Ameraucana genetics question

[NagemTX]

For the record, my username is Amer because it used to be AMERAUCANAS4REAL and everyone called me Amer anyways. I used to want Ameraucanas but when I got them I discovered they weren’t my favorite breed. Not that there’s anything wrong with ’em.

I got into them kinda in 4h back in the 90s. A sweet old lady gave me four Brown reds. I just had them as pets for egg laying as I was showing broilers. Fell in love with them when my dad to me to a show somewhere east of Houston.

The other breeds I like I haven't really gotten yet. Polish and Sumatra. The Spitzhaubens are great tho and the Phoenix. I do love the Sebrights and black rosecombs. OEGB is nice too but not what I want to work on.

I'll be going down to Spitzhaubens and Ameraucana for breeding. A project that involves both of them and Phoenix. And adding Polish Bantams. I like the English Orpingtons so going to keep very few once I go get what I ordered from Colt.

Two main focuses are Ameraucana Silver and Spitzhauben Chamois.

I'm having to start out bantam on the Ameraucana color project and then size it up.

 

[Amer]

I got into them kinda in 4h back in the 90s. A sweet old lady gave me four Brown reds. I just had them as pets for egg laying as I was showing broilers. Fell in love with them when my dad to me to a show somewhere east of Houston.

The other breeds I like I haven't really gotten yet. Polish and Sumatra. The Spitzhaubens are great tho and the Phoenix. I do love the Sebrights and black rosecombs. OEGB is nice too but not what I want to work on.

I'll be going down to Spitzhaubens and Ameraucana for breeding. A project that involves both of them and Phoenix. And adding Polish Bantams. I like the English Orpingtons so going to keep very few once I go get what I ordered from Colt.

Two main focuses are Ameraucana Silver and Spitzhauben Chamois.

I'm having to start out bantam on the Ameraucana color project and then size it up.

The only breed I haven’t tried that I might enjoy as much as d’Anvers are Modern Game bantams. They seem fun.

 

[NagemTX]

The only breed I haven’t tried that I might enjoy as much as d’Anvers are Modern Game bantams. They seem fun.

Those are hard to come by here. I was trying to get some but have yet to find any breeder info for shipped eggs. This is why I have switched to bantam Polish for my friends daughter. Polish was the other breed she was really interested in.

 

[kurby22]

Ah. I was only thinking of the Standard size. To me, bantam Ameraucanas are oddly proportioned d’Anvers that lay blue eggs. (D’Anvers are my favorite breed.)

 

[Bean1028]

Breeding them to the Splash hens would just make Blue and Splash Ameraucanas. About half of them will carry a lavender gene, but because it's recessive there's no way to tell which without test crossing them to Lavender later.

Breeding them back to Lavender will make some Blacks carrying lavender, some Blues carrying lavender, some Lavenders, and some birds that are both Lavender and Blue. Now, most advise against crossing Lavender and Blue because it can be very difficult to tell a Lavender from a bird that is both Lavender and Blue, but near as I can tell there's nothing necessarily wrong with doing so just for fun or for your own flock. You will want to be sure if you sell them to tell anyone who buys those birds that they could be both, as many prefer to avoid such birds for breeding.

Ok, so when I was researching Ameraucana colors to expand our flock I was conversing with a breeder who has lavender ameraucanas that I was wanting to purchase from her. I told her we had Blues and that I had found it was highly recommended to not mix the Blues & lavenders because their genetics will clash resulting in not only muddled coloring, but also carries a very high rate of cross break, chick deaths & heart attacks in pullets & she agreed with my research & said that's what she had also found, so we decided not to purchase them. So, there are far more concerning things to be aware of when mixing the 2 colors other than just muddled colors. Hope this helps.

 

[NagemTX]

That is un true of that combination creating those conditions except for the muddy off color. None of the other has proven true. Those are rumors only. All those things can come from improper breeding programs. Cross beak is more so seen in chickens with beards and muffs and sometimes crested.

 

[Amer]

Ok, so when I was researching Ameraucana colors to expand our flock I was conversing with a breeder who has lavender ameraucanas that I was wanting to purchase from her. I told her we had Blues and that I had found it was highly recommended to not mix the Blues & lavenders because their genetics will clash resulting in not only muddled coloring, but also carries a very high rate of cross break, chick deaths & heart attacks in pullets & she agreed with my research & said that's what she had also found, so we decided not to purchase them. So, there are far more concerning things to be aware of when mixing the 2 colors other than just muddled colors. Hope this helps.

The muddled coloring is true, the chick deaths, etc. is not true.
While outbreeding depression can cause some issues it’s not nearly as bad as all that and it’s not caused by breeding blue and lavender together.

 

[Bean1028]

Thanks!

I'm going to go out on a limb and say my chick IF in fact it is Ameraucana it would be more more type? As she was diffidently a chipmunk chick but her first feathers are not matching the Silver pattern from the breeder web site. Unless its just way to early to tell.

And down the rabbit hole I go on genetics.... what my husband is afraid of!

I was just thinking about posting a similar question. I had already jumped into the genetic worm hole over the blue/lavender (much to my husband's dismay as well .) So flash forward a few weeks & now we have a chick that had the exact appearance of a brown red chick (from another breeder, the color was unknown when they sent him to us) that's referenced on the ameraucana alliance forum, but now that his feathers are coming in he looks like a silver rooster!! I'm confused as he did not have any of the chipmunk pattern/colors the silver chicks display. I was wondering if maybe the brown red is his recessive color & the silver is the dominant color? I'm not even sure that's possible, but that's where the research has lead me to thus far, but I could be wrong. We did also get a silver hen from this breeder who had the chipmunk appearance & she has feathered out as a silver is expected to. So...I'm suspecting foul play in this roo for sure...just trying to figure out if he's breedable or if he will just create a mess...I'm curious as to what you may have found with yours...

 

[Bean1028]

That is un true of that combination creating those conditions except for the muddy off color. None of the other has proven true. Those are rumors only. All those things can come from improper breeding programs. Cross beak is more so seen in chickens with beards and muffs and sometimes crested.

Are you referring to the mixing blues & lavs doesn't create a genetic mess? I'm genuinely interested to know...I don't want to be spreading false info because of what other breeders on this forum have said! I was under the impression these breeders that I took this advice from have been doing it for a long time & have built up a reputation. People were saying they purchased their ameraucanas from them specifically because they were pure lines & everyone seemed hung up on the fact that these breeders had the final word bc they knew their stuff...TIA!!

 

[Amer]

I was just thinking about posting a similar question. I had already jumped into the genetic worm hole over the blue/lavender (much to my husband's dismay as well .) So flash forward a few weeks & now we have a chick that had the exact appearance of a brown red chick (from another breeder, the color was unknown when they sent him to us) that's referenced on the ameraucana alliance forum, but now that his feathers are coming in he looks like a silver rooster!! I'm confused as he did not have any of the chipmunk pattern/colors the silver chicks display. I was wondering if maybe the brown red is his recessive color & the silver is the dominant color? I'm not even sure that's possible, but that's where the research has lead me to thus far, but I could be wrong. We did also get a silver hen from this breeder who had the chipmunk appearance & she has feathered out as a silver is expected to. So...I'm suspecting foul play in this roo for sure...just trying to figure out if he's breedable or if he will just create a mess...I'm curious as to what you may have found with yours...

Brown red is gold birchen. Silver is silver duckwing. Birchen is dominant to duckwing, so nah.
ETA: but silver is sexlinked dominant over gold, is that what you meant?