Ameraucana vs Easter Egger

[JeffinNH]

I am trying to decide on which type of chickens to get. My loving wife has already decided she wants blue eggs. So our options as I see it are Easter Eggers or Ameraucanas. I would like to know from everyone's experience, is there a difference in temperment between the two? Is there a difference in egg size? If anyone has had both, which do you prefer? Thank you in advance.

 

[melloladies]

I HEAR that they are both sweeties- but mine (I have one of each, plus various other mixed breeds) are the honkiest most obnoxious chickens I own. So...I think it depends. The Am lays a larger egg than the EE, but I think my EE is a runt or something. Supposedly she isn't a bantam, but she is a pipsqueak. That's my .02

Good luck deciding!

 

[faykokoWV]

In my opinion both have good temperments. They are sweet birds that do well in confinement, but can forage well. If the purpose is only to have pretty eggs for eating, either breed would be fine. Easter eggers might be better layers just because they are generally bred by hatcheries with a focus on laying.

The problem comes with the desire for a blue egg. you are much more likely to get a green egg than a blue. Easter eggers, or EE's can lay green, off white, pinkish or brown. I think the only ensure a blue egg is to make sure both parents carry two blue egg genes. Even then, it may be more of a greenish tint.

 

[4 Love of Baby Chickens]

I LOVE my Easter Eggers!!!!

I have 2 of them. A Blue one named Blueberry and a White one named Marshmallow.

Won Best of Show for ALL the hens in 2009 at the fair.

4 Love edit

Forgot to say that Blueberry lays Green eggs and Marshmallow lays Sky Blue eggs. I guess I got lucky. And they are both 5 years old and are getting ready to start laying again!

 

[melloladies]

Quote:
omigoodness, but she IS a cutie

 

[4 Love of Baby Chickens]

Thanks!!!

 

[melloladies]

Where in the middle of the middle of TN do you live? We want to move to Franklin area...stuck in FL, though...

 

[Illia]

Curious, how did she win best of show? She's beautiful, but what was she judged on?


From my experience, Easter Eggers can really vary. Some hatcheries have some real sweeties, some have some, ahem, disfigured birds with poor laying, some have some typical type hens with a good chance of typical brown eggs, too. I've run into all three. Ameraucanas on the other hand, almost all laid a nice blue egg as one should, almost all of them were sweethearts. The males especially, I've NEVER run into an aggressive one. They're love-bugs.



The thing about them is that if you don't care to show them, there's not too much of a difference, although Ameraucanas do come in some beautiful colors that most EE's don't, such as blue, splash, lavender, blue wheaten, and buff.

 

[4 Love of Baby Chickens]

I honestly don't know! All that I can tell you is that I was SO suprised!!!!! You should've heard me squeal.

 

[artsyrobin]

both of my ee's are sweethearts, they were sold by the feedstore as AM, but i have heard they are probably EE's

olive- pink eggs

Muffy-green eggs