How did I end up with this from my lavender pen???

County Lodge · **Posted:** Sat Nov 22, 2008 2:54 pm

In my lavender pekin pen as I have said I have a lavender cockerel, 2 lavender hens, 2 black/lav split hens, and 2 cuckoo/lav split hens. I do not own any blue pekins at all. I have to admit I am not aware of the ancestry breeding of the black or cuckoo hens as I bought them as pullets from a very reputable pekin breeder.

Even I have to admit this little girl looks an awful lot like a blue pekin but that will not come about from lavender breeding so there must be blue in the background of one of my hens unless it is possible to breed a lavender this dark. I also have a little cockerel from the same hatch with much the same colouring.

Even though he looks black his feather colouring is much the same as the little pullet only a tiny bit darker. That is a little black pullet just behind him.

How did this happen?
Are they just very dark lavenders?
Or may I have blue breeding in the background of my lavender pen that I was not aware of?

They are very nice little pekins whichever way they go and I will probably keep the little pullet.

debbieo4914 · **Posted:** Sat Nov 22, 2008 4:00 pm

Hi CL,

My guess is that they are from the black split hen as blacks are often used in blue breeding programs.

That is a nice looking pullet.

Deb :-D

rocky · **Joined:** Mon Apr 28, 2008 3:36 pm **Posts:** 144

"I have a lavender cockerel ,2 black/lav split hens, 2 lavender hens, 2 black/lav split hens, and 2 cuckoo/lav split hens. I do not own any blue pekins at all"

lavender cockerel, 2 lavender hens
Lav is recessive so from them you can only get Lav.

lavender cockerel & 2 black/lav split hens, from this you could get Lavs or Blacks, but you can not get Blue as Blue is dominant, and if present your Black birds would be Blue.

lavender cockerel and 2 cuckoo/lav split hens, the same logic should apply as for the black/lav split hens, however it can be very difficult at times to distinguish between (black) cuckoo & blue cuckoo. I think there is a possibility you have blue cuckoo/lav split.

You also have a pair of quite nice Blues
David

debbieo4914 · **Posted:** Sun Nov 23, 2008 8:04 am

rocky wrote:

" lavender cockerel & 2 black/lav split hens, from this you could get Lavs or Blacks, but you can not get Blue as Blue is dominant, and if present your Black birds would be Blue.

David

But you can get black birds from a black x blue mating - ie. 50% black and 50% blue, in theory. So couldn't the black/lav split hens possibly have blue breeding in them?

Deb

rocky · **Joined:** Mon Apr 28, 2008 3:36 pm **Posts:** 144

"So couldn't the black/lav split hens possibly have blue breeding in them? "
No it can't

You can get Black bl+/bl+ from a Black bl+/bl+ X Blue Bl/bl+, you will in fact get (in large numbers) 50% of each.

If you have bird split for Black & Lav it will be bl+/bl+ Lav/lav+ and be black.
Notice there is no Bl gene present,

If this bird had blue in it's makeup it would be Bl/bl+ Lav/lav+ and so would be Blue.
David

County Lodge · **Posted:** Sun Nov 23, 2008 1:48 pm

The black girls are definately black in colour and bl+/bl+Lav/lav+. I was leaning toward the blue coming form the cuckoo as well even htough both hens look like a middle of the row in shading cuckoo. Neither are very dark nor very light in shade. I did not realize one could get a blue cuckoo but it would appear I have one. As I said I had no idea where this little pullet and cockerel came from as I believed both my cuckoo hens were cuckoo/lav split with no blue :shock:

debbieo4914 · **Posted:** Sun Nov 23, 2008 1:50 pm

Thanks for explaining that, David. I am trying to understand this - so there is no such thing as a recessive blue bird? If you mate two black offspring from a black/blue mating you can't get blues because if the bird isn't visually blue (or splash) then it doesn't carry the blue gene?

And to get the blue cuckoo would that be from a black (normal) cuckoo parent and a blue parent? Then the offspring (ie. CL's blue pullet) from that blue cuckoo (which as you said looks similar to a normal cuckoo) could be blue with no other blue input?

I hope this isn't too off-topic, Rosemarie - just trying to really understand this.

Deb

debbieo4914 · **Posted:** Sun Nov 23, 2008 1:58 pm

Sorry CL - I seem to have been typing a reply when you were!

debbieo4914 · **Posted:** Sun Nov 23, 2008 2:01 pm

And you now need to update your signature to include "blue pekins"! :-D

County Lodge · **Posted:** Sun Nov 23, 2008 2:51 pm

Yeap I am with you Deb---- trying to understand this one :roll:

I took time out to go and check...................

I went down and checked my lavender pen and the cuckoo girls. Nope they look cuckoo to me not blue cuckoo. I am still confused as to how this came about. I will take photos but colours don't come out very well on line.

I understand lav+/lav = lav due to the recessive gene so all I can get from the lavender cockerel and the lav hens is lavender. although I think some birchen markings maybe possible if one of the lav is from a birchen/lav split and lav mating :-?

ei some lighter marking around the neck.

I also understand that the lav cockerel and the black split lav will give me black splits and lav.

I get confused with the lav and cuckoo split lav mating. I end up with lav, cuckoo lav splits and maybe if I am lucky a cuckoo lavender.

Do we have any takers for pullet and cockerel maybe not blue but a darker shade of lavender :?:

Rocky, with the cuckoo hen to produce a blue she would definately have to be a blue with barring (cuckoo pattern) for this to happen wouldn't she. Please be patient as I am still trying to get my head around this one and I have always been one to want things explained beyond doubt.

I have just been gob smacked to have blues produced in my lavender breeding program. :shock:

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