Ameraucana bred to SOP

[NNYchick]

First, that hen is fantastic !!!


Second, super odd coloring on the chicks. It isn't a pure white, or even a white with leakage... it is almost a muted porcelain or something. No idea on the genetics of that... strange.

And... to the hatching! I would actually look at nutrition. Even when you buy prime products, if they are old, or just spent one afternoon in a super hot truck or trunk.... then the nutrition drops.

Anyway... this link has a good table of possible causes. Make sure you click on the specific issue that applies to you, to get the possible causes.

https://web.extension.illinois.edu/eggs/res24-00.html

Thank You I kept all pullets with good color in tails and wings last year. I’m waiting to see how they do with first adult molt. 2020 hens lost a lot of color after molt.
I’m going to stop hatching this year and just enjoy the chickens. I got stressed out when I lost all my self blue roosters. I only had 2 hens so my plan was to hatch 25 from each rooster and pick the best from each hatch and start with 3 groups separated by cock line and move on from there but I’m not sure how to go on with the 7 chicks I have as they all have the same father. I’m not sure how that’s going to effect genetic diversity down the road.
Nutrition should not be the problem. I worked with Mr. Mattocks a poultry nutritionist from Fertrell, he looked at my feed and helped me balance it. I started my breeders on poultry show and breeder supplement 6 weeks prior to starting to collect eggs for hatching. This supplement increases amino acids along with vitamins a,bs,d,and e, to the needed higher levels during breeding and hatching. I also switched to buying my feed to chewy because my local feed stores it was 3-6months old, from chewy it’s never been more than 4 weeks from manufacture date.
That chicks color does have me stumped. I thought maybe splash wheaten but I don’t have any blue wheaten hens and you need blue over blue for splash. This is that breeding pen.

I’m going to grow it out just out of curiosity, it’s really friendly so if it’s a pullet we will keep it with my daughter’s pet silkies and mottled OEGB.

 

[Alaskan]

Thank You I kept all pullets with good color in tails and wings last year. I’m waiting to see how they do with first adult molt. 2020 hens lost a lot of color after molt.
I’m going to stop hatching this year and just enjoy the chickens. I got stressed out when I lost all my self blue roosters. I only had 2 hens so my plan was to hatch 25 from each rooster and pick the best from each hatch and start with 3 groups separated by cock line and move on from there but I’m not sure how to go on with the 7 chicks I have as they all have the same father. I’m not sure how that’s going to effect genetic diversity down the road.
Nutrition should not be the problem. I worked with Mr. Mattocks a poultry nutritionist from Fertrell, he looked at my feed and helped me balance it. I started my breeders on poultry show and breeder supplement 6 weeks prior to starting to collect eggs for hatching. This supplement increases amino acids along with vitamins a,bs,d,and e, to the needed higher levels during breeding and hatching. I also switched to buying my feed to chewy because my local feed stores it was 3-6months old, from chewy it’s never been more than 4 weeks from manufacture date.
That chicks color does have me stumped. I thought maybe splash wheaten but I don’t have any blue wheaten hens and you need blue over blue for splash. This is that breeding pen. View attachment 3123825I’m going to grow it out just out of curiosity, it’s really friendly so if it’s a pullet we will keep it with my daughter’s pet silkies and mottled OEGB.

Good luck.

Keep us posted on the odd color chick.

Great looking flock.

 

[cluckingheck]

Mumble ended up going broody but I didn’t hatch any of her eggs. I think she hatched an egg from one of the EEs.

anyways this was when she first laid an egg. she has a pretty blue colored egg

 

[Alaskan]

Mumble ended up going broody but I didn’t hatch any of her eggs. I think she hatched an egg from one of the EEs. View attachment 3128749

anyways this was when she first laid an egg. she has a pretty blue colored eggView attachment 3128754View attachment 3128755

That is an excellent egg shell color!

My flock's eggs are a good shade of blue, but way more pale than I would like.

Your egg looks good and dark. Must be almost impossible to candle!

 

[NNYchick]

I believe finally hatched a blue wheaten pullet. I’ve been trying for 3 years and all my blue wheaten end up cockerels.

 

[Alaskan]

I believe finally hatched a blue wheaten pullet. I’ve been trying for 3 years and all my blue wheaten end up cockerels. View attachment 3163902View attachment 3163901

Whoot!!

CLEARLY a female blue wheaten! You got one! Nice!

 

[kurby22]

I believe finally hatched a blue wheaten pullet. I’ve been trying for 3 years and all my blue wheaten end up cockerels. View attachment 3163902View attachment 3163901

Do you have any baby pics? I just bought two bantam wheaten or blue wheaten and I’m curious how mine compare to this pretty girl! For gender and possible blue!

 

[NNYchick]

Do you have any baby pics? I just bought two bantam wheaten or blue wheaten and I’m curious how mine compare to this pretty girl! For gender and possible blue!

View attachment 3164839

View attachment 3164840

I don’t have any specific pictures of her. With your chick, it’s too young yet all of mine look the same at that age, can’t really tell color or sex. About 6-7 weeks when the Breast feathers come in I find the easiest to sex them. If the breast feathers are wheaten they are pullets, if any blue or black breast feathers they will be cockerel. This picture you can see really well the difference.

This is a blue cockerel on the middle and wheaten pullet on the to sides.
At about 8 weeks old

Wheaten cockerel

 

[kurby22]

I don’t have any specific pictures of her. With your chick, it’s too young yet all of mine look the same at that age, can’t really tell color or sex. About 6-7 weeks when the Breast feathers come in I find the easiest to sex them. If the breast feathers are wheaten they are pullets, if any blue or black breast feathers they will be cockerel. This picture you can see really well the difference.
View attachment 3164925
This is a blue cockerel on the middle and wheaten pullet on the to sides.
At about 8 weeks old
View attachment 3164927
Wheaten cockerel
View attachment 3164928

That’s helpful! Thank you! I had read that they could be feather sexed so I assumed it was early on, but it of course isn’t that easy I will impatiently wait for the breast feathers :-D thank you!! I would be okay with one of each, but my luck is always one or the other 2 girls or 2 boys…no pairs.

 

[LKWolfram]

I hope this is the right place to post and ask. I purchased pure ameraucana eggs from a local Hatcher. Nice lady. She has been breeding bbs ameraucana for awhile but newer to it. She always had results with her hatches that indicate pure bred. She recently bred the blue roo to a maran hen to try at olive eggers. All babies came out with straight combs instead of the pea combs which is always consistently got when mating AxA. My ameraucana are due to hatch tomorrow. Should these be culled/sold from the breeding program and should I start over? Does this indicate the roo is not pure bred? I am new to this but enjoy learning genetics and want to work with breeding bbs ameraucana.