Are weird wings genetic?

[Cloverr39]

My roo has wings that sort of stick out and look messy. I think some of his primary feathers are going over his secondary. I just hatched out his first chicks and the oldest (around 9-10 days) has wings that stick out. I do have 1 hen with wings that always stay a little bit open. Like she can't close them all the way. I don't know if that's the chicks mom tho.

Dad's wings:

That one hen (Sarah's) wings:
(Kinda hard to see, but she sometimes keeps her wings half open)

The chick's wings:

I have 6 other chicks from the same rooster, but 2 are bantam brahma mixes and have flat feathered wings (really neat ones) and the others wings aren't big enough to tell. I also hatched out another chick from egg that I bought and that one also has these weird open wings. That ones really big and I suspect it to be a rooster (somehow always the biggest chick in the batch is always a rooster every year for me).

Other chick (not related to the rooster):

So are these things genetic or do they just come out that way? And would breeding any of these chicks couse their offspring to possibly also have weird wings? There's probably an actual name for this that isn't "weird wings". If you know what it is than please tell me.

 

[HeatherKellyB]

@NatJ
@RoostersAreAwesome
@Amer

 

[Amer]

Yes, it’s genetic and it is called twisted feather/twisted wing. It’s caused by a small skeletal deformity and is more common in Silkies. In show Silkies it would be a disqualification but it won’t harm your bird. I still wouldn’t breed it though.

 

[Cloverr39]

Yes, it’s genetic and it is called twisted feather. It’s caused by a small skeletal deformity and is more common in Silkies. In show Silkies it would be a disqualification but it won’t harm your bird. I still wouldn’t breed it though.

Okay, thanks. I was actually thinking of getting a different rooster next year. Does it mean all of his chicks could carry it even if they don't show it or would those be safe to breed?

 

[Amer]

Okay, thanks. I was actually thinking of getting a different rooster next year. Does it mean all of his chicks could carry it even if they don't show it or would those be safe to breed?

Yes they could carry it.

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

Yes, it’s genetic and it is called twisted feather/twisted wing. It’s caused by a small skeletal deformity and is more common in Silkies. In show Silkies it would be a disqualification but it won’t harm your bird. I still wouldn’t breed it though.

Is twisted wing the same as split wing or something different?

 

[Amer]

Is twisted wing the same as split wing or something different?

It’s different. Split wing causes the bird to not have an axial feather and maybe some gapping and slipping of the wing, twisted wing twists the primaries over the secondaries.

 

[Amer]

I’m not sure if split wing stops at just missing the axial or if it causes the wing to slip as well. It’s common in some Japanese game breeds. It’s a breed trait in Ko Shamos.

 

[Cloverr39]

Unfortunately it looks like 2 other chicks from him also have it. This year I got quite unlucky with my chicks. Out of 19 eggs that I bought only 4 hatched and the rest (7) are from my chickens. 1 of the chicks from the bought eggs has the wing deformity and another one has a vaulted skull (I think that's what it's called) which I don't exactly want to breed in. The rest look okay for now, but I'm still kinda scared of how many will be roosters (last year every single chick was a roo). A couple chciks are suspiciously big. Another chick which I thought was dominant white and could possibly breed some paint silkies next year is showing some brown pin feathers on the shoulders. I guess all I can do is wait and see how they grow up and feather out. I'm a bit upset that a lot of things aren't going how I expect them to.

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

It’s different. Split wing causes the bird to not have an axial feather and maybe some gapping and slipping of the wing, twisted wing twists the primaries over the secondaries.

Does this look like split wing or twisted wing?

Her feathers can be tucked back into place, but they’ll stick out again as soon as she moves them.