Can someone tell me (Splash Orpington)

[catmom57]

I apologize in advance if this is not the right place to ask
I have two splash Orps I am pretty sure they are 50 50 English and Standard One looks like a typical spalsh color silver/grey background with splashed of dark blue/black and a little darker gray head and dark brown/black eyes and pewter legs.
This is Phoebe:

Then there is Pearl, white background splashing is more to the dark brown or maybe light gray I think, beak is light other than a dark tip, pearl legs and one yellow eye and one green.
This is Pearl:


Anyone ever see this before in splash and what genetics could have turned this out I think she is lovely and wouldn't mind seeing more of this in the breed.
BTW I am new to this stuff but very interested in genetics.

 

[Heron's Nest Farm]

I hope someone will chyme in as Orpingtons are my thing and I too am new to breeding.

I have a blue that I am looking to breed. I am really interested in color genetics.

I would suppose that this might be a recessive gene popping up? You could breed her and select for those traits?

 

[catmom57]

I got some pretty good answers on the Facebook page on the genetics but still not what I was wanting completely. I wish I lived someplace I could have a roo but I don't so breeding her won't happen as I to would love to see if it could be stabilized I think she is lovely myself though I love my normal splash as well.
What I was told is that anything that has a lighter ground and darker splashes is considered a splash but I may be wrong also that splash is not a show color for oprs anyway.
I am also in Oregon in the Willamette Valley and got my girls from Over The Top Orpingtons in Kings Valley I would love to see some of your flock also!

 

[rainbowrooster]

Splash is splash regardless of shade. The blue bird themselves often great variation in the shade of blue from almost black to gray.

 

[donrae]

I know this is old, and I can't find the post where I read it, but someone was talking about breeding b/b/s birds and it was mentioned breeding splash to splash will result in more diluted color birds, more washed out looking. This may be what happened here, the difference of breeding say blue to blue vs splash to splash.

 

[chocol8bikini]

I was reading in a post from one of the hatcheries that says that it's only advised to breed a splash to splash only one generation. After that you get a grey dull looking bird. I think pearl is gorgeous. I'm a sucker for the splashes! My splash looks like an in between shade of splash from Pheobe and Pearl.

 

[keesmom]

Continuing to breed splash to splash for several generations will result in washed out markings. You would have better results with blue x Blue or splash x blue.