Ameraucana thread for posting pictures and discussing our birds

[Cindiloohoo]

CityGirl~ That, I can probably do! I am just 5 miles North of Corinth, MS. Somewhere between here and Murfreesboro would be doable! Keep me posted and THANK YOU! I'd LOVE to have him

He can have a good home here, I promise if he dies it will be because he was spoiled to death

pips&peeps~Good to know! I have never had chickens that age. I have been keeping chickens personally for just under 3 years, so I wasn't sure, but I know after the 2nd year it does slack off considerably according to most everything I have READ/HEARD. Nothing trumps experience though

 

[Barry Natchitoches]

Quote:
Huh whitmore farm really! I know Will well and have owned his ameraucana but the blue hen and blue male don't look like the ones I have had from his stock. So the person got the parent birds from Will or those birds directly from him. If they aren't directly from him I would suspect they are mixed with something. I did get an olive egger MaransxAmeraucana cross from him once though. The black looks pure Ameraucana the rest are EE's or Ameraucana with serious leakage problems.

Henry

Henry,


These birds did come from the Whitmore farm (well, all of them but the white bird with the gold trimmings). They were bought in the spring of 2008 by a dairy farmer (of the highest caliber) in west Tennessee. I bought them from that dairy farmer who provided me with an extensive and detailed history on all the birds I bought from her. Then I turned around and gave Cindiloohoo some of the birds I got from that organic farmer, since Cindi is much more skilled at breeding quality birds than I would ever be. After reading this thread, I just called the lady farmer, and she assured me they came from Whitmore, and she has the paperwork she is willing to copy for me to prove it, if it is really that big of an issue.

 

[Barry Natchitoches]

Something I just thought about.


The birds were purchased by Evergreen Farms in west Tennessee (www.utterlyfresh.com), which is having to close up shop because the state is hassling them over the sale of raw milk.


But the lady farmer who bought them never had any intention of breeding them. She just wanted a high quality blue egg to sell to her upscale Memphis suburbanite customers -- the ones who want the highest quality and are willing to pay for it.


I am second guessing here, mind you, but it might be possible that Whitmore sent her birds that had a little bit of breeding impurity in them BECAUSE they knew she had no interest in breeding them??? (BTW, the rooster was either a packing peanut or else was sent to her by mistake, because she NEVER orders cockerels. She only sells eggs, and only wants hens. But she does not kill her unwanted birds, so when she gets a cockerel by mistake, she puts them up in the "bachelor pad" with all the other roos. I got him out of the "bachelor pad.")


I'm NOT saying that is for sure what happened when Whitmore sent her these birds.


I'm just wondering out loud here, if that might be the case.

 

[Cindiloohoo]

Quote:
Huh whitmore farm really! I know Will well and have owned his ameraucana but the blue hen and blue male don't look like the ones I have had from his stock. So the person got the parent birds from Will or those birds directly from him. If they aren't directly from him I would suspect they are mixed with something. I did get an olive egger MaransxAmeraucana cross from him once though. The black looks pure Ameraucana the rest are EE's or Ameraucana with serious leakage problems.

Henry

Henry,


These birds did come from the Whitmore farm (well, all of them but the white bird with the gold trimmings). They were bought in the spring of 2008 by an organic dairy farmer (of the highest caliber) in west Tennessee. I bought them from that organic dairy farmer who provided me with an extensive and detailed history on all the birds I bought from her. Then I turned around and gave Cindiloohoo some of the birds I got from that organic farmer, since Cindi is much more skilled at breeding quality birds than I would ever be. After reading this thread, I just called the lady farmer, and she assured me they came from Whitmore, and she has the paperwork she is willing to copy for me to prove it, if it is really that big of an issue.

NOT an issue! When breeding from 2008 to 2010 if you are not careful in the breeding process and breeding selectively, you will either enhance undesirable traits or desirable traits within the flock. Anybody who does not study up and know what they are doing can muck up the genetics of a perfectly GREAT flock in short time. I think this farmer you got these from did not selectively breed nor fully understand the genetic charchteristics of what she had and did not breed selectively. She likely did not cull heavily enough, or at all. From a breeder's standpoint, culling and selecting the next batch of most worthy breeders is of THE UTMOST importance in reproducing a better quality bird. Hatcheries just reproduce, and quality declines over short spans of time. These birds don't look like Whitmore stock at this point. Whitmore is a breeder, not a hatchery. These guys may be from the same bloodlines, but in a breeder flock may be considered cull birds. It happens. Tis the nature of going from hatchery stock to show quality stock. No offense intended from his post I'm sure

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

Quote:
Cool! How far are you from Columbia, TN? That's about an hour from me and I have family there. I make the occasional foray that direction and could meet up with you there if it works.

I'll PM you once I'm sure this guy is actually a boy. That comb sure is suspicious though!

 

[Cindiloohoo]

Quote:
Possible, but not probable. See above post. She likely did the genetics of these birds in herself by not being a breeder and paying attention. They have gorgeous eggs, but their physical traits need work. Some to the point they would not be good to breed to the better quality one which is the black hen. It would be easier to get a better roo than to work out his bad physical charachteristics. Takes ALOT less time!!!!

 

[Cindiloohoo]

Quote:
Cool! How far are you from Columbia, TN? That's about an hour from me and I have family there. I make the occasional foray that direction and could meet up with you there if it works.

I'll PM you once I'm sure this guy is actually a boy. That comb sure is suspicious though!

A couple hours away...maybe a bit less...been a long time since I drove that direction

That would be FINE though!

 

[Cindiloohoo]

Quote:
Wait Spring of 08 to summer of 2010...then these birds are supposed to be 2 years old? I thought some were 3? Maybe she had a few from elsewhere as well? If some are 3 then she'd have to have gotten some from elsewhere prior to the Whitmore stock, right?

 

[hcammack]

Quote:
Oh yes Will does do that actually. When I ran an egg business I always bought his culls. No its not a big deal I was just wondering as I had seen wills birds every batch has a few off colored ones and these could be them as well.

 

[Cindiloohoo]

Well there ya go......so that would explain the hens off coloring as well.