The Ameraucana Thread: Where everything and anything about the breed can be discussed (APA, Non-Stan

[CherokeeFlats]

On day 14 for my Silver Ameraucana eggs in the incubator. Candled them lastnight and they look good!!

 

[Momhunter]

Glad i found this thread. I'll be new to the breed at the end of May. I've got 15 chicks ordered from Taylor Hobby farm coming. Will be straight run BBS. I'm so excited to get them.

 

[Momhunter]

Glad i found this thread. I'll be new to the breed at the end of May. I've got 15 chicks ordered from Taylor Hobby farm coming. Will be straight run BBS. I'm so excited to get them.

 

[CloverdaleFarms]

What type of incubator are you using? Since you have had really good hatch rates with your own eggs, I'm assuming your problems don't lie with your incubator. So many things can go wrong with shipped eggs. You don't know what type of nutrition the hens laying the eggs have received, when eggs were collected, if people handling them washed their hands before touching the eggs, how they were stored, if they were rotated properly, let alone what happened when they were shipped. When I have hatched, I have had more wet eggs than dry. So I run a dry hatch now and only boost humidity to 60% at lockdown. I don't really have much advice. Shipped eggs are such a gamble. Some breeders have told me that Ameraucana eggs can be difficult to hatch. If these birds were from a different line they may have some fertility issues that yours do not. But, I'm still inclined to blame is on being shipped.

Thanks for the insight! I too am blaming the shipping process. I just found the variablity in the condition of the chicks interesting. Logically, one would assume that the chicks would present with the same types of issues. I was baffled by the wet and dry chicks. I have a new group of my chicks hatching now, they are just peeping along! One thing I have learned is to not mess with the humidity too much. I am in Florida and my natural humidity is around 38%. If I start messing with the temp or humidity too much, my chicks are sticky with yolk and often have open navels or inexplicably die.

 

[salt and pepper]

Are those lavender, or blue birds in your avatar? I can't tell by the lighting. I have my first lavender ameraucana (and the only one I know is a pullet) And I can't seem to find good pictures.

 

[Outrun Acres]

Glad i found this thread. I'll be new to the breed at the end of May. I've got 15 chicks ordered from Taylor Hobby farm coming. Will be straight run BBS. I'm so excited to get them.

Welcome to the thread! How exciting! Thats what I have in the incubator right now due to hatch on Sunday. They will be my first true Ameraucanas as well. Do you like all three colors or one in particular?

 

[Outrun Acres]

Thanks for the insight! I too am blaming the shipping process. I just found the variablity in the condition of the chicks interesting. Logically, one would assume that the chicks would present with the same types of issues. I was baffled by the wet and dry chicks. I have a new group of my chicks hatching now, they are just peeping along! One thing I have learned is to not mess with the humidity too much. I am in Florida and my natural humidity is around 38%. If I start messing with the temp or humidity too much, my chicks are sticky with yolk and often have open navels or inexplicably die.

I think I learned my lesson with my last hatch. My humidity was up around 65-75% and I had a lot of sticky chicks. So this time I am going no higher than 60%. I hope that takes care of the problem. When I think of how a broody hen hatches chicks, how high can she really increase the humidity? I'm guessing, not as high as I was trying to get it!

 

[Bitterroot]

This is only my first hatch, but so far everything is going very smoothly. I bumped my humidity to 20% above what I was incubating at (dry incubation, 20-30%), and the chicks are having no problems getting out. Of course, now that I've said that, the rest of the chicks will be shrink wrapped just to spite me.

 

[salt and pepper]

Here is the mystery chick, any thoughts on gender, and what color it will be? It's a pure ameraucana, I was thinking splash, but it only has the odd feather that is dark.



Thank you!

 

[Momhunter]

Welcome to the thread! How exciting! Thats what I have in the incubator right now due to hatch on Sunday. They will be my first true Ameraucanas as well. Do you like all three colors or one in particular?

I like all colors, am considering getting some buff eggs to incubate and hatch at the same time as my BBS will arrive. I've seen the color charts on breeding BBS, what happens if you add buffs to the same flock???
I currently have black Jersey Giants and am getting BBS JG chicks along with the ameraucanas. I am biulding a second coop to keep all the babies in,after the brooder, until the JGs are large enough to free range with my existing flock. Then the new coop and run will be for the ameraucanas. I will have to alternate who gets to free range daily to keep the breeds separate. Besides selling and hatching out separate breed chicks and am worried that my big JG Roos would hurt the ameraucanas.
After they all start laying I will be having BBS of both breeds. Oh I also have coturnix quail and a trio of peafowl, AND cattle, horses, and mules, all on 85 acres. AND a husband, two kids and full time jobs, a little busy!!