Poultry Talk Ontario (pto.ca)

Expert opinion and information wanted. (You know who you are.) The mother's line is all horned as far back as I know. The sire had horns. Twin boys now two weeks old. Dis budded one on Saturday. The second one had no horn buds showing or that I can feel, appears to be polled. Colouring is similar to their dad if that is useful info. No inbreeding mother side, don't know for the dad.

How might this have happened? Is he likely to pass it on? Is he maybe a mutant of some sort? Maybe has to do with using roundup on thee thistles last summer or some such? The phase of the moon when he was born or conceived? Please share your sure knowledge or educated guesses. I await your prognostications on the matter. Thanks.

They are named Tilt and Whirl, like the tiltawhirl at the fair, and that is Ranger with them, my Great Pyrenese and Lab cross 8 months old or so now. He is another genetic conundrum colour wise, but we will reserve that one for another day.

one parent must be polled to produce polled... likely the kid is just developing slowly, Nubian and nubianX kids are slower to develop horns, boer can be too. My La Mancha kids can be disbudded at day 1 usually, my Nubian 2-3 weeks, sometimes I disbud even if I dont feel the horns because I like to do them young.

I agree with muffin.....he is likely slow in developing them.

Well I remembered badly. I phoned the guy that had the buck, and the daddy was polled. And at two months, the one is showing no sign of horns, so I am thinking polled. Traded him for b a LaMancha doeling, she wanted a buck with good dairy lines, and I think she got that.