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White Chantecler leg color

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1White Chantecler leg color Empty White Chantecler leg color Wed Jul 20, 2011 10:47 am

KathyS

KathyS
Golden Member
Golden Member

I'm new to White Chanteclers and out of the chicks I hatched this year some have legs that are white with a bluish/greenish tinge, and some are yellow. I've been looking at White chantie photos and seeing yellow shanks on show quality roos. So, what is the correct color, and what would be a disqualifying color?
Thanks!!



Last edited by KathyS on Wed Feb 29, 2012 10:34 am; edited 1 time in total

http://www.hawthornhillpoultry.com

2White Chantecler leg color Empty Re: White Chantecler leg color Wed Jul 20, 2011 11:23 am

Sebas49

Sebas49
Active Member
Active Member

Hi Kathy,

Leg color on Chantecler must be yellow, any other color is considered a disqualification when showing. A judge will let pale yellow legs go if a hen is in production. A blue tinge leg color is a not acceptable. Chicks leg color can change as they get older meaning white legs may turn yellow or close to yellow but blue tinge will normally not turn yellow. To me it sound like something else is crossed in there to give you the bluish tinge. If you are keeping show quality birds, which should be everyone's goal, it will be easy to cull out due to leg color. Also check the comb type to make sure they are a cushion type comb with very little wattles showing.

http://www.c-rducks.com

3White Chantecler leg color Empty Re: White Chantecler leg color Wed Jul 20, 2011 11:36 am

coopslave

coopslave
Golden Member
Golden Member

There was a very good discussion about this on another forum (SHOWBIRD) that I really enjoyed.
Sebas49 is right, yellow is the right colour. The deeper and stronger the better. I am fairly new to the whites and I have a couple of pullets that had willow coloured legs when young. Willow is a no, no as well but the pullets can grow out of it sometimes as they age, or it can get worse. One of mine has grown out of it and has really nice yellow legs and the other has not at this stage. It was reccomended to me not to breed from a willow legged hen.
Willow is tough because the rooster can carry it and not show it at all. So you can have a very nice yellow legged rooster that throws willow legged pullets! Tough, but can be breed out.
Leg colour is fascinating, glad you brought it up.

4White Chantecler leg color Empty Re: White Chantecler leg color Wed Jul 20, 2011 1:00 pm

KathyS

KathyS
Golden Member
Golden Member

Thank you both so much for clearing that up for me!
I am so relieved, as the bright yellow legs definitely make up the majority of my chicks.

Well, that really helps me with deciding which will be put in the freezer this fall, and which pullets to keep for laying.

I need to talk to Clayton about getting my own SOP. I had been borrowing, but when a question like this comes up, it bugs me and I really want answers fast!

Thanks again for the quick responses!!

http://www.hawthornhillpoultry.com

5White Chantecler leg color Empty Re: White Chantecler leg color Mon Nov 07, 2011 8:28 pm

Guest


Guest

Did you ever figure out the source of your white/blue leg issue? I'm still very curious about it. I have one roo that has this and I'd like to work it a bit if I can, I like some of the qualities he has so I've kept him over to learn from and eat from. I also have willow leg pullets that look more like chanteclers than the rest so I intend to correct it rather than just cull. Please let me know if you have found out anything

6White Chantecler leg color Empty Re: White Chantecler leg color Mon Nov 07, 2011 9:02 pm

KathyS

KathyS
Golden Member
Golden Member

Oh boy, seeing this post is kind of embarrasing now! I'm tempted to delete this or at least edit that original question. Well, it serves as a reminder that we all have to start learning somewhere! Rolling Eyes
I think I'll start with a bit of background to help explain my experience with willow legs.
So, as you can tell from that first question, I was a complete newbie to Chanteclers last spring. I happened upon a breeding trio (actually, they were purchased by my sister who also knows little of the breed, but she was under the impression they were quite a good trio). So she asked if I wanted to hatch some eggs from them. So, never one to pass up on a chance to fill the incubator, of course I accepted!
So that is the reason why I was indiscriminately hatching eggs without knowing a thing about the breed standards. Embarassed
Since then the original trio has been sold, but I've looked back at pictures of them, and sure enough, one of the hens has lighter colored legs than the other.
I'm assuming that is where those willow legs came from.
I did not keep back any of the chicks with legs that looked poor colored, but I've also noticed they tend to grow out of that color and turn a nice yellow as they mature.
Maybe that is not such a good thing, because if I happened to keep some that hatched with willow legs that later turned yellow, I will not know which ones they are.
As Coopslave mentioned, that leg color trait can be passed through the rooster, but maybe in this case it was the hen?
I don't know if I can really answer this question until I see what happens with the next generations of chicks.
I have bought 2 new roosters from good and unrelated bloodlines, and plan to only breed my 2 best hens to the one best roo. I won't be hatching large quantities this year, just want to approach this in a careful way to see what I get.

http://www.hawthornhillpoultry.com

7White Chantecler leg color Empty Re: White Chantecler leg color Mon Nov 07, 2011 10:39 pm

Guest


Guest

I hear you on the embarrassment, I tend to humble myself unwittingly more often than I care to admit, don't sweat over it for more than a minute.

We are so lucky to have a resident expert on the subject of willow legs. I wanted to respond much sooner to this post but was still figuring things out(still am), like a stubborn old dog not learning a new trick, some of the genetic talk just sails right over me no matter how much I try to remember everything.
First..I had two Roos with blue/white legs, one disappeared- I can't find him in the flock so he must have changed colour to a very light yellow, I must know more.

The willow legs will be carried forward by willow legged birds of both sexes. A yellow legged roo can hide willow impurity which is why I must test mate all my Roos to yellow legged hens. The yellow legged hens shouldn't throw willow if mated to a pure yellow legged male. The genetics of the willow legged hens can be saved by mating them with a pure yellow legged males and breeding from only the yellow legged female offspring(PHWEW..that was close, I had to go back and check my info).
Why do this? What is the advantage when there are much easier routes to take? I'm turning lead into gold, golden girls for sure...LOL thanks Tara! I was told at purchase that the willow legged can be traced back to original Oka stock!...I'll take two please and thank you. Since then I've learned that the hens in question do have better chantecler shape than any others I have. Now, you have to understand that I have (with all due respect to the rest of you) absolutely no ambition or interest in the show ring. In fact I swear swear swear that I will ever ever ever (never say never) submit one of my own birds to a competition. Ok, I might let someone else do it but not me in my name. So why bother if I have what I want. I don't quite have what I want, I want the "real thing" : an old time chantecler like in B. Wilfreds vision, not the newest accepted version. Gotta work with what I have already..thanks Coyote Acres this is a great start, more than I expected, love the sports, they are the best.
So, if your ambitions and your vision are limited by the APA standards(no disrespect intended here) then feel free to dig a bit deeper. I for one have come to realize that there is much much more to the story of the chantecler than is commonly known. I don't know it yet, but I do know it's there to be learned if one is willing to put the dedication to work. I don't believe for one second that it will come easily, but I do believe the effort will be worthy of the reward.

8White Chantecler leg color Empty Re: White Chantecler leg color Tue Nov 08, 2011 7:27 am

coopslave

coopslave
Golden Member
Golden Member

KathyS, never, ever be embarassed by questions you ask or mistakes you make! It is all part of learning and getting better. Can you just imagine if you had never said anything about the leg colour of your birds where you would be now. Think of all the people you helped with this one little question. I bet it would surprise you! Very Happy

reneggaide I am with you, I will most likely never show my birds. I enjoy goiing to shows and seeing what everyone is up to with the breeds I am interested in, but I don`t have this huge desire to do it myself. I like the breeding. Getting the birds how I interpret the standard and paying attention to the production qualities that history told us they had. That is where I have my fun.

Thanks again KathyS for starting this thread, it was a good one.

9White Chantecler leg color Empty Re: White Chantecler leg color Tue Nov 08, 2011 6:19 pm

KathyS

KathyS
Golden Member
Golden Member

Reneggaide, your dedication to this breed is inspiring and such a worthwhile endeavor! I hope you will give updates on your progress towards B. Wilfreds original creation.
I also want to do justice to the breed, through some very careful, selective breeding.
I'm even thinking it may be best to single-mate each of my 2or 3 best hens, keeping good records of offspring and watch them develop and see where it goes from there.
My Chantecler project will be a slow moving one, but I do feel I have some good prospects here that are worth the effort.
Oh, and thanks to you Coopslave for your kind words! Smile

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