Breeding For Color

Floppy Ear Farm’s

So you want to make red and black Boers?

 

Things To Note

 

True chocolate Boers are a variation of the black gene. Chocolate animals can produce black offspring and black animals can produce chocolate offspring.

 

A red animal will usually have a darker dorsal stripe on its body. Red can vary from a pale creamy color to a deep almost bay color. True chocolate animals do not have a dorsal stripe.

 

Most Dominant to Least Dominant in Boers

1. The Traditional Marked Boer—Red Head, White Body or a Paint

2. Red

3. Black/Chocolate

 

Here’s some tips (Keep in mind that I am referring to fullbloods. Percentage animals are a whole different ball game.).

 

1. A Red Boer x  Red Boer = Will always produce 100% red kids UNLESS both parents are carrying the black gene. Then you have a 25% chance of a chocolate or a black kid cropping up. If you get a paint out of this combination, one of your parents isn’t solid red.

 

2. A Black Boer x Black Boer = Will always produce 100% black or chocolate kids. Again, if you get a paint out of this combination, one of your parents isn’t a solid.

 

3. A Red Boer  x Traditional Boer = You will never get a solid colored offspring from this cross unless the traditional Boer is carrying color. However, the offspring of this cross, even if they are traditionally marked, will be carrying color recessively and may be used further along in your breeding program.

 

             Red x Traditional = 100% Traditional offspring if 2nd parent isn't carrying color.

 

             Red x Traditional (carrying color) = 50% chance of solid colored offspring,

                                                                      50% chance traditional/paint offspring

 

4. A Traditional Boer x Traditional Boer = 100% Traditional or Paint

 

             What does it mean when this cross produces a solid colored animal?

             It means both those parents are carrying color recessively. Make note of it.

 

 

How do I know if my animal is carrying color?

You can’t be 100% certain unless the animal produces an offspring of that solid color. That doesn’t mean your animal doesn’t carry color if it never produces a solid colored offspring. You might just be breeding it to an animal that’s not carrying color.

 

The offspring are going to get a color option from their dam and a color option from their sire. One of these colors will be the dominant one—what you see on the actual animal. The other one will be recessive and hide in the animal’s genetic make-up. That’s how two traditional marked Boers can produce a solid red.

 

How do I up my odds of getting color?

Use solid colored animals. Or if you are pressed for cash (and who isn’t?), choose a solid-colored sire. Offspring out of the solid colored sire will be carrying color. Keep those animals in your herd and breed to another solid colored buck.

 

And if I can’t?

Do research on your existing animals’ pedigrees. Note the ancestors who have produced colored offspring—that means they are carrying color. You can use that colored background to extrapolate whether your animal may be carrying black or red.

 

What about trying to create black animals?

This is where it gets interesting. Unless an animal has actually produced black offspring, you don’t know for certain that it’s carrying black. An animal could be carrying black, but always produced red offspring. Why? Because black is the most recessive in Boers so if the animal gets red from a parent, that red will be dominant over the black from the other parent.

            

             Red(carrying black) x Red(carrying black)= 25% chance red offspring

                                                                                  50% chance red offspring carrying black

                                                                                   25% chance black offspring

 

             Red(carrying black) x Red                        = 50% chance red offspring

                                                                                  50% chance red offspring carrying black

 

             Red(carrying black) x Traditional            =  100% traditional offspring, however

                                                                                   50% of them will carry black and

                                                                                   50% of them will carry red

 

             Red(carrying black) x Traditional(black)  =  25% chance traditional carrying red

                                                                                   25% chance traditional carrying black

                                                                                   25% chance red carrying black

                                                                                   25% chance black

 

             Red(carrying black) x Black                      =  50% chance black

                                                                                   50% red carrying black

 

 

Now for the truly useful information:

This list is by no means complete. This is just a result of what I’ve found researching pedigrees.

 

Boer animals carrying black:

WW11, LANDCORP BP06, LANDCORP BA99, LANDCORP B01, LANDCORP B02, LANDCORP B115, LANDCORP B132, WW15, WW71, THE OLD MAN, THE DOE MAKER, R/TEX STAR AKA WW90, TERRAWEENA A2382, BOSQUE VALLEY GOIN BIG TIME, ROOIKOP, SWIEGERS 676, MRS LEAGUE MARY, EDSR JAKE, LUKE, ZIMA, RUBY JANE, MISS LEAGUE BLACK MAGIC, BOSQUE VALLEY MUHAMMAD, MAIN MAN, HERSHEY CHOCOLATE LLF03, KRUGERAND, MAJOR LEAGUE, SWEET TATOR, THUMPER, E&C RANGE ROVERS RED BARON, CSK RED QUEEN, CSK MERLOT, CSK LATTE’S ESPRESSO, HALL SOCKS, PLEASANT KOHLS, DSM G17, DOW2 G27, TALPA RED, DOWNEN’S CHOCOLATE, SHERWOOD FALLS JERRY, SWINGIN SIXTY, LAZY A’S THE CHIEF JUSTICE, GAR ADUWA SASQUATCH, OSCAR, NIKO’S SHADOW, PLEASANT SCARLET, PLEASANT STRAWBERRY, VJO, NK H57, ROJO GRANDE, TJIO DUSTY, AMANDA BELLE, BPG TUG

 

 

Boer animals carrying red:

WW10, WW162, LANDCORP B117, LANDCORP B121, LANDCORP B134, WW9, WW20, THE BOY NAMED SUE, KD HERCULES, BUGGER, PARTY DOLL, TEXAS TWISTER, RUBY RED, PEANUT, FLEUR, GIDEON, PBL JEAN, BEETHOVAN, KOJAK JOE, ACR SEVEN, BOATNER’S DUKE LUCY, VIE LADY RED, HALL ROSIE, ACR FLUFFY, POLLY P., JOHAAN, TOP GUN NO 2, UBORA, LOBENGULA, STARDUST, PLEASANT BANTU, ZULU WARRIOR, SCALE, POWELL HOLMAN LUCKY RED LADY, ACR SEVEN’S SIDEWINDER, QUEEN OF HEARTS, NK KAMI, EGGSTREME, AMAZING ANNETTE, NBBG RENOIR, EGGSFILE, TRIBUTE’S CHOCOLATE ROMEO, DNF JOSH, JMD TECUMSEH RED, EGGS LACY, SD SULUBU, VALENTINA, MTM RED EGGSCURSION, NK RADAR LOVE, ALMOND ACRES FUDGE, SHIL M639 VALENTINO, SHIL SENOR ROJO, T4 SCORPIO

 

 

Popular animals NOT carrying color (which may explain why we didn’t see color for quite a while in the Boers):

KAPTEIN, NBBG TSJAKA, DSM CLOUD DANCING, MZURI, BODACIOUS HOOT, TALISMAN FRISCO, TAMU, TABU, CODI DOT, BANDUKE (THE ORIGINAL BRED BY BALSON), MOJO MAGIC, DOMINATOR, EGGSPENSIVE, BULL DOG, CANADIAN CLUB, EGGS MERMAID