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EggHatchHobbyist wrote: Thu Feb 06, 2025 2:18 am
Hello, fellow chicken enthusiasts!
Im in the early stages of designing three breeding pens, and Id love to get your insights on a breeding setup Im considering. My goal is to have one rooster in each pen covering two different breeds of hens. This way, I can hatch both purebred chicks and unique hybrids in each pen.
To make sorting easier, I want to select hens that lay distinctly different colored eggsso I can easily tell which chicks are purebred and which are mixed. For example, I know that crossing a Black Copper Marans rooster with an Easter Egger hen can produce Olive Eggers, which people seem to love.
Im curiouswhat other rooster and hen combinations do you think would create interesting and desirable hybrids? Id love to produce some eye-catching birds with strong egg-laying genetics. Any suggestions for great pairings that would work well in this setup?
Thanks in advance for your thoughts!
Maybe consider a Dominique rooster with Welsummer and Easter Egger hens? You'd get sex-linked pure Dominiques and hybrids with great patterns and interesting egg colors.
EggHatchHobbyist wrote: Thu Feb 06, 2025 2:18 am
Hello, fellow chicken enthusiasts!
Im in the early stages of designing three breeding pens, and Id love to get your insights on a breeding setup Im considering. My goal is to have one rooster in each pen covering two different breeds of hens. This way, I can hatch both purebred chicks and unique hybrids in each pen.
To make sorting easier, I want to select hens that lay distinctly different colored eggsso I can easily tell which chicks are purebred and which are mixed. For example, I know that crossing a Black Copper Marans rooster with an Easter Egger hen can produce Olive Eggers, which people seem to love.
Im curiouswhat other rooster and hen combinations do you think would create interesting and desirable hybrids? Id love to produce some eye-catching birds with strong egg-laying genetics. Any suggestions for great pairings that would work well in this setup?
Thanks in advance for your thoughts!
If you're breeding for unique appearance, maybe try a Swedish Flower Hen rooster over Ayam Cemani and Cream Legbar hens. You'd get stunning, colorful hybrid chicks and blue egg layers!
I'd recommend a Barnevelder rooster with Cream Legbar and Olive Egger hens. You'll get beautiful pure Barnevelders and hybrid chicks that could lay anything from dark brown to olive to blue eggs!
If you're looking for a mix of productivity and novelty, try a Rhode Island Red rooster over Olive Egger and White Leghorn hens. You'd get hardy, high-producing hybrids with a variety of egg colors!
Are you selecting for specific traits beyond egg color? If you're going for high egg production, Leghorns crossed with Australorps or Sussex can create super layers that are also cold hardy.
Egg-straordinary Chick Keeper | Turning Coops into Communities "Chasing dreams, one egg at a time."
Egg-straordinary Chick Keeper | Turning Coops into Communities 
"Chasing dreams, one egg at a time."