Silkie Breeding Questions

[Amer]

@Willawong Hill, @Amer, @AllenK RGV, I was wondering how the buff gene works in silkies. If I breed a buff silkie to a Mille fleur would I get a silkie with the patterns of a Mille Fluer? If I breed a buff Cochin to a Mille fire would I get a Cochin with Mille fleur patterning?

Buff isn’t a gene, it is composed of multiple genes. Crossing two breeds will never get you purebred offspring. No matter which way you cross it, mottling and silkie feathering are recessive.
You would get black tailed buff offspring with white skin, a walnut comb, five toes, and a crest if you breed the Cochin over a Silkie.
If you breed the Silkie over Cochin, which I would recommend, the female offspring will be fibromelanistic.
Breed the offspring together and you will be hard pressed to find anything resembling a mille fluer silkie. I wanted to calculate the chances but Kippenjungle crashed because there are just that many genes involved. While that is a method to extract genes, I would recommend breeding the daughters of the original cross between Silkie and Cochin back to the father and then breeding their offspring together. Then it would only be a matter of getting mottled offspring. Keep all the offspring and breed as many as possible. Only about 13 percent will be mottled, and of those, you might have the bad luck (again 13 percent chance) of getting single comb.
It’s a lot of work but it’s how any new variety is developed. Hatching numbers.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Squeakers is a handsome boy isn't he?

His daughter, Jelly Bean is almost pure, just need to breed back a few more times.

She's OEGB/Mille Fleur D'uccle X OEGB. She has a few feathers on her legs, but not enough to notice right away.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Here's Squeakers Son, Bigfoot. He's OEGB/Mille Fleur D'uccle X Silkie.

I need to get updated pictures of him. Here's some samples of Bigfoot's feathers. They all follow this pattern.

Notice the white fluff on the bottom of the feather, as you move up there's grey, in between the grey is white, & black, & the tip of the feather is white.

Some of his feathers are white fluff, grey middle, & solid white top.

 

[Egg Snatcher]

Buff isn’t a gene, it is composed of multiple genes. Crossing two breeds will never get you purebred offspring. No matter which way you cross it, mottling and silkie feathering are recessive.
You would get black tailed buff offspring with white skin, a walnut comb, five toes, and a crest if you breed the Cochin over a Silkie.
If you breed the Silkie over Cochin, which I would recommend, the female offspring will be fibromelanistic.
Breed the offspring together and you will be hard pressed to find anything resembling a mille fluer silkie. I wanted to calculate the chances but Kippenjungle crashed because there are just that many genes involved. While that is a method to extract genes, I would recommend breeding the daughters of the original cross between Silkie and Cochin back to the father and then breeding their offspring together. Then it would only be a matter of getting mottled offspring. Keep all the offspring and breed as many as possible. Only about 13 percent will be mottled, and of those, you might have the bad luck (again 13 percent chance) of getting single comb.
It’s a lot of work but it’s how any new variety is developed. Hatching numbers.

I'm definitely going to use this info when I start breeding and cross breeding my chickens. Thanks you your help!

@MysteryChicken, I'm wanted to try to copy Squeekers, Big Foot, and some other cross bred bantams I found on here. Your birds are gorgeous!

 

[MysteryChicken]

I'm definitely going to use this info when I start breeding and cross breeding my chickens. Thanks you your help!

@MysteryChicken, I'm wanted to try to copy Squeekers, Big Foot, and some other cross bred bantams I found on here. Your birds are gorgeous!

That's fine, if you want to try. I believe my birds carry a Dominant mottling gene. Not the recessive.

Gonna test breed Squeakers to my silkie hens, to see if I can replicate BigFoot.

Also gonna Breed Phoenix (OEGB) to the D'uccle hen again to see if I can get a Female version of Squeakers.

I accidentally sold a OEGB/D'uccle cross to someone who wanted silkies, or silkie crosses. She didn't seem to mind though, cuz she's a friend. It was during the summer.

 

[MysteryChicken]

@Egg Snatcher
I got updated pictures of Squeakers, & Bigfoot to help give you more ideas.

 

[Egg Snatcher]

@Egg Snatcher
I got updated pictures of Squeakers, & Bigfoot to help give you more ideas.

View attachment 2407891View attachment 2407893View attachment 2407894View attachment 2407895View attachment 2407896View attachment 2407897

wow, Big Foot. He got even more handsom!

 

[MysteryChicken]

wow, Big Foot. He got even more handsom!

Yep, & very happy about it. Gonna breed him back to a couple silkies, & see if I can get some mottled silkies out of him. I'm calling his mottling type, pied, because the feathers he has are unique.

 

[NatJ]

I'm calling his mottling type, pied, because the feathers he has are unique.

I thought that was normal for mottled feathers: white tip, black behind the tip, rest of the feather other-colored as determined by the other color genes of the chicken in question.

I believe my birds carry a Dominant mottling gene. Not the recessive.

What crosses have you done to confirm this? If there is a dominant gene that causes the same mottled appearance, that's really neat!

Do you have any pullets or hens that also have that mottling?

 

[MysteryChicken]

I thought that was normal for mottled feathers: white tip, black behind the tip, rest of the feather other-colored as determined by the other color genes of the chicken in question.



What crosses have you done to confirm this? If there is a dominant gene that causes the same mottled appearance, that's really neat!

Do you have any pullets or hens that also have that mottling?

Mottling is supposed to just be a white tip, on the feather.

Some mutations of the mottling gene, Exchequer have more white feathers, & some black feathers. I've searched for a mottling pattern that looks like the one I produced, but can't find any.

Bigfoot is an example, He's the result of crossing Squeakers to a silkie hen. I'm gonna run some more tests before I conclude 100% it is a dominant mottling gene.