Which Chicks Should I Keep?

[Auntiejessi3]

Hi all, I need some genetic advice here.
I have a split order of chicks with my neighbor, and I'm giving her her half tonight. She's not picky and has never kept chickens before. This is the last foreseeable order of chicks I'm getting, I want to have a sustainable flock and hatch a few new birds each year. These are a lot of new to me breeds though and I don't know the genetics with them. I have a handful of questions, but I want to start with the Olive Eggers. I know some don't lay olive eggs. Is there a way to guess based off the chicks appearances the probability of them laying olive eggs? The neighbor won't care, but I'd really like to have an olive egger long term since I have an olive egger rooster. I have three chicks to choose from, I'm only planning on keeping one. I can post photos of each chick. However I also got Easter Eggers, and I don't know how to tell the difference really for certain. They're from Mt. Healthy Hatchery, and it says on the website that they make their olive eggers with Welsummers, Black Copper Marans, and Ameracaunas. They say they're F1 crosses.
I'll post photos of each.

Chick #1
This one is clean legged and no muffs or beard. View attachment 4077715View attachment 4077716View attachment 4077717View attachment 4077718View attachment 4077719View attachment 4077720View attachment 4077721


Chick #2
Lightly feathered legs. I don't know what this comb type is, I can get more pics if needed. Small beard and muffs. View attachment 4077726View attachment 4077727View attachment 4077729View attachment 4077730View attachment 4077731


Chick #3
This chick looks blue. Heavier feathered legs than the other two. No beard or muffs that I see. View attachment 4077732View attachment 4077734View attachment 4077735View attachment 4077736View attachment 4077737View attachment 4077738

If they are F1 crosses they are guaranteed to lay olive eggs.

 

[MGG]

So I bought two roosters, a brown leghorn and a new Hampshire red. They threw in an extra I'm pretty sure, a barred rock. I already have a barred olive egger rooster, he's an Ameraucana penedesenca cross.

The hens I have now are :
Buff brahma
Multiple EEs
A splash Silkie
Rhode Island Red
A couple mixes
A splash blue Laced red Wyandotte
Barred Rock

I got the following pullet chicks :
Barred Rock
Columbian Rock cross
Black Copper Marans
Splash Laced Red Wyandotte
Buff Orpington
Dark Brahma
Golden Laced Wyandotte
New Hampshire Red
2 Rhode Island Reds
Brown Leghorn
Black Australorp
Olive Egger
Bielefelder
Barnevelder

What kind of mixes could I make in the future to sustain my flock? I know I can do a few purebreds. Can I make anything cool or autosexing? I was planning on getting rid of the olive egger rooster, I just don't need 4 boys. Unless any really cool crosses could be made with it. I'm very excited about the Bielefelder, can I cross that with the new Hampshire and make auto sexing chicks? I'm sure they'd be big pretty layers. I don't know the genetics though. I also think meatbirds would be cool in the future, but if they could be auto sexing where I could separate the boys right away and not get attached that would be preferred.

 

[MGG]

If they are F1 crosses they are guaranteed to lay olive eggs.

It said they usually do on the website but not always, I just wasn't sure. Like I said I don't know genetics

 

[Auntiejessi3]

It said they usually do on the website but not always, I just wasn't sure. Like I said I don't know genetics

If they are crossing a Marans or Welsummer with an Ameraucana they should lay green eggs, if they say "usually" then they aren't using that cross.

 

[MGG]

If they are crossing a Marans or Welsummer with an Ameraucana they should lay green eggs, if they say "usually" then they aren't using that cross.

Heres what it says. They say "predominantly" and "potential for other colors".

 

[Auntiejessi3]

Heres what it says. They say "predominantly" and "potential for other colors". View attachment 4078037

The part about the color ranging from sage to olive makes sense because it's based off of how dark the Marans or Welsummer eggs are. The potential to lay other colors makes zero sense.

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

There also wouldn’t be any possibility for lack of beard or single comb in that cross. It seems more likely to me that they’re crossing welsummers and marans to Easter eggers.

 

[MGG]

There also wouldn’t be any possibility for lack of beard or single comb in that cross. It seems more likely to me that they’re crossing welsummers and marans to Easter eggers.

That would make sense. They actually spelled Ameraucana right though, so I thought maybe. Which one do you think I should keep then?

 

[Auntiejessi3]

That would make sense. They actually spelled Ameraucana right though, so I thought maybe. Which one do you think I should keep then?

The blue chonky one gets my vote

 

[AinaWGSD]

I agree, if you're only keeping one I'd look for a pea comb and rule out the one with a single comb. I think it's most likely that the first three are your olive eggers, and all probably have roughly equal chances of laying green/olive. There is a chance, however unlikely, that the first one with no muffs and clean legs could be a clean faced easter egger (then again she could suddenly sprout muffs in a few weeks like one of the bym chicks from my last hatch). The feathered legs on the third chick rule out confusing with an easter egger.