Colour genetics

I have a pair of birds, a dark chequer cock and a slate hen, they are janssens and slightly related.

When I went to ring the youngsters yesterday I discovered them to be a pair of reds, they might be the slatey red colour.
Now apart from the very obvious like the hen has been with another cock does anyone know if this is possible.???

I have a bit of genetic knowledge and have some experience of how and what colour can produce what, also I am aware of dominant colours and sex links.
Last year I produced a chocolate red from a chequer and a blue, but they are meulemans recessive reds and that's different.

Any experts out there can shed some light on this for me, one thing I do know is if they are Hens then the father has to be a red, as a hen takes her colour from the cock and in that case the hen has strayed with another cock.

hi martyn, ive no idea about colour genetics, but I bred a schalie cock (red slatey} out of a mealy cock paired to a blue hen,[ whos nestmate was a slatey hen]........the mealy cock was bred off a red checker cock.

We have a red pied cock paired to a red hen and they have bred a dark pied and a red young bird.

All i can tell you is the Base Foundation pigeons of Janssen had Red & Slate in them ;so if your doubling  up the bred why not Reds or Red Slates ;cheers

Thanks for the info lads, the problem really is this, you can breed any colour from a dominnt colour like red, grizzle and mealy so to breed a chequers slates and blues no problem.

But to get a red colour from non red parents is what the problem is as this seems very suspect, because of the dominant factor, you cant breed dominant from non dominant but the other way around is fine.

you could get reds if the cock is carrying it

steve b wrote:

you could get reds if the cock is carrying it

True Steve B    Thou I have to admit here    I'm   that I've never been able to get my head around this topic, for some reason. Many times thou, I have been surprised etc at what comes out of a nest, re colour.  

Colour genetics really is a fascinating subject and I have to admit every year I cant wait to see what colour the babies are. Although 99% of mine are always blues and chequers which is the way I like it, with the odd red and grizzle, I don't like reds but love the grizzles.

But I have to admit I am a bit confused by this one, however I do know that you have dominant colours and recessive, while the dominant are exactly that the recessives break the rules and bronzes can throw out just about anything.

The fact is slates are a difficult colour as there doesn't seem to be a suitable explanation about them but they are a recessive and therefore able to break the rules, so the reds might be legitimate after all, as the hen doesn't seem to be the kind who would mate with another, they are in a small section and surely her cock would have not let another mate with her?

every year I breed a slatey off two blues....but so far ive never bred a slatey off a slatey.........  

You will only breed a slatey if both sire and dam have the colour in the family, that's how recessive works david.
I bred a choc red from a blue and a chequer but both had choc in the family so it comes out, you cant breed a slatey from a slatey or a choc from a choc unless its in both sides, so that's why your slatey wont breed them.

ah right, so if I paired a slatey to a recessive blue they would breed a slatey ?

what would I get if I paired a slatey to a slatey...?

slatey x slatey will produce a slatey...and a slatey to almost any other colour will give slatey only if there is a slate in the family of the other colour.

right, I get you.....its interesting when you have slatys/schalies etc in your family, as you never quite know what they are going to breed.....lol

has anyone bred a chequer out of two blue bars.....?

Sorry david impossible to breed chequer from a blue x blue, if you have then the hen has mated with a different cock.lol

ive never had a cheq out of two blue bars either, I didn't believe it possible........ but im sure somewhere somebody said they had...........  

The colour charts going around are only guides ; we mate in seperate pens have done for over 20 years ; it depends on the Family of birds that determans the colours ; From BB if you read the Guides they say only BB can come ; well i can tell you that one is Wrong ; we have produced whites; Chocolates ; BB ;Pieds & yes Chequers;has i said it depends on the family of birds you are breeding off.Cheers