My eggs are due next week, so I candled last night & removed what wasn’t developing.  It looks so far like the new Blue Orp did a pretty good job, but not all the hens would let him mate with them.  I removed about half of the eggs from the Blue hens and just a few of the eggs from the Black hens due to lack of development.  I haven’t cracked them open, but they look just infertile with the light.

I also received an extremely pricey book on Chicken Genetics, and in it, I read that in order to get ALL blue offspring, I should mate a Splash rooster with black hens!  You know, just as soon as I think I get things figured out, I get it wrong.  I need to do MORE research because I THOUGHT that Splash Roo on Blue Hens would yield all Blue Offspring, and now I read it’s Splash to Black!  Sheesh!   So now I have 24 eggs left in the incubator, 7 of which are Blue on Blue.

Here is what I’ve found:

Blue X Blue = 50% Blue, 25% Black, 25% Splash
Blue X Splash = 50% Blue, 50% Splash
Blue X Black = 50% Blue, 50% Black
Splash X Black = 100% Blue
Black X Black = 100% Black
Splash X Splash = 100% Splash

So from my 7 Blue eggs I can expect around 3 Blue, 2 Black & 2 Splash
And from the remaining 17 Blue on Black Eggs I can expect around 8 or 9 Blue and 8 or 9 Black.

Now the only thing to figure out next is, how to arrange my breeding pens for long term.  I want a pen that yields all blue and one that yields all black.

Well, I have to get going.  A gentlemen from nearby Sevierville is on his way to pick up a couple of White Orpington pullets and I should be ready when he gets here.