Araucana thread anyone?

[cackleberrycoop]

Quote:
I'm way behind on this thread, so forgive me if you have already answered this question, but are they a certain color variety?

I wrote that!

They're Cuckoo and Silver / Golden Duckwing

Oh crud Illia - I messed up. I knew you wrote it and I WAS trying to ask you what you were working on hatching. How I got it quoted by Lanae I don't know...... Sorry. I've had a few phone calls about Cuckoo Araucanas, which I don't have anything even remotely resembling; there seems to be a lot of interest in that color variety but you are the only person I know who is really working on it. Good luck.

 

[Stacykins]

Quote:
Thank you, that definitely clears things up. I guess I was going by looks thinking what he was, rather than an actual description!

It took a while, but I finally got some pictures of him. He has NOT been cooperative, thinks the camera is out for his soul or something!

These are his breast feathers

And his upper wings/saddle area? I think

 

[suzannaski]

Did I miss Smoothmule's auction?

 

[smoothmule]

Suzzanaski,
No, they will be posted tomorrow around noonish and the auctions will end Monday morning.
Cathy

 

[smoothmule]

I put just a few on the auction that I'm selling. I'll add more tomorrow. There's a guy driving down here from North Mo that already had dibs on some pullets but since I'm selling some of my hens, he may change his mind so I'll post more of the available Araucana's when he leaves. I expect I'll have some with tufts added then too. It was just a long day. I had people here all day looking at the horses and ponies. I have a pony stallion available and several people are wanting to breed to him in Sept. A week ago, I sold my mammoth jack donkey and our 2 youngest mule colts. He took the colts last week and dropped a mare off that he bought in Arkansas and talk about a wild girl. They had to dose her with Bute to get her loaded and she tried to tear up the trailer. Soooo, today, he came to pick up the jack and mare and I had to catch his mare for him. Then I tied her and he was going to give her the shot of bute but he couldn't even come near her. Soooo I gave her the injection too. Then I waited a bit and walked her till she was calm enough to load. She loaded alright then went to trying to tear the trailer down.....

Nora is going to have fun working this mare when Paul gets home. My jack was not sure he wanted in the trailer with the nutcase so he was a little difficult but was fine once loaded. whew and geesh. It was obvious to me this mare had been abused before he bought her. They said she was that way because another horse attacked her in the barn.......BS. That mare was abused, period..obvious.

I was able to do some roundpen with her in the 10 acre pasture and she came in for me in about 30 minutes. She has little trust of men. I hope she will be okay. I finished chores after dark. I had moved some of the younger Serama's out to a cage, they were all tucked in and cuddled up for the night. My Araucana chicks were snugged up in a corner in the coop. They haven't decided to hop up on the roost I fixed for them that's just a few inches off the ground. They play on it but won't sleep there yet. They will soon enough. It's funny to see the older chicks and the younger chicks at opposite ends of the coop to sleep. They are obviously different little flocks within the coop. I have more chicks that are not old enough to ship than ready. I guess I'll just add a few for sale every week till I have what I'm going to sell sent out.

Here are some of the pretties I'm selling. I listed them like 4 whites, 4 blacks, 4 blues/splashes in groups....all clean faced and rumpless. I'll adding some groups with a tufted in the group tomorrow. I have 2 tufted blues in the brooder right now so there are more that will come up to sell later too. The "other colored" chicks are spoken for unless he chooses hens instead. I listed Luvdove, she will be hard to send away.

Here is a pullet that I know doesn't fit into my plan but I am having a really hard time making myself sell her. She's splash, really good sized, gorgeous type (IMO) and dark willow/green legs...way cool. Rumpless and clean faced. She's going to be a good sized hen....if I keep typing I'll never be able to part with her but I'm planning to.

Here are 2 decent cockerels that I'm selling. A duckwing and an "I don't know what he is" but he's obviously Degas's boy. I have Columbo with the BBR/Duckwing pen but he's sold and will go this fall or sooner if I sell all his hens.

I have quite a few whites, some blacks, some blues and some splashes that will be sold by this fall. They are not perfect birds so they will sell reasonably.

Cathy

 

[suzannaski]

Hi Cathy (Smoothmule)
I sent you a PM but my sent folder was full, so not sure if you got it. Could you let me know?
I feel really bad for that poor mare; I hope her new home is better.
I'm off to look at your auctions!
Sue

 

[Illia]

Wow, this thread fell back. Anyway, GREAT NEWS!

My Silver/Golden Duckwing Araucana eggs are giving me 100% fertility!!

That's what ya get when your pair gets along so great. They live separately, but when I open the door to "Marango's" pen, the silver hen just waltzes right on in, squats, and the deed gets done. With such ease, I'm able to have this happen 1-2 times daily. And, thus, not a single Duckwing egg in my bator is a dud.

Can't yet tell on my Cuckoos. . . . I'll give them a couple days. The eggs are a little thick.

 

[cackleberrycoop]

Quote:
Incredible Illia - truly wonderful news. Are you keeping the rooster and hen separate as a fertility strategy, or for a different reason?

Do you trim their vent areas?

 

[Illia]

Nope, no trimming (in fact my girl used has, in my opinion, the perfect butt. Never gets dirty and isn't too fluffy, not deflated looking, and is just perfect)

The male is separate like all my boys. I free range my girls on a huge pasture, and my boys get either their own separate large green run or an even larger run, the "Bachelor Pad." He has his own place. I do it so the girls have time to themselves and freedom. The boys get pampered plenty too, and it allows me to know just when anyone gets bred and two whom.

 

[JayneMae]

My araucana was hatched in February of this year. Her hatch mate (BR) is laying, but she isn't. Do you think this girl just wont ever lay or is there something I should be doing? She's on layer feed, gets crushed up egg shells, plenty of grass, etc.