Washingtonians Come Together! Washington Peeps

[Amberjem]

 

[Skyfire]

I saw on Snohomish Co Op's FB page they are expecting 1000 baby chicks this Friday. That video of the babies hatching is so precious!!

 

[capayvalleychick]

Kim this may be something we can discuss in the next 2 weeks, but, it would be really early for the seller to be available in a rest stop along the highway as DH does not want to stop off road & drive around..blah blah.
He wants all to be there ready for pick up/drop off.
As for drop off, it would be Williams CA as the farthest point.
Let me know.

That works for me. I asked the seller and will get back to you.

 

[JulesChicks]

Soo happy for you @Amberjem !!

 

[cblakley0531]

Hi All! I hope I can up with this thread! HAHA! I currently live in Shelton, WA but we are looking at buying a house in any of the counties/cities within a 30 minute drive to Tumwater. I currently have 5 hens that I love dearly and I'm finding out that there isn't a WHOLE LOT of extra/detailed info on where you CAN have chickens. We are currently looking at a house in Rochester and according to Thurston County's website, chickens are PROHIBITED in residential districts - can anyone tell me what is considered a residential district vs NOT being one? The house we are looking at sits on just under and acre and there are houses on either side of it, but aside from just chickens, would like to know if we can have other small animals such as goats, rabbits, MORE chickens ;-) Would love to hear from everyone on where they live and what they have found out!

Thank you so much in advance!

 

[MisfitMarie]

Hi All! I hope I can up with this thread! HAHA! I currently live in Shelton, WA but we are looking at buying a house in any of the counties/cities within a 30 minute drive to Tumwater. I currently have 5 hens that I love dearly and I'm finding out that there isn't a WHOLE LOT of extra/detailed info on where you CAN have chickens. We are currently looking at a house in Rochester and according to Thurston County's website, chickens are PROHIBITED in residential districts - can anyone tell me what is considered a residential district vs NOT being one? The house we are looking at sits on just under and acre and there are houses on either side of it, but aside from just chickens, would like to know if we can have other small animals such as goats, rabbits, MORE chickens ;-) Would love to hear from everyone on where they live and what they have found out!

Thank you so much in advance!

Interesting, things must have changed. I grew up in Rochester, WA. On Loganberry Street, right off I-5 Grand Mound exit. I lived there for about twelve years. Moved out in 2010. My family had about 20+ chickens growing up, and lots of roosters were in that mix. We had neighbors as well, never any issues. There's also quite a few chicken farms and dairies in Rochester, off of 99.

I was in the FFA, and most of my friends had horses, cows, pigs, goats, rabbits, chickens, etc. Lots of small farms. It might be worth looking into that residential requirement a little further. You might be pleasantly surprised, maybe it's only a few certain areas?

Do you know what they define as residential districts?

You could also venture into Tenino, which is East of Rochester...

Or even West, towards Elma.

 

[CarolynF]

Hi All! I hope I can up with this thread! HAHA! I currently live in Shelton, WA but we are looking at buying a house in any of the counties/cities within a 30 minute drive to Tumwater. I currently have 5 hens that I love dearly and I'm finding out that there isn't a WHOLE LOT of extra/detailed info on where you CAN have chickens. We are currently looking at a house in Rochester and according to Thurston County's website, chickens are PROHIBITED in residential districts - can anyone tell me what is considered a residential district vs NOT being one? The house we are looking at sits on just under and acre and there are houses on either side of it, but aside from just chickens, would like to know if we can have other small animals such as goats, rabbits, MORE chickens ;-) Would love to hear from everyone on where they live and what they have found out!

Thank you so much in advance!

I know 3 people in Rochester that have chickens. But I don't know what the "Residential Districts" are.
Since you were looking at the country website, you may need to contact each City to find out what their codes say. The county doesn't set the rules for the cities.

 

[CarolynF]

Educational Post

Ameraucana vs Americana/Easter Egger

It's spring and many of us are having a great time getting new chicks, so...... just to keep things straight when it comes to buying "Americana/Ameraucana" chicks from feed stores. 99% of the time those chicks will be Easter Eggers, not Ameraucanas. There is a serious lack of information (aka integrity) regarding Ameraucanas by the hatcheries and stores. And therefore an awful lot of people are misinformed and confused.

First, there is no such breed as an Americana. It's a made up name the hatcheries use for a mutt. It's a mixed breed that has some Ameraucana blood. Maybe half, maybe a quarter, maybe less. Because they can lay almost any color egg, they've been nicknamed Easter Eggers. As a mixed breed of no specific combination the offspring can have a multitude of looks, some are quite striking.

This doesn't make them bad birds, just not Ameraucanas.

Just like dogs, chickens have SOPs (standard of perfection) for each recognized breed. When you cross a german shepard with something else, it's no longer a german shepard, right? It might look a lot like a shepard, but it's not. We all accept that. It's the same with the chickens. Commercial hatcheries sell chicks that are a cross between Ameraucanas and whatever. They usually have puffy cheeks, and that's about as far as it goes. An Ameraucana lays a BLUE Egg, not a green egg. Easter Eggers can lay most any color egg, thus the name.

A LOT of us have Easter Eggers in our flocks and we love them. They're great chickens. They just aren't Ameraucanas -- and there is no such thing, at all, as an Americana. It would be really great if we could all learn to call them what they are.

The Ameraucana SOP recognizes only the varieties (colors) listed below. You can find out a lot more, and see pictures of the real ones at the Ameraucana Breeders Club website.
Black
Blue
Blue Wheaten
Brown Red
Buff
Silver
Wheaten
White

 

[QuiltinGramma]

Do Ameraucana chicks have a specific leg color? I have one (was told it was an Ameraucana) that has gray/green legs. Do they just have one leg color or a variety of leg colors and does mine fit within those colors?

 

[CarolynF]

Do Ameraucana chicks have a specific leg color? I have one (was told it was an Ameraucana) that has gray/green legs. Do they just have one leg color or a variety of leg colors and does mine fit within those colors?

I would refer you to the Breeders Club link above. There is also a member on BYC, @pips&peeps who would be a great source of excellent information. That said, I think they all have a slate colored leg, but some varieties change as they grow. You can see it if you look at the Gallery photos on their site.