Ameraucana thread for posting pictures and discussing our birds

[jerryse]

What do green feet indicate?

Yellow skin . Not allowed in Ameraucana . A layer of yellow skin turns slate legs green . There are 2 layers of shin on the legs .

 

[Sylvester017]

Hmm, are your guineas tame?guineas definitely have a big impact on the way chickens behave but my guineas have all been quicker to tame and more affectionate than my chickens to begin with. I lost my male guinea when he sacrificed himself for the girls, now I have the EE, a month old barred rock pullet, and a 2 mos old guinea hen. Macao, Lydia, Ducky. Macao the EE is the only skiddish one. I have 3 in the brooder, two 2 week old silver sebrights and a week old male guinea keet. Lydia the BR is a total lap chicken, and all my guineas have been crazy about me. Ducky plays tag with me, she runs up flapping her wings and tags me, darts off a few feet then stops and looks back waiting for me to chase her. When I tag her back she runs in a circle flapping her wings excitedly lol. She also flies onto me if I ever dare hold someone else. She will fly on my head if my shoulders are taken. Lydia does the same thing. Macao mostly panicked and runs for her life if I try to pick her up, lol. She's so cute but such a wimp. Once you're holding her she's OK.i honestly have felt like my guineas help to make my birds more outgoing. My sebright chicks were so timid but now that they see the keet running and jumping into my hand and begging to be held they have come around. I'm sure if the guineas weren't tame it would make the chickens more nervous seeing them freak out whenever a person came near but my guineas have been so easy to tame by just hand feeding and doing fun things for them like digging for earthworms in the yard together. After I started that they overnight began to hop up on my lap and follow me everywhere. Handling them alone isn't the best way to really tame them, it doesn't form the same positive association as treats and fun do. I will say that after my crazy, ADD puppy dog of a male guinea died my two hens and my one female guinea all became waaay more affectionate overnight. It's like he had been hogging me, whereas I always thought the girls just weren't interested. Maybe they didn't want to compete with him? Both my male guineas have been exceptionally desperate for treats and attention. Here are my girls from tonight. My husband was trying to work with the spastic EE named Macao and almost immediately Ducky the guinea got jealous and flew onto his shoulder. Then Lydia the barred rock did the same, which was a first, she flew from my shoulder to his. I took Lydia back on me and Ducky then flew onto my head from his shoulder. I'm told guineas aren't normally like this but I have not had to work that hard with any of them. It's the EE who is a challenge, she's been with us as long as the guineas but you'd think we just got her. She was almost 2 wks when we got her from rural king though, she was all alone. I think that was traumatic for her

we got her the guineas for company not knowing what guineas even were, lol.

Those are lovely pics - we love to socialize with our birds too. EEs and Ameraucanas are slow maturing birds. They are jumpy kooky spooky jittery skittish wary alert predator-savvy birds which also can lead them to injure themselves when they spook. They would rather avoid conflict than fight or push their way into the middle of flock activity. But sweeter gentler kinder birds are hard to find. They make good sentinels/guardians in the flock because of their alertness. I used to think Leghorns were a very alert bird but EEs and Amers win hands down! EEs and Amers are tolerant of their flockmates to a fault - choosing to avoid or run from flock politics yet kind to accept orphaned chicks or injured birds where other breeds are not so willing. As you watch the other birds mature and dominate watch how the EE will avoid conflicts with them. I sometimes feel sorry for EEs/Amers in a mixed flock where there are dominant heritage breeds.

 

[marchick]

pic. 1 blue one is in back! pic.2 lav with lighter shading in head little more yellow!

pic.3 Blue! then the lav! then the one in question! pic 4 the one in question! just slight darker then the lav in pic 2! Not dark like the blue!


Hi everyone! I am having a hard time telling lavender from blue! I am pretty sure two of my chicks hatched from bbs eggs and one from black split lavender.Two of the chicks look more lavender! Can the blue come out light and look more lavender? Then change later? They are three weeks old.

Could anyone help me figure out what I have! Please!

 

[Ravynscroft]

Could anyone help me figure out what I have! Please!

I can't see the pics well on my phone, but looks like you *might* have 1 Lav, the others look like lighter and darker blues, so far...

Were the BBS parents in a separate pen from the Lav/Black Splits? If they were all bred together, then there could be muddied color issues...

 

[marchick]

I can't see the pics well on my phone, but looks like you *might* have 1 Lav, the others look like lighter and darker blues, so far...

Were the BBS parents in a separate pen from the Lav/Black Splits? If they were all bred together, then there could be muddied color issues...

Separete pen I guess one pen had splash roo over blue hens.The other pen was black roo over lavender hens.The two darkest ones are black. I don't have a very good camera.Sorry! One splash hiding in the corner in pic 3!

 

[Ravynscroft]

Separete pen I guess one pen had splash roo over blue hens.The other pen was black roo over lavender hens.The two darkest ones are black. I don't have a very good camera.Sorry! One splash hiding in the corner in pic 3!

Not your camera, is my phone, lol... good to hear they were separate... hearing that, there might be 2 Lavs then... any blacks will be black or black split... might just need to grow them out a bit to be able to tell for sure on which are true Lav or light blue... blues *should have* lacing on the edges of their feathers (slightly darker line edging each feather), Lavs should have solid colored feathers...

 

[marchick]

Not your camera, is my phone, lol... good to hear they were separate... hearing that, there might be 2 Lavs then... any blacks will be black or black split... might just need to grow them out a bit to be able to tell for sure on which are true Lav or light blue... blues *should have* lacing on the edges of their feathers (slightly darker line edging each feather), Lavs should have solid colored feathers...

Oh Thank you! I didn't know about the lacing! At about what age do you think I could tell? I still can't tell what sex they are! The smallest one that is splash I think its a roo! I don't know on the others. I didn't want to mix the blue and lavender! I read that you shouldn't.I will probably use the blue and splash to make olive eggers and hope to have a black/lavender pen.At least that is what I am thinking now since I have more of them! That is subject to change at any moment! lol

 

[Ravynscroft]

Oh Thank you! I didn't know about the lacing! At about what age do you think I could tell? I still can't tell what sex they are! The smallest one that is splash I think its a roo! I don't know on the others. I didn't want to mix the blue and lavender! I read that you shouldn't.I will probably use the blue and splash to make olive eggers and hope to have a black/lavender pen.At least that is what I am thinking now since I have more of them! That is subject to change at any moment! lol

Once they molt their juvie feathers and start getting their adult feathers in... usually about 10-12 weeks, maybe a bit later, depends on how quickly they mature... Am's are notorious for being difficult to sex, would wait til about that age as well before sexing... unless one starts crowing early, lol...
You have a good plan, and yep all plans are subject to change, lol...

If you have trouble sorting out the blues later, just post pics again and ask for help...

 

[marchick]

Once they molt their juvie feathers and start getting their adult feathers in... usually about 10-12 weeks, maybe a bit later, depends on how quickly they mature... Am's are notorious for being difficult to sex, would wait til about that age as well before sexing... unless one starts crowing early, lol...
You have a good plan, and yep all plans are subject to change, lol...

If you have trouble sorting out the blues later, just post pics again and ask for help...

O.k Thank you! If I could get blue roo and a blue hen! bbs pen! It changed already! lol

 

[EastNashChick]

Lol well I didn't know what either of them were when I got her so I'm ok with it, I just hated seeing her all alone like a reject . She's always in her own little world lol, she's not an outcasts she's just a space cadet. She gets confused sometimes, I say, lol.
Her legs are a light green/grey actually with very defined reptile looking scales. Like a hint of green but more grey. I just noticed today how her legs seem to stand out more than my other chickens. She reminds me most of a T-Rex my guineas remind me of parasaurolophus and my barred rock is kinda like a velociraptor.does anyone else ever look at their chickens and think of their dinosaur forbears? I like to shake my head say to them "my my my, how the mighty have fallen" lol. When my guinea matures she's gonna look more like a demon from the Hellmouth on Buffy The Vampire Slayer. My husband is afraid of adult guineas lol..."wouldn't want to see one of those in a dark alley"...

I am daily reminded that they are dinosaurs. It may be why I'm so captivated by them.