Any breed ideas? Mystery buff colored chick

[4ForAdventure]

We bought little Soyuz as an Americauna, but we're not so sure she is one because she doesn't have the little beard like the others do. Thanks!

 

[bugglesmommy]

Did you get her at the feed store? If so then she wouldn't be an "Ameraucana" to begin with. They mislabel Easter Egger chicks, similar but of mixed bloodlines and unacceptable show form and/or color (for more info on that: http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2011/09/ameraucana-easter-egger-or-araucana.html ) and the feed store gets chicks mixed up badly all of the time. Many feed stores can hardly tell a chicken from an egg, let alone breeds.

 

[4ForAdventure]

We did get her from a feed store, but she was with other "Americaunas" who almost surely were real Americaunas. But thanks, maybe she is an Easter egger.

 

[bugglesmommy]

Sorry, I am not trying to be rude at all - but you are not going to find a TRUE Ameraucana at a feed store. You will find chicks labeled as "Americaunas" - the misspelling is always a give-away and not a simple mistake with this breed, or sometimes even spelled correctly but not at all a true bred bird. They may have beards, muffs and lay blue eggs but that makes them Easter Eggers. There is nothing wrong with an Easter Egger. I own a handful and if you do not plan on breeding them or selling and showing them as purebred Ameraucana then it doesn't matter all that much, but I find many people like to know what they actually have. If you did have intentions of raising Amerauacana then you are going to need to do research to understand the breed and differences and pop over to the Ameraucana thread to discuss getting true bred birds and breed standards. Either way please read the link provided.

 

[shmccarthy]

Sorry, I am not trying to be rude at all - but you are not going to find a TRUE Ameraucana at a feed store. You will find chicks labeled as [COLOR=333333]"Amer[/COLOR][COLOR=333333]i[/COLOR][COLOR=333333]caunas" - the misspelling is always a give-away and not a simple mistake with this breed, or sometimes even spelled correctly but not at all a true bred bird. They may have beards, muffs and lay blue eggs but that makes them Easter Eggers. There is nothing wrong with an Easter Egger. I own a handful and if you do not plan on breeding them or selling and showing them as purebred Ameraucana then it doesn't matter all that much, but I find many people like to know what they actually have. If you did have intentions of raising Amerauacana then you are going to need to do research to understand the breed and differences and pop over to the Ameraucana thread to discuss getting true bred birds and breed standards. Either way please read the link provided.[/COLOR]

X2 there isn't a feed store that sells true Ameraucaunas. The only place to get quality Ameraucaunas are from breeders. I actually just went to the feed store and got 4 Easter Eggers, that they were selling as "Americana" and I did tell them they aren't Ameraucaunas, they're Easter Eggers. It's the hatcheries that provide the incorrect information, that in turn cause the feed stores to falsely sell them.

 

[Mtn Laurel]

X3. I've still got the receipt on my fridge that shows the "Ameraucana" I purchased last spring. Not. She's an Easter Egger. Great gal, good layer, wouldn't trade her for anything but she's not an Ameraucana.

You really need to go to a breeder to get an Ameraucana. It's a shame the hatcheries are calling them by an incorrect name as it causes a lot of confusion.

Edit to add: Link to Ameraucana Breeders Club webpage that has pictures of both baby chicks and mature Americana's.
http://www.ameraucana.org/scrapbook.html

 

[bugglesmommy]

There's a good chance that the chicks is not even an easter egger. She doesn't really look like an easter egger normally does. What other chicks were in the bins when you got your chicks? That may help you figure it out. It will be easier to tell when the chick gets feathered.

 

[4ForAdventure]

Oh, ok. Sorry, I though they legally had to be pure bred if they were labeled Americaunas.
Anyone have any ideas what she might be? We were thinking buff Orpington? Thanks, sure is a shame our other "Americaunas" won't be able to enter the 4-H show :/

 

[bugglesmommy]

Oh, ok. Sorry, I though they legally had to be pure bred if they were labeled Americaunas.
Anyone have any ideas what she might be? We were thinking buff Orpington? Thanks, sure is a shame our other "Americaunas" won't be able to enter the 4-H show

That's the thing - the hatcheries misspell Ameraucanas with an "i" so if anyone ever tries to complain they can say "It's spelled different so different breed.... we didn't advertise falsely". That is why that misspelling is not a simple mistake in many cases. This has lead to a lot of misinformed buyers buying chicks they think are purebred and then breed and sell the resulting chicks as purbred and so on until it has gotten where it can be a pain to find true Ameraucana.

She could be a B.O. It will be hard to be sure when she has no feathers. So many breeds can have clean legged, yellow chicks.

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

Firstly, I agree with the others, you have Easter Eggers. Sorry you thought that there was some legal requirement to label chicks correctly, but there isn't. For instance, I know of several mail order hatcheries selling Ameraucana/Araucanas, but those are two different breeds. It's like selling Doberman/Retrievers as if those were equivalent dogs. If you look in poultry catalogs, you'll often see a "Not for 4-H" disclaimer on the so-called Ameraucanas. The only hatcheries that I know of that sell real Ameraucanas are My Pet Chicken, Meyer, and Fowl Stuff. Fowl Stuff is most likely to have the nicest birds. With most other breeds you can expect that what you get will mostly look like what it's supposed to be at the very least, but misinformation and misrepresentation are rampant in Ameraucanas. It's also a case of "you get what you pay for." You won't pay $3.50 for a real Ameraucana chick; it will be more like $5 and up depending on the quality of the birds.

Secondly, I don't think your yellow chick is an Easter Egger at all. Since you got them from the feed store, I'd bet real money that it came from another bin and was put back in the wrong place. I'd guess Buff Orpington or Buff Rock. You'll have a better idea once it's fully feathered. Post a photo again in eight weeks.