Ameraucana thread for posting pictures and discussing our birds
- Thread starter hcammack
- Start date
- Jan 30, 2009
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I've shipped many times from NY to the West Coast. Either way, Priority or Express it takes 2 days...Express is just more expensive.
I've shipped many times from NY to the West Coast. Either way, Priority or Express it takes 2 days...Express is just more expensive.
Quote:
Could you guys check out these pics I posted on the last page? I seem to have bad luck posting on this thread with pics, I posted before but they got looked over. Curious what you think about my roo.
Could you guys check out these pics I posted on the last page? I seem to have bad luck posting on this thread with pics, I posted before but they got looked over. Curious what you think about my roo.
Yay my eggs came!!!
Not a single one broken!!! Now just to wait until I can put them in the bator!!!
OMG OMG OMG!!!
OMG OMG OMG!!!
Hi Y'all, Been awhile. I've just read with some interest the comments about the clean-faced Ameraucanas. I thought I'd add just one thing that seems to have been missed. Perhaps because it's obvious but, then again, I've learned that sometimes even the most obvious can be overlooked.
Whether it is the absence of beard and muffs, or some other fault/DQ, when breeding sometimes it's just not as easy as culling everything that has something wrong with it. At least that is unless your are just going to work on one single trait at a time to fix it and then move on to something else. And, even then, it may just be that a certain trait you want to work on has a higher priority that sparse or completely lacking muffs.
For example, I turned out the absolute best crop of W & BW pullets that I ever have last year. Good type, a little better mass to them and broader breast, nice leg color, and the most black and blue in their tails and and wings than I've ever had. Unfortunately, I also turned out some clean-faced birds. And I have two pullets that are laying a white egg. And I'm not happy with the eye color of some of them. And that's just the females! The males is a whole 'nuther story.
Thankfully all my birds are toe-punched at birth and I keep good records going all the way back to my beginnings with them. So I need to catch the culprits on the nest and see who they are. Then Ill have to go back and see who their parents are and that should tell me what I need to do. With any good fortune from the Lord at all, the clean-faced birds will also be the ones laying the white eggs. But I've also got some new pullet eggs that are just gorgeous. Bluer than I've ever had I think and some real nice size to them. And for those who've gotten eggs from me in the past you know I have some large eggs to begin with. Comparatively speaking anyways. I haven't weighed them yet but I'd say they are truly a "Large" egg.
Anywas, I'm rambling now. Back to my point. At least one pullet out there that is clean-faced has the most black in her tail and wings than any of the rest. So if she lays a really blue, large egg, should I cull her just because she has no muffs? I'm inclined to think not. I can add the muffs in a generation or two because they're dominant. So, you see what I'm saying?
Ive also got some funky combs showing up on some this year. It's easier to see in the males but I think some females may be carrying the same problem. My hope is that problem is linked to the white egg problem and is NOT linked at all to the really good looking pullets. It's taking me quite a bit of time, effort, and patience over the years but I think I am slowly but surely cleaning up my flock and making some real improvement. I've been sorely tempted to bring in some new blood from Peachick and a couple of others on here but have resisted the urge and I think my closed flock/line breeding/and inbreeding strategy is working.
My guess is that I've still got a few SC, white egg, and other recessive genes still popping up but over time I should be able to completely clean them out. I started with four different lines of roosters. Two W and two BW each. And I put them over four different lines of hens except I had a #15 cockerel and #15 pullet that I did not put together so that gave me 15 different breeding pens. Now I'm down to about half that. Eventually I want to have two W Lines and two BW lines and then just cross them over as necessary to keep some hybrid vigor as needed. That is if I don't start breeding separately for males and females.
This has gotten to be long enough so I'll just end with this. Thus far I've been able to clean out almost all of the green from my eggs. I've dealt with production problems where I had pullets/hens that didn't give me any eggs for 6-9 months. I've dealt with sick birds. I've dealt with egg size, leg color, black ticking in the plumage, you-name-it and I really don't think I would be where I'm at today if I had culled every single major flaw or DQ.
Oh gosh, now I just have to add: And I do believe in cull hard and cull often! I'm just saying it's not always as easy and just culling something because it ain't what it should be. I hope this helps.
God Bless,
Whether it is the absence of beard and muffs, or some other fault/DQ, when breeding sometimes it's just not as easy as culling everything that has something wrong with it. At least that is unless your are just going to work on one single trait at a time to fix it and then move on to something else. And, even then, it may just be that a certain trait you want to work on has a higher priority that sparse or completely lacking muffs.
For example, I turned out the absolute best crop of W & BW pullets that I ever have last year. Good type, a little better mass to them and broader breast, nice leg color, and the most black and blue in their tails and and wings than I've ever had. Unfortunately, I also turned out some clean-faced birds. And I have two pullets that are laying a white egg. And I'm not happy with the eye color of some of them. And that's just the females! The males is a whole 'nuther story.
Thankfully all my birds are toe-punched at birth and I keep good records going all the way back to my beginnings with them. So I need to catch the culprits on the nest and see who they are. Then Ill have to go back and see who their parents are and that should tell me what I need to do. With any good fortune from the Lord at all, the clean-faced birds will also be the ones laying the white eggs. But I've also got some new pullet eggs that are just gorgeous. Bluer than I've ever had I think and some real nice size to them. And for those who've gotten eggs from me in the past you know I have some large eggs to begin with. Comparatively speaking anyways. I haven't weighed them yet but I'd say they are truly a "Large" egg.
Anywas, I'm rambling now. Back to my point. At least one pullet out there that is clean-faced has the most black in her tail and wings than any of the rest. So if she lays a really blue, large egg, should I cull her just because she has no muffs? I'm inclined to think not. I can add the muffs in a generation or two because they're dominant. So, you see what I'm saying?
Ive also got some funky combs showing up on some this year. It's easier to see in the males but I think some females may be carrying the same problem. My hope is that problem is linked to the white egg problem and is NOT linked at all to the really good looking pullets. It's taking me quite a bit of time, effort, and patience over the years but I think I am slowly but surely cleaning up my flock and making some real improvement. I've been sorely tempted to bring in some new blood from Peachick and a couple of others on here but have resisted the urge and I think my closed flock/line breeding/and inbreeding strategy is working.
My guess is that I've still got a few SC, white egg, and other recessive genes still popping up but over time I should be able to completely clean them out. I started with four different lines of roosters. Two W and two BW each. And I put them over four different lines of hens except I had a #15 cockerel and #15 pullet that I did not put together so that gave me 15 different breeding pens. Now I'm down to about half that. Eventually I want to have two W Lines and two BW lines and then just cross them over as necessary to keep some hybrid vigor as needed. That is if I don't start breeding separately for males and females.
This has gotten to be long enough so I'll just end with this. Thus far I've been able to clean out almost all of the green from my eggs. I've dealt with production problems where I had pullets/hens that didn't give me any eggs for 6-9 months. I've dealt with sick birds. I've dealt with egg size, leg color, black ticking in the plumage, you-name-it and I really don't think I would be where I'm at today if I had culled every single major flaw or DQ.
Oh gosh, now I just have to add: And I do believe in cull hard and cull often! I'm just saying it's not always as easy and just culling something because it ain't what it should be. I hope this helps.
God Bless,
Tailfeathers - Surely! We already went through that short discussion earlier on culling, brought up by my mention of my green egg laying black pullet. . . I'm keeping her because of her body and bloodlines, and will just have to make due with working on egg color as time goes on.
My apologies.
Quote:
Thanks, this lets me know more on how to improve my birds. I have 5 hens, one is laying and I don't like the color of her eggs, I want to improve the color.
The eggs my birds came from were a nice little blue eggs. I have 7 BBS, 2 are roos rest our hens.
To improve the egg color do I need to have only one roo on the hens, take the bluest eggs, incubate, raise up until laying to check egg color? Do I keep both roos in with all the hens or split the hen and roos into two pens or keep all hens together and switch the roos every two weeks or so.
What is the best practice for improving a trait?
Thanks, this lets me know more on how to improve my birds. I have 5 hens, one is laying and I don't like the color of her eggs, I want to improve the color.
The eggs my birds came from were a nice little blue eggs. I have 7 BBS, 2 are roos rest our hens.
To improve the egg color do I need to have only one roo on the hens, take the bluest eggs, incubate, raise up until laying to check egg color? Do I keep both roos in with all the hens or split the hen and roos into two pens or keep all hens together and switch the roos every two weeks or so.
What is the best practice for improving a trait?
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No, they are dominant, this is just a very common and very annoying trait that has been irresponsibly bred through almost all BBS stock out there. . . What you're seeing is a bird with absolutely no muffs/beard gene, meaning the stock she's from likely has some birds that carry only one allele.
The "fun" part is breeding this fault out. Takes work and time.
I would like to add it has shown up in the Wheatens too. I got one from John Blehm, my friend got one from Jean. It happens. I decided to put her in the layer pen, and not breed her.
No, they are dominant, this is just a very common and very annoying trait that has been irresponsibly bred through almost all BBS stock out there. . . What you're seeing is a bird with absolutely no muffs/beard gene, meaning the stock she's from likely has some birds that carry only one allele.
The "fun" part is breeding this fault out. Takes work and time.
I would like to add it has shown up in the Wheatens too. I got one from John Blehm, my friend got one from Jean. It happens. I decided to put her in the layer pen, and not breed her.
Here they are!!! SOOO excited!!!
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