# Who to pair with whom?



## QuoVadis (Apr 6, 2016)

So I am somewhat new to pigeons (I've had them a bit under a year), but not new to birds/poultry in general. However, I am totally captivated both by the pigeon themselves and by the complicated, engrossing subject of pigeon genetics! 

I have a small group of rollers and I was wondering if I could get some advice on how to pair them. I am still learning so a few of them I will describe as best I can, but they may be partial guesses, especially since I don't know what recessive genes they might be carrying since I have never bred this group. (An aside some of these I believe to be very nice rollers - I saw them roll before buying most of them - but due to a terrible hawk problem I am unsure if/how much I will be able to fly them. Hence, my interest right now in producing as many cool colors as possible.)

Here is what I have:

Hens:
1. Almond (I believe over ash red, but I am not totally sure.)
2. Tortoiseshell (with bronze/opal/indigo/grizzle???) - I really have no idea all the modifiers at play here or what they are over. She is a gorgeous bird, but slightly different than any pictures I have found online.
3. Red (of some kind) bald head, with white wings and tail. Because of where the white is I am unsure if she is ash read spread or recessive red. I can't find any of the blueish/purplish tones you often see in ash red on her though.
4. Yellow "tiger" grizzle. I am assuming she is dilute ash red (Spread?) as a base color. I am also unsure if the "tiger" grizzle gene is genetically different than normal grizzle.
5. Need to pick up another hen! I lost so many to hawks before I quit flying. 

Cocks:
6. Ash red T check (Can T check can be present over spread?)
7. Blue spread tiger grizzle
8. Ash red homogeneous grizzle (I think - the bird is total white except for red markings on the neck.)
9. Almond and homogeneous grizzle (Again, my best guess, he is also mostly white, but with very faint bar markings, and the multi-colored odd feathers like Almonds have.)
10. Ash Red Spread tiger grizzle. (Again a little unsure if this is ash red spread or Recessive red. It have very little of the blue colors I see in, say, cock #6.)

So who would you pair together?


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## indigobob (Nov 12, 2008)

Photographs of the birds would make identification easier.


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