PigeonGenetics.com Forum

What is the best cross to ensure almond offspring? If you are starting with one almond parent, would a cock or hen be better percentage wise? And what would you breed it to for the best chance to get almond offspring?

First, remember that "almond" is a phenotype. There is no single "almond" gene.

The almond phenotype is the combination of: stipper, kite, T-pattern, and recessive red.

Stipper is sex-linked dominant, so a stipper hen will only produce stipper cocks, but a stipper cock can produce stippers in both sexes.

To produce more almonds I'd pair your almond to a good quality dark check, kite, or recessive red.

Here is a video on almond breeding: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8h_Fm34ypg

How can you tell that a pigeon has the stipper gene. Versus a white bird with some flecks. Or grizzles?

Stippers hatch with short down fluff in the nest, they change (get darker) with each moult, and they must have had at least one stipper parent.

They're quite different to classic grizzle, which has a fairly standard effect on all the feathers, and tiger grizzle, which usually either effects the feather or doesn't. With stipper some will be totally white, others partially coloured, others totally coloured.

I hope that helps?