Pennsylvania!! Unite!!

[Lelanae]

He is so gorgeous! But...overweighted?

Maybe that's why your eggs are not very fertile.

Slow day here, so I thought I post a pic of my Silkied Lavender Ameraucana roo . . .

I think he is stunning! Will you have his daughters for sale? I am looking for a cute layer of blue eggs!

 

[dheltzel]

He is beautiful! How much does he weigh?

I'm not sure, he's not really light or heavy, about like a regular Ameraucana.

He is so gorgeous! But...overweighted?

Maybe that's why your eggs are not very fertile.

It's all fluff, just like silkie bantams. I don't think he's popular with the ladies because he can't fly up to roost with them. The regular feathers Am roos have no problem getting up with the California Grey hens to roost. I have 2 silkied and 1 regular roo in that pen with 24 CG's and 7 BBS Ams. I'm pretty sure the silkieds are not mating with any of the hens, so it all falls to the regular roo. When I had a Wheaten Am roo in there, fertility was ~25 - 28%, I'm counting on my very worldly and experienced black roo to bring that up considerably. I will know in the next few days when I candle the eggs I set last Fri.

I think he is stunning! Will you have his daughters for sale? I am looking for a cute layer of blue eggs!

That is the plan. His sisters should be laying by now, but the silkieds seem to grow and mature slower and be just weaker in general. Plus, they really need weatherproof quarters (like silkies). Definitely a specialty bird, like silkie bantams. I love the really rare breeds and while these are frustrating at times compared to the regular ams, I am sticking with them for at least this year.

 

[dheltzel]

Here he is with the Black roo and their harem.


BTW, I have some black ones too, they are split for Lavender. Personally I prefer black Ams over blues or splash, but I intend to breed Lav roos over both Lav and Black (split) hens. That means I have several surplus black silkied roos, if anyone is interested in one.

I don't handle my birds much, but the silkied are much calmer and more pettable than the regular Ams. I thought docility was a separate trait bred into silkies, but now I wonder if there is a connection to the feather type. These Ams have no silkie in their heritage at all, they are a new, random mutation that occurred in someone's flock of purebred Ams.

Of course the very worst behaved roos I've ever had have all been silkies. I've owned dozens of silkie roos and only 2 were not sweet as pie -- but those 2 were EVIL!

 

[BullChick]

Omg! Saturday's high is 7° with s low of -6°
I don't want to even think of going outside!! The wind is supposed to be bad too. I think I'll put a diaper on the dog!
I used to be fine in the cold. Wonder what changed?

 

[TillyPeeps]

Here he is with the Black roo and their harem.


BTW, I have some black ones too, they are split for Lavender. Personally I prefer black Ams over blues or splash, but I intend to breed Lav roos over both Lav and Black (split) hens. That means I have several surplus black silkied roos, if anyone is interested in one.

I don't handle my birds much, but the silkied are much calmer and more pettable than the regular Ams. I thought docility was a separate trait bred into silkies, but now I wonder if there is a connection to the feather type. These Ams have no silkie in their heritage at all, they are a new, random mutation that occurred in someone's flock of purebred Ams.

Of course the very worst behaved roos I've ever had have all been silkies. I've owned dozens of silkie roos and only 2 were not sweet as pie -- but those 2 were EVIL!

These CG girls look so cute and just like Barred Rocks instead of Leghorn.

Maybe DH will let me have one next year.

 

[jacobashearer]

Does anyone have some ameraucana hens for sale around york pa?

 

[brightpennies]

@ambergordon, I'll second the comment on Freedom Rangers. I love mine. The roosters grew quickly and were decent foragers. They had some foot problems that would have been an issue if they weren't destined for freezer camp. I still have the hens, who are much smaller and who forage and lay beautifully. Their feet are a little funky, too, but so far it hasn't slowed them down. The roos were rowdy with my hens but they were quite sweet with me. I would buy more if I didn't already have a Cackle Surprise box one the way... That said, if you're hoping to breed your own (vs just buying chicks and process in a few months) I don't know that the Roos would be good for the long haul.

 

[BullChick]

I hear peeping!!! Day 20.

 

[AnneInTheBurbs]

Son of a &$&#%! My neighbor's cat came in and took another chick. My broody only has one poult left. . Why don't these people keep their cat inside when it's 32 degrees out?! Arg. Rant over.... Sorry

 

[Lelanae]

Omg! Saturday's high is 7° with s low of -6°
I don't want to even think of going outside!! The wind is supposed to be bad too. I think I'll put a diaper on the dog!
I used to be fine in the cold. Wonder what changed?

I am not looking forward to it either. Our metabolism slows and body temperature gets lower as we get older--my 91 year old mom wears sweaters when it is 78 degrees--her normal temperature is 95-97. It is why I don't usually put heat on my chicken. If they are normal at 103 degrees--they are pretty toasty!