# Is this cock bird opal



## Shadybug Lofts (Mar 13, 2010)

I'm trying to figure how I will pair my birds. Is this bird opal?


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## Albannai (Jan 21, 2001)

Dominant opal check...


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## Shadybug Lofts (Mar 13, 2010)

Ok. Thats what I was thinking. Thanks


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## vangimage (Aug 15, 2010)

Yep Dom. Opal check, very nice markings you never know what your going to get with the opal factor. Just so beautiful.


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## Shadybug Lofts (Mar 13, 2010)

They tell me in the show world, I need to get my birds larger and this is a large bird I got from one of the top breeder and winner, so I want to breed it with my top birds but there all opals.


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## APF_LOFT (Aug 9, 2010)

is that a homer? nice looking bird.


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## NZ Pigeon (Nov 12, 2011)

Shadybug Lofts said:


> They tell me in the show world, I need to get my birds larger and this is a large bird I got from one of the top breeder and winner, so I want to breed it with my top birds but there all opals.


If you wanted to breed it with an opal you could but would suffer losses in the young whenever the opal doubles up in the offspring. If both are het for dom opal then 25% would be **** for opal and most likely die or be weak. All up you would get 25% **** dom opal 50% het dom opal and 25% non opal. I'm sure many would disagree with this method and I would not personally do it this way but its an idea

Otherwise breed your dom opal to a non opal of the best size you can find, Take the biggest non opals from the offspring and put them back to the other dom opals you have that are of good size, that way you should have enough " big genes" in the genepool to select from there.

Your decision, - Be ready for the lynch mob if you choose the former ;-)


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## Shadybug Lofts (Mar 13, 2010)

No, I don't want lynched. I would not breed a opal to a opal because I want every chance for the babies to live. I'm worried about breeding in Feb this year, worried about the babies freezing, but I have to do it to get young birds old enough to show in the spring. Its a little embarrassing when your bird looks really good and the judge picks it up and its starts squeaking.


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## Shadybug Lofts (Mar 13, 2010)

APF_LOFT said:


> is that a homer? nice looking bird.


Its a saddle homer.


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## NZ Pigeon (Nov 12, 2011)

Shadybug Lofts said:


> No, I don't want lynched. I would not breed a opal to a opal because I want every chance for the babies to live. I'm worried about breeding in Feb this year, worried about the babies freezing, but I have to do it to get young birds old enough to show in the spring. Its a little embarrassing when your bird looks really good and the judge picks it up and its starts squeaking.


Haha, If it looks better than the rest it should win, Squeeking and all!

Yeah I agree, Best to go with the second option and work the size back up through select breeding, Takes longer but better for the birds and less dissapointment.


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## Shadybug Lofts (Mar 13, 2010)

No, They just said that it was a exceptional bird but it needed 6 more months to grow and but it last. The bad part about it it was in a young bird class I guess they want the young birds to be old.


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## Xchang (Oct 14, 2021)

Not sure if this thread is still active but this what I got from my opal saddle breeding with a blue check


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