Ameraucana thread for posting pictures and discussing our birds

[ChocolateMouse]

I've done the heat mat and I like it more than the lamp. I use the lamp only in winter now or when my heat mats are under plants (jan-may). Spring-fall I use a viagrow plant heat mat or broodies.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

The first few of my test breeding chickens from spring have started to lay! And *so far* it's all good news - blues and greens only. However, we're also only a few eggs in.

 

[Alaskan]

Bantam wheaten

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Our second started laying - green again. A good sign!

 

[bruceha2000]

I am confused, why is an Ameraucana laying green a GOOD sign?

 

[SnootyHen]

Here's the Ameraucana I got last week from Meyer:

1 day old:

A few days old (she's the smallest one up front with no tail feathers:

One week old:

She's still so tiny and feathering slower than the rest but super sweet. Anyone have any thoughts on what her coloring will be as she grows? She was listed as a blue/black splash. Thanks!!

 

[Eva2020]

Here's my pullet Violet! I'm obsessed with her feather patterns

 

[ChocolateMouse]

I am confused, why is an Ameraucana laying green a GOOD sign?

Well, first, these are ameraucana crosses (easter eggers), most are wheaten AmeraucanaxISA brown hens under a wheaten ameraucana roo. So green is fine right now.
Second, I bought some semi-shoddy "ameraucanas" from someone last year and one of them layed me some brown eggs. :T These chicks are from a rooster from that batch of chickens. I hatched them to try to determine if he has oo(brown) Oo(blue, passes down half the time) or OO(blue, passes down all the time) for blue eggs. Most of the hens were Oo(blue hand down half the time) or oo(brown), so every blue/green egg that shows up makes it less likely that he has oo or Oo. I REALLY want him to have OO.

Third, slightly green eggs are usually within the ameraucana egg color chart but not olive. Most ameraucanas have a little bit of brown in their egg color, even if it's just a bit, which kind of helps darken and bring out the blue. So it's not so bad to have greens layed.

https://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/CGA/Arau/Egg chart.JPEG
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/af/91/17/af91172b897c4aab2dd528cba396a62b.jpg

 

[bruceha2000]

Got it, you are happy because he is at least carrying the blue egg gene, for your breeding program.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Bingo. I've been trying to move into pure wheatens for a long time but haven't been able to find anyone decent selling chicks and have had an AWFUL time hatching shipped eggs. So if this boy is OO, I'm going to get some black ameraucana hens to mix in locally to start improving leg color and then breed back.