Ameraucana thread for posting pictures and discussing our birds

[EastNashChick]

Male

 

[junebuggena]

Can anyone help me sex these Ameraucanas?

Cockerel.

Cockerel.

Pullet, for now.

Pullet, for sure

Cockerel.

 

[Ravynscroft]

I guess ameraucanas are unique in that they have a built in scapegoat with the EEs.
I get what youre saying and it makes sense but from your first post I still cant agree that two different colored purebreds when crossed should be called a cross bred. I could agree but on the other end I know you can bring crossed colors back to correct color and it would make no sense to say the new correct color purebred came from two cross breds.
The ameraucana/ EE thing is crazy to me. Ameraucana breeders get so up in arms about people calling EEs ameraucanas and yet they call all their ameraucana culls EEs. So sounds like some EEs would in fact be pure ameraucanas just not quality ones.
I often wondered why I never hear of poorly bred ameraucanas or color crossed ones. Now I know its because those all turned into EEs.

The public came up with the term EE, really, it's just a 'catch-all' term for any colored egg layers that don't fit the Ameraucana or Araucana standard... and the APA standard is what determines whether a given bird fits any given breed... no matter the breed... take for example heritage RIR's... ask any heritage RIR breeder if a hatchery RIR is a RIR, and almost every time you will get the answer as no... same as I don't call my Cemani culls, Cemani... can you breed up from them, yes, but it takes someone dedicated to doing that to achieve that...

If someone buys a defective Ameraucana as an Ameraucana, then decides to show it, a judge will disqualify it, period... DQ means it does not fit the standard and they won't accept it as that breed...

It's not about the purity of blood, but the phenotype... and whether that phenotype breeds true, so genotype needs to match the phenotype... anyone can take the time and years to breed mixes to match a standard, but again, that takes time and dedication... most people looking to just get a couple birds of a given breed, want them to already be acceptable as that given breed, isn't it better for breeders to only sell what is acceptable labeled as that breed?

Id agree more with junebuggena on this one.
I bought 25 "ameraucanas" or what ever they were called then from cackle hatchery about 5 years ago. They all had pea combs, beards, muffs, slate legs and layed only blue eggs, etc.
I raised a few generations from them and they all bred true. Except i did get a few with white legs. No beardless, straight combs or any other colored eggs besides blue.
Would be hard to believe if they were all cross breeds that other things wouldnt of been popping up with as many generations as I raised.

All of those traits are dominant traits though... yellow legs are recessive, so white legs would crop up...

 

[thlayli]

Elliesaurus, the names get better!
I'm a total newbie but is light Orville much bigger than his darker brother? Could it be that dark Wilbur has more feathering out to do?

Wilbur is actually about 1/3rd bigger than Orville. He's definitely top roo. C: he's a total snot about it too; poor Orville gets sucker punched quite a bit.

 

[MAchicken105]

Cockerel.
Cockerel.

Pullet, for now.

Pullet, for sure

Cockerel.

Can I ask you guys, what guidelines you use to determine sex? I've heard the 3 row of peas isn't always a sign of cockerel. True or false? Many thanks for the two people that responded, you have been a huge help!

 

[junebuggena]

Can I ask you guys, what guidelines you use to determine sex? I've heard the 3 row of peas isn't always a sign of cockerel. True or false? Many thanks for the two people that responded, you have been a huge help!

Not so much the number of rows of peas, as the amount of development and redness. Pullets don't develop and start turning red in the comb till they are getting near the point of laying eggs.

 

[The Moonshiner]

The public came up with the term EE, really, it's just a 'catch-all' term for any colored egg layers that don't fit the Ameraucana or Araucana standard... and the APA standard is what determines whether a given bird fits any given breed... no matter the breed... take for example heritage RIR's... ask any heritage RIR breeder if a hatchery RIR is a RIR, and almost every time you will get the answer as no... same as I don't call my Cemani culls, Cemani... can you breed up from them, yes, but it takes someone dedicated to doing that to achieve that...

If someone buys a defective Ameraucana as an Ameraucana, then decides to show it, a judge will disqualify it, period... DQ means it does not fit the standard and they won't accept it as that breed...

I agree with pretty much all of this.
All i havent agreed on with you really was that you believe if you cross colors then the F1 offspring arent purebreds. I believe they are still purebreds.
Just because its about ameraucana got me to thinking about the EE as being a catch all for them.
Im not sure of many breeds that would have something like that. Like the heritage RIR breeders they dont sell their culls as production or hatchery stock do they. Like them, like me with leghorns and like you with your other breeds we just sell culls as culls or as no breed given.

 

[MAchicken105]

Not so much the number of rows of peas, as the amount of development and redness. Pullets don't develop and start turning red in the comb till they are getting near the point of laying eggs. 

Ahh I see what you're saying. Thanks for the info. I just snapped a pic of the 2 potential pullets with their buddy Janet(whom everyone is telling me is a roo - devastated). Still think these two are pullets?

 

[Ravynscroft]

I agree with pretty much all of this.
All i havent agreed on with you really was that you believe if you cross colors then the F1 offspring arent purebreds. I believe they are still purebreds.
Just because its about ameraucana got me to thinking about the EE as being a catch all for them.
Im not sure of many breeds that would have something like that. Like the heritage RIR breeders they dont sell their culls as production or hatchery stock do they. Like them, like me with leghorns and like you with your other breeds we just sell culls as culls or as no breed given.

Except you're arguing a point I didn't say... I don't use the term 'purebred'... EE is a catch all term for mixed breeds that lay colored eggs, culls, and anything non-standard Ameraucana, Araucana and now Legbar can be added...

F1 offspring from a crossing of 2 different color varieties won't breed true if bred together, so I wouldn't call them true Ameraucana... but if you're working with your own lines, there's really no need to even label them until you are ready to release them...

Selling culls as cull Ameraucana just adds to the confusion that is perpetuated by hatcheries and misinformation... it's easier to just say EE as a buyer can research from that perspective much clearer than if they start from believing they have true Ameraucana and end up disappointed....

 

[CuzChickens]

Rayvn, I see you saying you don't use the term purebred, what term do you use?

And does anybody here breed Blue Ameraucanas?

Also, sorry if I created a riff from a question I asked. :/