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Poultry Breeding - Breeding Crosses

Poultry Breeding

Hen and Chicks

Finally, what breeds can be crossed in order to produce first-cross chicks that can be identified as male or female at hatch?

There are essentially three types of cross: the gold/silver cross, the non-barred/barred cross, and the rate of feathering cross. They are indicated in the table.

Please note that reversing the cross does not work

Gold-Silver Cross
(Any gold male crossed with any silver female)
Male	Female	Chick
Rhode Island Red Brown Leghorn Buff Rock Barnevelder Brown Sussex Buff Orpington Indian Game Buff Leghorn Partridge Cochin Partridge Wyandotte	Light Sussex Silver Grey Dorking Legbar Light Brahma Ancona White Wyandotte	Males silvery white or cream, but may show smokiness in down. Females red or buff,usually lighter buff where Buff males are used. Both sexes may show striping in plumage.

Non-barred-Barred Cross
Male	Female	Chick
Rhode Island Red New Hampshire Red Australorp Croad Langshan Black Leghorn Light Sussex Black Silkie Black Wyandotte Black Langshan Black Cochin Black Orpington (and all other black and coloured varieties, but not Blues, White Rock and White Leghorn).	Barred Plymouth Rock Marans Cuckoo Dumpy Cuckoo Leghorn Scots Grey	Males black except for white head spot. Females all black.

Feathering Cross
(Mediterranean males crossed with Heavy or Asiatic breeds)
Male	Female	Chick
Leghorns Ancona Andalusian (and most other Mediterranean breeds)	Indian Game Brahma Malay Langshan Asil Sumatra (and most other Heavy or Asiatic breeds)	Wing feathers of females well developed. Those of males either short or not yet developed