Odd Chick

[Mike Gilbert]

Hatched quite a few white bantam chicks over the years, but don't remember one with this pronounced of a black spot on its' head.   I toe punched and will monitor the appearance as it grows out.

[Mike Gilbert]

Coming from a tested and proven pair mating of recessive whites, there is no way this chick can be a splash from a purely genetic model.   I'm thinking some kind of color mutation, but time will tell. 

[John W Blehm]

Am I also seeing a lot of fine black hairy down in wings and other areas?

[Mike Gilbert]

Am I also seeing a lot of fine black hairy down in wings and other areas?

At this point I can't tell if this is the normal gray down that most recessive white chicks have when they are based on E or ER, but it may be.   Note the dark legs right at hatch that characterizes whites and, if I remember correctly, silvers.   It will be interesting to see how it feathers out.   The black spot is actually darker than it appears on the photo, probably due to the camera flash. 

[John W Blehm]

Any update on how it feathered out?

[Mike Gilbert]

It feathered out white with no head spot, but with quite a bit of black leakage here and there.   I no longer have it. 

[Cesar Villegas]

It feathered out white with no head spot, but with quite a bit of black leakage here and there.   I no longer have it.

How bad of leakage? Ive seen black ticking here and there on some whites.

When is too much leakage, too much to cull it?

[Mike Gilbert]

It feathered out white with no head spot, but with quite a bit of black leakage here and there.   I no longer have it.

How bad of leakage? Ive seen black ticking here and there on some whites.

When is too much leakage, too much to cull it?

That would be up to you.  Personally, I don't like to see any.   A well known fancier once said, "What you tolerate is what you will have."

[John W Blehm]

It feathered out white with no head spot, but with quite a bit of black leakage here and there.   I no longer have it.

How bad of leakage? Ive seen black ticking here and there on some whites.

When is too much leakage, too much to cull it?

That would be up to you.  Personally, I don't like to see any.   A well known fancier once said, "What you tolerate is what you will have."

Another gage to determine how much is too much is to go by the Standard and how much it allows before a bird is disqualified.  Personally, I think we all agree with Mike and don't like to see any, but as we also often quote you have to "start where you are with what you have".  All of what we are saying is true, but there is a balancing act involved as was mentioned in another thread.
After the judging was over at last year's Ameraucana National Meet I asked the judge, Paul Monteith, about the white in a winning black bird of mine, wanting to know his take on how much is too much.  He pretty much quoted the Standard.  That was the correct answer and I was impressed.
Of course I still try to breed blacks that are 100% black, but then we get into the double fault idea that if a bird is superior in just about every area and has a little white on a wing feather it may not be enough to cull for.  Then keep in mind compensation mating when making up breeding pens.