blue to blue

Breeding reds from two blues is genetic impossibility, but there are fanciers who claim to have done it. The following should explain the situation. Sometimes a blue pair will produce a young cock which looks somewhat like a red check but is actually an opal. If you compare the opal check with a true red check you will notice a difference. Also the opal will not have black flecks as seen in some red checks. The opal colour is also found in hens and is usually a soft powder blue and there is no dark bar on the tail. Racing ability does not seem to be affected.

On looking through past racing records I note that an opal cock won the 320 mile race for me in 1982. Further down the race result sheet was another opal cock owned by someone else. The opal colour in hens certainly enhances the show potential. I had a beautiful opal hen that won many best in show awards. Opal is a recessive colour. When mated to blues or blacks, only blue and black progeny will result. The young will carry the opal factor and when mated together will give opals of both sexes. It is an interesting colour for experimentation. A blue pair could produce reds if there has has been some hanky-panky. My birds never do that!

good info ian, i once had a yellow/opal hen which we bred off a blood red cock, cant remember what colour the hen was though. interesting topic colour breeding, as you say about black flecks in reds, are these always cocks ?

yes they are also any red in nest off red hen will always be a cock

yes interesting ian, ive read that the sex of a yb can be picked by the colour alone.....

altho have had a red hen with pencil marks

have you any grizzles ian ? if so do you think they are any better or worse than blue or cheq ?

havent got any dont want any pleased niel not on

Dont be scared, i wont bite again
My opinion, i will mate blue to blue, or cheq to cheq, it all depend about my preference and their performances.
Blues could anyday be better then cheqs, or cheqs better than blues.
Both of them could be better than grizzles, or ,grizzles could be better, it all depend.
But i am not sure about reds and mealies

when ive paired my birds for the last couple of years ive usually tried to not put two blues together, favouring a blue to a cheq.....seems my dislike of not putting two blues together has proved tp be a load of rubbish as two ybs i bred for a fancier to test for me did well racing.....

David, i think putting blue to blue wont matter at all, also cheq to cheq.

A friend of mine have bred a pure blue chick out of two cheq pieds.
The other chick were also cheq pied.

hi niel, i often get blues from 2 cheqs but have never had a cheq from 2 blues....

i got a nice pair of blues the throw me nice blue bars and nice blue pieds every time

ive only got blues and cheqs mark but always excited wondering if they will throw a wtflt or pied....dont think they ever will but im hoping.

yeah all depends what their history is if there are reds ect in the blood they will throw that coloure from time to time but if they come from blues only they will throw blues.

looking there dave you not far from me

yes mark, selby not far....used to go there to the auction every monday, brought a load of old crap back....lol crows auction, thats what its called isnt it ?

just looked at your site mark, white dove release.......looks very nice.

yeah the auction still going strong still lots of old crap sold there but if you looking for rollers ect get some nice ones in there now.yeah the white doves doing well brings me a little extra cash in