Ameraucana thread for posting pictures and discussing our birds

[unkadan]

How early can one sex this breed. I bought 6 almost 2 months ago and they all look the same. Beautiful

if you scroll back over the last 3 months worth of posts here you will see you are not alone

and maybe find some clues that apply

 

[noodlesoup]

It doesn't have slate legs...........

I asked MPC about this bird and the no muffs/beards on the other 3. According to them, "she's a splash". They didn't respond about the beards/muffs, so I sent another email about that and also asked about the leg color. That was 3 days ago and I still haven't gotten a response. Very disappointing.

Angela

 

[Angelicisi]

Are these birds (Easter eggers) purposely misrepresented?
Or
Do sellers (hatcheries) just not know?

Mind you I'm newer with chickens (and now KNOW to come to BYC lol) but I would *think* initially to go to the hatcheries for info seeing that they have chickens, breed, hatch, raise...but the info on breed specifics is readily available all over so why don't the big guys know? Seems dirty to me to state different, higher prices for birds due to breed and then 6 months later the owners find out they have to try again if that's the breed they are seeking. (chicken math allows not for subtraction lol an Easter egger-ameracauna mix up on a large order could be overwhelming! )
It took me 3 tries to find true ameraucanas (from an individual breeder) kinda peeved me at the time that I, myself trusted and didn't critique the 1st few Easter eggers I was sold as ameraucanas. Now I know to do my research but things would have been better for everybody if the birds were what they were supposed to be.

Tons of chickens lovers LOVE Ee's and buy them regularly, no need to lie about breeds so I don't get it lol.

Just seems like the hatcheries should know better to me and sell them as what they are instead of confusing all us eager Newbs.

I asked MPC about this bird and the no muffs/beards on the other 3. According to them, "she's a splash". They didn't respond about the beards/muffs, so I sent another email about that and also asked about the leg color. That was 3 days ago and I still haven't gotten a response. Very disappointing.

Angela

 

[noodlesoup]

Are these birds (Easter eggers) purposely misrepresented?
Or
Do sellers (hatcheries) just not know?

Mind you I'm newer with chickens (and now KNOW to come to BYC lol) but I would *think* initially to go to the hatcheries for info seeing that they have chickens, breed, hatch, raise...but the info on breed specifics is readily available all over so why don't the big guys know? Seems dirty to me to state different, higher prices for birds due to breed and then 6 months later the owners find out they have to try again if that's the breed they are seeking. (chicken math allows not for subtraction lol an Easter egger-ameracauna mix up on a large order could be overwhelming! )
It took me 3 tries to find true ameraucanas (from an individual breeder) kinda peeved me at the time that I, myself trusted and didn't critique the 1st few Easter eggers I was sold as ameraucanas. Now I know to do my research but things would have been better for everybody if the birds were what they were supposed to be.

Tons of chickens lovers LOVE Ee's and buy them regularly, no need to lie about breeds so I don't get it lol.

Just seems like the hatcheries should know better to me and sell them as what they are instead of confusing all us eager Newbs.

They sell both EE's and "APA-recognized true Ameraucanas" at the site, so they know there's a difference. THey also say their wheaton and blue ameraucanas lay blue eggs, so I hope that will prove to be true.

 

[acosta3180]

anyone know if male or female

 

[chick-among-us]

It is hard to tell the photo is blurry :/

 

[noodlesoup]

With the spotted legs I would say the mottled gene is involved.It affects black/slate in the legs also.Nice backyard layers but not show stock.EE I would say.Sounds like you only wanted pullets for eggs.So it sounds like you got blue egg layers no matter what they are called.I am sure you will enjoy them.They will probably lay better than show stock.

I am mostly interested in the blue eggs, but it is upsetting that they are represented by the seller as "APA-recognized true ameraucanas" when they don't meet the breed standard. I guess I'll have to chalk this up as a learning experience. Whatever these birds are or aren't, they are the sweetest and most gentle ones I have.

 

[my sunwolf]

anyone know if male or female

Welcome to BYC!!

I'd say female from that photo. Very typical coloring, and big enough that the mature hackle and saddle feathers are in... and are female.

 

[noodlesoup]

You paid a lot extra to get supposedly pure true Ameraucana from MPC - I would be demanding compensation. This is what they claim on their site:

They charged you $18 plus shipping which is more that I would pay from a breeder for really good pure stock. Here is an order form for the real deal directly from John Blehm http://chickhatchery.com/DnLd/Order Form - Chicks.pdf and his are only $6 to $9 per chick. I would be raising a little noise with them.

THanks very much for the link. It's hard when you can only keep a few birds--most places have a 15 or 25 bird minimum.

 

[noodlesoup]

Yes, here is another good link http://www.whitmorefarm.com/store/buy-day-old-chicks-mail-order-ameraucana-chicks-shipped

THey are great looking birds, but they only sell straight run chicks. If you're living in the 'burbs, roosters are usually prohibited by local ordinances, and it's really hard to re-home them.