Chocolate – Mmmm-mmmmm Good!
Aside from Blue, Chocolate is my next favorite color in Seramas! As difficult as the blue gene is to work with, the chocolate gene is even worse!
Chocolate is a rare Sex-Linked Recessive gene that is basically a dilution of black pigment. This means that out of a pair of genes (of which each bird has two), the female will be chocolate with just one copy of the gene but the male requires two copies of the gene to look chocolate. Crossing a chocolate rooster with a black hen will give you black and chocolate offspring. This means that black males can look black, but be carrying the chocolate gene. These boys are called Black Splits. Black female offspring cannot do this… if they have the chocolate gene, they will visually appear chocolate. Otherwise, black is truly black. I have 2 boys, Lacie Louie and Cadbury, that I'm currently working with to produce some chocolate girls. This requires, naturally, black females! 🙁
This is further complicated by the sex-linked nature of this gene. Out of this pairing, only the pullets will show chocolate. These girls should then be bred back to their chocolate father, and in theory, all the offspring should then be chocolate. Whew, told you this was a difficult gene to work with! Plus, to complicate matters even further, since I am so short on typey black hens, I have crossed Cadbury with two black silkied girls, which means that all his offspring will also be silkied splits!!! Now, this sounds odd, but it actually serves two purposes. It not only enables me to produce chocolate offspring (hopefully!), but it is a way to start a line of Chocolate Silkied Seramas as well!
Are you still with me? I told you this was a complicated venture! My final clutch will hatch out at the end of the week, so it will still be awhile before I know exactly what's-what with this chocolate experiment. I promise to let you all know what happens!
Ohhh, and just so you'll know “from whence I came“, here are the parents (Honey Bun & Blue Pearl) that gave me Sir Lancelot, Hershey Boy, Lacey Louie and Cadbury.
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Here are pictures of the roosters that came out of that pairing between Honey Bun and Blue Pearl. I have decided to use Cadbury and Lacey Louie in my chocolate program.
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 Lacey Louie, 17.8 oz. |
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 Sir Lancelot |
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 Hershey Boy |
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It still amazes me that one pair of birds can have offspring with so many different colors!
Juliette,
I’d love to be on your list for a straight feathered chocolate chick, pullet or cockerel.
Cathy
Cathy-
You are now on the list! Since my chocolates are roosters, and the chocolate gene is recessive sex-linked, only pullets will be chocolate this go-around. The males will look black, but will be chocolate splits, which means some of their offspring will be chocolate if they are mated to black hens. These cockerals will also be silkied splits, since their mother was a black silkied serama. This means they will also carry the silkied gene as well. I will definitely have some splits available in March!
Juliette
Juliette,
Thank you!
Cathy
waiting and hoping for chocolates.
how is the chocolates coming???
Well, Bill, I currently have 3 chocolate pullets and several black/chocolate splits (cockerals), both in smooth and frizzled feather. I have some more eggs in the incubator, and will probably be working with them all summer (LOL). Also, ALL the chocolate offspring from this hatch will be carrying the silkied gene, since their mama was my little black silkied girl, Cloak & Dagger, a class A. This means you can introduce the chocolate color into silkied seramas as well! The girls will be staying here for awhile, but the boys will be available at the end of the month, when they’ll be 12 weeks old…they are already developing that beetle-green sheen, very pretty! They are now in the “big-bird” coop, but still have heat lamps out there, so I’m gradually weaning them off the lamps. Just a few more weeks to go!
Wow! Well I to got the frizzle bug so I got a young pair. But the floks told me I had to mix frizzle with straight to keep fizzle. So of course now I am confused. Any inf you have will help. But now I will need chocolate of both I quess. ha. Well again I am in no hurry but would like to get some chocolate along as you have them. thanks again.
Bill-
A frizzled serama should be mated to a smooth serama…half the offspring will be frizzled, half will be smooth. The frizzled gene is dominant, so you only need one parent to have it to produce frizzled offspring. The chocolate gene is entirely different. It is a sex-linked recessive gene, so a bird needs two copies of the gene to show chocolate. For example, a chocolate roo x black hen=chocolate pullets plus black/chocolate split cockerals. Only the females will be choc, since it is a sex-linked gene. All the males will be black, but will carry the chocolate gene. Choc pullets x chocolate roo=chocolate males and chocolate females. This is what I’m working towards. The chocolate/splits will get you there as well, but it will just take a little longer to achieve the same goal. And of course, you can always throw in the frizzled gene along with the choc gene to spice things up even further! (Or the silkied gene…I’ve done both!)
Does that make any sense? The chocolate gene is so-o-o complicated! There is really no quick/easy way to do it, but I just love the end result!
Wow! Well I to got the frizzle bug so I got a young pair. But the folks told me I had to mix frizzle with straight to keep fizzle. So of course now I am confused. Any info you have will help. But now I will need chocolate of both I quess. ha. Well again I am in no hurry but would like to get some chocolate along as you have them. thanks again.
Ive read u sold hershyboy.Didnt even know he was for sale. If you decide to sell his brother i will bend overbackwards to get him.Do you haveany birds at all for sale at this time? andy
Andy-
I will have some birds available at the end of this month, as well as the end of June. If you’ll fill out the form here, I’ll send you an email when they are ready. And yes, it certainly IS a fever!!!
thanks for replying so fast. what birds will you have availible the end of this month, and how much a piece? and what sizes a or b ??? I am on wifes computer please reply as before on your site, and how many and can i put a deposit?? thanks again
Andy-
I will have some black/chocolate split cockerels (both smooth and frizzled ones), some blue mottled cockerels (frizzled), a couple blue pullets (frizzled), a couple smooth boys…I will also have one of my breeding roos with his girl. I have a couple of “curlies” as well, but since they feather in more slowly, they won’t be ready until sometime in April. Most will be B’s; I have a couple of A’s, but haven’t decided yet on whether they will be staying or not. I will also have some laying pullets and hens, mostly frizzled. The prices haven’t been set yet, they will probably go up for auction, so the price will vary. They will all be posted on the site when available, so you can get a good look at them then. I’ll send an email!
Oh and do you sell eggs.Just bought incubator.p.s. did hershy boy have any smooth sisters that had his coloring?
I would like to pay if possible on one of the blue frizzled pullets.I am not good on internet, raised on farm,so not good at computer bidding and such.Will pay what you useually get if thats allright? I live in WA.and trying to get my daughter some birds.We bought a stag smooth class A, and fell in love with a chicken weird hes in house like one of the family ha ha
Do you have any pics of the breeding roo and his girl that you are thinking of selling? Also once i purchase a blue frizzle pullet can i get on list for a chocolate frizzle pullet or put deposit? Have to thank you again for your time. Andy
I am truly sorry, but my six year old daughter said she only wants just the one blue frizzled pullet, preferably large A, or small B.She says her chicken cant merry more than one hen Ha Ha; Good Night Andy n little Ashlynn.
Thanks for all the info. Looking forward to more lessons. Keep me informed.
what auctionsite do you put your birds up for auction? hope to here from you soon. andy
Andy-
I usually use the auction site at http://www.backyardchickens.com
All chocolate pullets will be staying here, so I can raise them and then breed for pure chocolates. Only the chocolate splits will be available at this time. I haven’t sorted through the other youngsters yet, since it’s too cold in many states to ship yet. Junior (picture was taken last September)is the boy I was talking about.He carries the black gene, and paired with blue pearl, he produced Lacey Louie, Cadbury, Hershey Boy, and Sir Lancelot…so, I’m working now with his offspring.
So Honeybun is Junior.Ah! keep me posted on chicks comming up. Thanks again
Andy-
HoneyBun is Junior’s father…
will be waiting on the pure chocolates. Everything wonderful is worth the wait. Keep me posted.
I would like to have 2 of your young pullets or 1 pair. Color is not necessarily important. I am partial to the frizzles or 1 smooth and 1 frizzle if they are a breeding pair. Not necessarily looking for show quality…….just want to love them.
Hello do you have any frizzled stags outta Oreo for sale? He is georgeous.andy
Andy-
I have no frizzled boys from Oreo. I plan on pairing him with different girls, so keep checking back…DeSoto is from Junior and NeedleLace; he was so named because he was the first one in the brooder to explore the wider surroundings. He is very sweet and is a songbird (very talkative).
Juliette earlier i was curious if you had any frizzled boys outta oreo and you said no, but up on auction it writes that Silverado is outta Oreo,is this a misprint?Or did you mean none for sale at that time. Just gotta ask.
Ah!found your answer on other page extreamly sorry.Wanted this to be posted under my question, my fault
Please let me know what you have coming up. I do really like Goldie but cannot get just one as she would be lonely. Let me know what you might have available in a pair. I just realized you sell birds that are not just up for auction. Thank you, Brenda Lakin in KY so weather is ok for shipping now.
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Still reading and learning . looking for some chocolate. Ypur birds are beautiful.
Will need your help on what is needed to get and keep some chocolate. Again I have a nephew there in Charleston so I should not have to ship. this will help with cost.
Bill-
What exactly do you want to do, and what exactly are you currently working with? Are you looking to start from scratch, so to speak, or do you have any chocolates there? Do you have any solid blacks?
Do you want to work with smoothes or frizzleds? I’m here to help (if I know the answers), so feel free to ask!
I have one frizzle chocolate hen. I do not have any black. I have 20 total birds but only one pair of frizzle. All of my birds are all colored. Was wanting to start on chocolate. So I really do not know what I need but would like to have chocolate both smooth and frizzled. I like the chocolate color. I will have to have your advice on what is needed. thanks for your time and patience.
After much thought, I guess as far as the chocolate I am starting from scratch. I would like to get, with your help some nice chocolate. I am not familar at all much with the color.
Hello I am looking to purchase a male chocolate serama would you happen to have one for sale?
I some how hatched a chocolate from some shipped eggs I got I guess I need a pure black pullet now. I suppose are keeping all the ones you have but if you come up on a spare one let me know.