the opposite.  After that it's anybodys guess.  Both The Brahmas and Opringtons breed true and  the coloring carries over as noted above.
I would agree that the poult with the brahma markings in a Orpington cross, the colors will be the black cape and tail with white body and wings but the black areas will range from gray to black,

[Cindi]

Cindi, on the Brahma/Orpington cross, the 1st generation should show Buff roosters and white hens (brahma markings), the 2nd generation should show the opposite.  After that it's anybodys guess.  Both The Brahmas and Opringtons breed true and  the coloring carries over as noted above.
I would agree that the poult with the brahma markings in a Orpington cross, the colors will be the black cape and tail with white body and wings but the black areas will range from gray to black,

Brian, by the way I love the little diddy below the avatar, about me corroborating that you look like the little crooked man with the little crooked cane, smiling that big smile, I do, smiling again.

You have perplexed me here.  That chick with the brahma markings, the one that you said is a pullet (the top picture in this post) is a pullet, as the genetics go.  I took it to be a cockeral and it is no longer here, that is too bad, had I thought it a pullet, I could have got more money selling privately.

This chick had a single comb, why is that?  This large single comb made me believe it was a cockeral.  Pea comb is dominant.  It doesn't matter, any that looked like that, those I thought were B.O. X LB cockerals, I took to the auction.  Trying to keep pure blood lines here.  You know I have so much to learn about genetics, I am studying deeply about this stuff (probably my absence from here so much), but the more I study the more confused I am getting. One day, I think I will wake up and it will be all clear as mud, oops, that didn't make much sense now did it...smiling.  I listen to your words, friend, you know that, I value your input in my life and appreciate it.  Keep it coming, old friend, have those most beautiful days, to love and live with wished-for-great-health.  Cindi

[Cindi]

Oh brother, spent some time making another post and lost it, hmmm...wonder where it went.  That is OK, will type again.

Brian, remember when we had that bee barbeque at your place the summer before last?  Well, you may recall, you may not, but I took a whole lotta pictures of your beautiful birds in your old chickenyard.  I have two pictures here of those birds.

In one picture you will see the two roosters, the one light Brahma and I suppose the buff one is the cross between the light Brahma and buff Orpington, is this correct?

The buff coloured hen with the black on the tailfeathers in the middle between these two roosters is the light Brahma cross buff Orpington hen?

In the second picture and the first picture there are some white looking hens, can't see them too good.  They are the first generation of the cross between these two breeds?  That buff looking hen in the first picture is the second generation of this cross breeding.  I remember that you said that the first generation is criss-crossed and the second generation goes criss-crossed back.

Am I getting this all right? Please elaborate, and tell this silly ol' gal if my thoughts are correct or not.  Please, as you know me, you must elaborate, comment a whole bunch on stuff.  I have that need to know, I am compelled to KNOW things and this is one of the most important things in my life (I say, just one of them, smiling that big smile).  Do you still have your beautiful birds hanging around.  I have never seen pictures of any of your new stock, only heard you speak of them.  I know also, that you said that you have a knack of breaking cameras, smiling.  Why don't you get one of your Grandchildren to go out with you one day and do a photoshoot of your birds.  We are moving on June 15, and I don't know if I will ever get a chance to come to your house again, so a picture or two would say more than a thousand words.  Thank you dear friend, for all the attention to have given to me with helping me out with understanding more about the birds.  Have that most wonderfully great and awesome day, with the heaviest wishes of the best of health, Cindi

[Brian D. Bray]

In one picture you will see the two roosters, the one light Brahma and I suppose the buff one is the cross between the light Brahma and buff Orpington, is this correct?

No, the light Brahma rooster pictured in the top picture is the 1st generation cross.  The Roosters resembled their sires and the hens their dams.  The Buff colored rooster is the 2nd generation cross when the color sexlink was just the opposite of the 1st generation.  So with the Light Brahma/Buff Orpington cross the sexlinking lasts for 2 generations before going hodgepodge.

The buff coloured hen with the black on the tailfeathers in the middle between these two roosters is the light Brahma cross buff Orpington hen?

 

The Buff hens with black in their tails are actually the sisters of the Light Brahma rooster pictured whereas the Whitish hens are the sisters of the Buff rooster.  Again the sexlink carried for 2 generations with just the opposite coloring.  

In the second picture and the first picture there are some white looking hens, can't see them too good.  They are the first generation of the cross between these two breeds?  That buff looking hen in the first picture is the second generation of this cross breeding.  I remember that you said that the first generation is criss-crossed and the second generation goes criss-crossed back.

More or less.  The 1st generation cross are colored the same as their parents so if you use a Brahma Rooster you get a Brahma Colored rooster and Buff hens, if you use a Buff Orpington rooster you get a Buff Orpington rooster, and Brahma colored hens.
On the second generation using the 1st generation as your breeding stock you get a Buff Rooster from a Brahma rosster and Brahma hens from Buff hens.  Or visa versa, depending on shich way the cross was conducted..
You have perplexed me here.  That chick with the brahma markings, the one that you said is a pullet (the top picture in this post) is a pullet, as the genetics go.  I took it to be a cockeral and it is no longer here, that is too bad, had I thought it a pullet, I could have got more money selling privately.

Am I getting this all right? Please elaborate, and tell this silly ol' gal if my thoughts are correct or not.  Please, as you know me, you must elaborate, comment a whole bunch on stuff.  I have that need to know, I am compelled to KNOW things and this is one of the most important things in my life (I say, just one of them, smiling that big smile).  Do you still have your beautiful birds hanging around.  I have never seen pictures of any of your new stock, only heard you speak of them.

The stock you pictured have all gone the way of the stew pot due to age.  I keep my hens for 3 years after which, the 4th year, the egg laying becomes intermittent and varying in size.  There is actually a little slow down during the 3rd year from 1 or 2 eggs every 2 or 3 days to 1 egg every 2 to 3 days, but it is still an acceptable rate for the small farm, IMO..  Now I have gone to Black Jersey Giants and Austrolorps for better winter laying.  Both breeds have less of a egg production drop off in the winter.  I'm currently raising some dark Brhama chicks and some Cornish Game birds.  I will then have all the elements in place for breeding my desired type of chicken.
A Chichen with a 15-18 pound Rooster, broad breasted similar to a turkey, and that lays well even in winter.  Kind of a step up on the traditional dual purpose chicken. 
I could go into particulars on how to achieve that but is best to say that you get Body confomation from the female, size from the male, and color can be a cross throw, ie black rooster and white hen results in white rooster and black hen. But sexlinking doesn't happen with every cross.  It is also best to use males of one breed with females of the other and visa versa so that you get both the male and female dominate genes carried through into the 2nd generation.

Bet that makes it as clear as mud for you, doesn't it?

You have perplexed me here.  That chick with the brahma markings, the one that you said is a pullet (the top picture in this post) is a pullet, as the genetics go.  I took it to be a cockeral and it is no longer here, that is too bad, had I thought it a pullet, I could have got more money selling privately.

I might have been in error, if the sire was a true Light Brahma and the hens Buff orpingtons the ehn should have been buff and the roosters Brahma unless the Rosster you got ffrom me wasn't a purebred Brahma which would have thrown the genetics into a 1/2 generation where the chick would show the 3rd generation hodgepodge coloring.  On my 1st postof this thread I got the genetics backward.  I must have been real tired or hurting real bad or both when I wrote it.  
But to answer your question the 3 pictures show a Light Brahma cross hen (washed out black) and 2 Rock cross roosters.

[Cindi]

I might have been in error, if the sire was a true Light Brahma and the hens Buff orpingtons the ehn should have been buff and the roosters Brahma unless the Rosster you got ffrom me wasn't a purebred Brahma which would have thrown the genetics into a 1/2 generation where the chick would show the 3rd generation hodgepodge coloring.  On my 1st postof this thread I got the genetics backward.  I must have been real tired or hurting real bad or both when I wrote it. 
But to answer your question the 3 pictures show a Light Brahma cross hen (washed out black) and 2 Rock cross roosters.

Now, now Brian, you are driving me nuts!!! (smiling that big smile).  I want you to do me a favour, you know how I listen to you, your words are something that mean alot, and I consider you to be my internet friend, my mentor of many things.

When you are not in pain and when you are not tired, take some time with me.  YOu said in the quote above, that you must have got the genetics backwards in your first post of this thread, because you were hurting real badly or tired, sigh.  I know your pain, I cannot understand it as deeply as you know it -- as you are living it -- but I can go there in my mind's eye.  I know you.  Probably far deeper than you understand, I almost consider myself an empath, smiling (just like Deana on Star Trek).  Sounds whacky....maybe it is, maybe it is not.

I am beginning to fully understand what you speak of with the genetics of these two particular breeds when bred together.  The light Brahma and the buff Orpington and the offspring, the crisscrossing of the genes in the second generation and so on.  But is there any further information you would like to impart to me.  I think it is becoming a little more clear than mud now, smiling again.   By the way, I have crossed a silver laced wyandotte with the light brahma rooster, the resulting cockeral is going to be a show stopper, only at 6 weeks old, I gotta get a picture of him posted one day, think I'm gonna keep him just to see what comes of him, but so far, breathtaking).

I do not know if my light Brahma rooster I grew from your hatching eggs is purebred or not. I think he is.  He was always the largest of the group of hatchlings and looks pretty much identical to your light Brahma roosters.  I do have a current picture of him and the hens, I'll link to them, just so you can see, he is a darn nice fellow, and pretty gentle still, at the age of 15 months old.  He has respect of the gals in the chickenyard, and he is a talker.  Non-stop, jibber jabber all day, you can hear him coming a mile away, smiling.  He is my pride and joy.  Beautiful days, to love and live, my wishes for wonderful and greater health.  Cindi

Ivan, the light Brahma (hope he is a purebreed, smiling).


and Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, his two counterparts



Just thought I would put in a couple pics of my gold laced Wyandotte cockerals and pullets (they are 8 months old now), incubated here from eggs from a breeder.  Got some nice comments about these birds from a friend that knows quite a bit about judging poultry, she didn't see them in person, but said they looked quite nice, as far as pictures can say.

Cyrus, the gold laced Wyandotte cockeral



Another shot of Cyrus



Cyrus' head shot, note the large and nicely shaped rose comb





Cyrus and two of his gals out on the grass (he has four in his clan), also one of the buff Orpingtons out on the grass with them



A picture of the silver laced Wyandotte crossed light Brahma cockeral, 6 weeks old, really curious what a GLW cross brahma would look like after seeing this one...



Another shot of the silver laced Wyandotte cross light Brahma cockeral, 6 weeks old



A group shot of some of the light Brahma cockerals that will soon be heading off to the auction, far more cockerals than pullets in the last incubations, smiling



One of the light Brahma cockerals



Another shot of one of those light Brahma cockerals

[Brian D. Bray]

The cockeral and the 2 hens look purebred in the pictures.

The SLW and Brahma cross looks nice, but what will it look like after its first moult this fall.  Final colorization is not fixed until after 1st moult.

I just set 26 Red Bourbon Turkey eggs.  I had set some a few weeks ago but a helper unplugged all my extensions when cleaning up the work sight at the end of the day.  So I lost those by the time I noticed they were unplugged.

Where the cockerals use ubran assualt tactics to get the drop on a hen, the hen turkeys will actually go over and peck the tom, then sit down on the ground to accommidate him.  Very mellow birds.

I'm getting 18-24 eggs a day from my 24 hens and sometimes more (25-26) which is a good ratio of hens to egg production.  I'm getting so many eggs that I'm giving away half a dozen to a friend & neighbor who has 6 kids (all adopted).  I have another dozen chicks (dark Brahmas) coming up but only about half are expected to be hens, the cockerals will be fryers.

[Cindi]

Oh Brian, nice numbers of eggs you're getting, beauty.  Whah, that was a bummer about the failure of the turkey eggs, sometimes these things that happen are just so ding dang annoying, bet you were madder than a hadder!!!  How many turkey hens do you have?  I really miss my turkeys, I love the antics of them.  Those red bourbon are truly a beautiful bird.  I have a friend that is raising royal palms, they are very beautiful too, especially when the toms fan and parade around, wow, very showy looking birds.  Beautiful days, with health and love.  Cindi

[Brian D. Bray]

I currently have 3 toms and 4 hens.  A little top heavy tom wise (parden the pun) but 2 are going to be the center of festivities soon.  I think 1 tom to 4 hens is a good ratio for breeding.  I'll be swapping out some of the turkey chicks to friends and relatives to raise for their Thanksgiving, Christmas, and maybe even New Years dinners.

Got 4 more eggs today that I decided to add to the incubator to round it out to 30.  What's difference does 1 day make when hatching eggs.  Having hatching on days 29 and 30 isn't so bad, they'll still fit into the brooder.

[Cindi]

Ah, Brian, how so cool.  I am currently getting busy again, for like 22 days.  I have to test the fertility rate of my gold laced Wyandotte rooster, just for the fun of it.  I have about 34 eggs I am incubating as we speak.  We have massive wind storm going on right now, so the incubator is just roaring along, waiting until the wind dies, and that would be the morrow.  The humidity pan and water going.  Ken has made an amazing water line attached to the main water line in the cabin, a float that governs the water intake, and the humidity is governed in the most wonderful way.  That is a whole lotta governing.  You know me, I can repeat many words in a single paragraph or sentence, but I pay no mind to that thing.  Sometimes people get it, sometimes they don't.  That is nary a worry to me. 

In about 22 days, smiling, should have a whole lotta chicks.  I will candle on day 10.  A friend of mine wanted me to incubate as many of my GLW as I could before we move (closing date June 15), I have lots of time.  He will take every chick that has hatched.  I won't give him any until the third day after hatch, then I know they are eating and drinking appropriately.  If there is a weak chick, that will go by the wayside.  I have toughened up, and have learned to recognize a young one that is going to bring illness or bad things to the chicks.  Fortunately, through this tough attitude, my chicks come through with the biggest of flyin' colours.

 I am doing a test of the viability of the germ, between 8 to 12 days old (gathered eggs, and marked).  I am that experimenter, one that needs to know the truth, about all things in life.  I am having fun, life is wonderful and life is also most beautiful too.  Therefore, wishing the best of a great and beautiful life, full of lovin', learnin', havin' lots of fun, and, of course, my most important wish for all, is that of best of health wishes, to every person that I could give this attraction to.  Cindi