Araucana thread anyone?

[Birch Run Farm]

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I've got more pics to upload. Zephyr got washed out by the flash and is probably blind now. Poor girl. She's grown used to me chasing after her with a camera. BTW- she is a grand daughter of Degas.

 

[cackleberrycoop]

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At first sight, this looks like a beautiful abstract painting.

 

[Omniskies]

That covers three weeks out of 52

I'll be getting an extra 50 eggs/week if I keep a flock of a dozen or so back to try to work on them, which may be worth it, because they are really growing on me. This year I'm not too worried about extra eggs - next year I really get to put my "You never have too many eggs" theory to the test.

I'll just make a 30-egg pound cake every week and do a _lot_ of jogging

Nate, I've used a lot of things to build them up. I started out using SQ Barred Rocks with heavy set hatchery stock Dominiques to introduce the Rose comb. This year I'm using Wyandottes to get a little more size into them and tweak the Rose comb. I think this will be my last year of playing around with new blood. I'll be doing a _lot_ of hatching all season and will close the flock off next year to continue making improvements.

On the side I suppose I'll have a lot of Barred Wyandottes. I get to decide whether to play around with them or cull them out to strictly continue working with the Barred Rock.

 

[syble]

no worries CBC, it's easy to do on forums, and there's just no subtle way to correct someone haha. I did make the mistake of not correcting someone once, then we met up to go to a show, man was his wife ticked when she found out he was going allday with a strange woman! go fig!? Strange men are apparently better haha.

Omniskies, just remember, they cant lay if their setting haha
Sib

 

[puredelite]

[/img] DW was wanting me to clean out one side of the garage for room to park another vehicle. Box found with old magazines, etc. contained this Jan. 1973 issue of "The Araucana World". This was my first time to be interested in these chickens and I happened to live near a Mrs. Joyce Cox who was the secretary for the Ark., La., Okla. and Tex. region. She was I believe the source of my first blue-egg laying chickens. Keep in mind that this is the "International Araucana Society" headquarded in Ontario, Canada. There was no membership dues and a $4.00 fee for a 12 issue sub. to this newsletter. It contained a brief history of the breed and a "Directory of Reliable Breeders". Also a classified ad department. What is most interesting is the standard of the breed which has a separate description of the male and female. So many varieties were acceptable including rumpless, tailed, tufted, bearded& muffs, clean-faced, crested, four types of combs, etc. Also four major divisions in regard to color of skin and legs. Also states that ALL colors and color patterns of domestic poultry are accepted. So.... my first ones were probably what are now termed as "EE's" except that I do remember that they produced only blue eggs. I did manage to find a solid black trio shortly there-after of rumpless ones but don't recall them as having any tufts( clean-faced) So long ago but I do remember that very few eggs were fertile and finally I let them go to someone else. Just recently I have finally become a member of the "Araucana Club of America". Anyone know how often they update the membership list? The one I received is from '09.

 

[puredelite]

 

[smoothmule]

Degas would be proud

 

[cackleberrycoop]

Eggs ready for the incubator - I am really very blissed out right now.

Only about 1/5 of the blue eggs are from my araucana girls, but it's a start.

 

[cackleberrycoop]

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Fascinating! Thank you for sharing this - it is such fun to see and hear. I had heard that, though the appearance of the Araucana has come a long way in recent years, the egg color has really suffered; it sounds like your experience would concur with that generalization. I just love this breed.
I just received an updated membership list last month, so perhaps your's is in the mail?

 

[Illia]

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Very nice!! Can't wait to get big trays of eggs to go in the bator like that

Course, none will be a traditional brown though. . .