Ameraucana thread for posting pictures and discussing our birds

[bruceha2000]

Then perhaps make use of the directory John linked. There is a member of the Alliance with Wheatens down near Columbus.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

While I appreciate yours and other's desire to be helpful in this regard, I have been through many lists and breeder directories (mostly linked from people on this website at that) with poor results.

The obvious preference would be to breed to better quality of the same variety, and that has been my goal for a few years as well. Please understand that unless you know a particular breeder personally and are therefore aware them having chicks available for sale in the next year (or if they have just listed themselves for the first time within the last 8 months) within my shipping range, there's a real chance I have already contacted them before without results. (Or else I simply don't want another wild goose - er, chicken - chase.)

If that's not the case, I would be really grateful if responses to my post could stay on the subject of which would be the best option for breeding in. Thanks.

 

[Alaskan]

f that's not the case, I would be really grateful if responses to my post could stay on the subject of which would be the best option for breeding in. Thanks.

I understand your request... but very much think that even with poor Wheaten stock, if you hatch 100 chicks, you will get 3 decent ones.

I think if you add any other breed in.... you will hatch a hundred chicks, and get 100 very wrong chicks.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Like I said, they only have a couple things wrong with them. I do think that a BBS is probably going to be the right direction. They will have the right shape. Mostly, it's leg color. Hence my request.

Since you seem to know my situation well, perhaps you can suggest a breeder you know personally who you know has chicks available?

 

[Alaskan]

So, of the Wheaten that you have... what do their legs look like?

Can you post a photo?

 

[ChocolateMouse]

I can get a photo a little later. This isn't my first wheaten group. They seem fine, not SQ by any means but at least they are obviously their breed... Except for the legs. The legs are pale, almost white, with a bit of a greyish cast to them. Otherwise they look like wheatens. My last wheaten roo had very dark legs, a deep slate color - but he recently got taken by a raccoon, much to my dismay. (He also had very weak muffs.) I also had BBS ameraucanas with the same deep slate color legs. We're now building something more secure to prevent those losses in the future, and I have some of his easter egger offspring hatching out soon which is why I wondered if they might be candidates for crossing in. But it sounds like a high quality BBS would be better.

I would say their legs look like this; (not my pictures or my birds)
https://cityakuten.org/wp-content/u...aucana-of-blue-wheaten-ameraucana-rooster.jpg
https://www.poultryshowcentral.com/...aten-ameraucanas-from-show-stock-21850295.jpg

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Ok, so the lighting is bad in this picture but here's the pearly legs on the hens.

 

[Alaskan]

Ok, so the lighting is bad in this picture but here's the pearly legs on the hens.

View attachment 1482447

I don't think those are that bad... especially on a Wheaton. (Hard to darken up the legs without messing up the Wheaton color on the feathers). One on the far left isn't bad at all.

Not sure why you wouldn't want to work with that.

 

[Alaskan]

I decided to look....Well, mine are darker, but notice her wheaten isn't as clear as I would like .... ... I would still work with what you have.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

No, they are not terrible, just pearly. I absolutely plan on working with what I have, but if I can also work with a second project line to get darker legs I plan on it, since my chickens are mostly all from the same line right now anyhow and I could use the diversity. I figure it will take me a few years to breed them back into "true" wheatens with good color, but then I have my own lines with really good leg color too.

I'm pretty bummed, cause my old rooster had nice legs but weak muffs... And these birds have great faces but weak leg color... I wanted sooo much to cross the two groups and hatch out what I could until I got good muffs AND good legs and move from there. This was my old roo, during the fall right before a molt and you can see his legs were as dark as the australrops.

We hatched a lot of his eggs and got a lot of easter eggers from him and the lighter buff colored birds that looked a lot like deeply flawed wheatens like this young cockerel who was still coming into his colors and had moderately grey legs;

(We ended up finding this one a new home with a flock, too.)
We also ended up with a cross that had wheaten colors, slate legs, peacomb, muffs, but was shaped more like a chunky orpington.
Hence why I was curious if that would help me keep in the same color vein if we got a similar result from the eggs we are hatching out now. But I guess it probably makes more sense to stay within the breed than within the color. It's probably easier to breed out color than shape.