Araucana thread anyone?

[shanshan51]

Ok so since the Silver and Gold duckwing seem to be so difficult to breed I dont know if this is a task I can handle right now. I was saving all of mine to see what they turn into and only selling mostly the blues and cuckoos. Hmmmmm should I stick to white and black since that is what most people are asking for?

Lanae,

How often do you get a BBR out of your stock? Do you think I will ever see one out of the birds you sold me?

 

[mendocinosunris]

So, Illia & cashdl - your conversation on genetics is very interesting & got me started googling.
I already knew about the Chicken Calculator, but with very little understanding of the genetics behind it, it is just a cool toy.
I needed to find a good source to explain the genetics. Here's what I came up with: http://www.edelras.nl/chickengenetics/
My brain has now melted.

The genetics are fascinating - it's going to take me quite a while to understand it.
Now to go fix my brain...

 

[MA Mama]

What a great link! Just so you don't feel bad about your brain melting, I am a biology teacher and MY brain is melting seeing that grid! Thanks for the link!

Quote:

 

[cashdl]

Shannon,

No you will not get a correct BBR out of what you have. I would find a color you like and go with it don't worry about correct or not. The araucana is a difficult breed to work with no matter the color. Even whites and blacks have their challenges, ask Cathy. She is working on them. Even if you have perfect whites and blacks only about 1 in 100 may be showable and only 1 in 500 might truly be something awesome. Steve Waters who is a long time breeder of some of the nicest whites ever, hatches alot of chicks to get to one showable bird.

So find a color, work with it and perfect it to what you like. If you like the wild type BBR, work with that and maybe someday it will be accepted into the SOP. If you like Birchen, then work with it or cuckoo.

We each have a color that touches our hearts. For me it is the Wheaten based BBRs and I know I am not unique. For others its the cuckoo. There is a market for each color if that is what you are worried about.

Pat,

Genetics are mind bending but fun to learn. Each new idea grasped is like a ray of sunshine. I sit an smile and think DUH! that wasn't so hard. Then move on to the next one. I still have alot to learn but have found quite a few sites where you can ask questions and talk to otheres. There are even forums here on BYC about genetics.

Lanae

 

[2hot2chicken]

Interested possibly.... Please pm me some more info. Thanks

A long time breeder of araucana is wanting to get rid of his flock of bantams about 45 adults and 75) 3 to 4 week old chicks. They are blacks, whites, BBR, and golden duckwings. He has more hatching this weekend. He is in NC and price depends on if someone takes them all and wether they need to be shipped or not.

Let me know if anyone is interested.

Lanae

 

[thyme4jb]

I'm trying to find out when the tufts begin to show, if they have that gene. When is the earliest age you see that? Anyone know?

 

[gootziecat]

You should be able to tell as chicks if the tufts are decent. I had one I could see whisps of down within the first day or so. Another one took over a week. He has only one feather coming out each side rather than multiples.

 

[cashdl]

Tufts are visible at hatch. I have had chicks with big poof balls of tufts at hatch that later grew out to be tiny little things and chicks that have small wispy tufts at hatch and later as their feathers grow in the tufts just get bigger and bigger. But all in all a tuft should be visible at hatch.

Lanae

 

[thyme4jb]

Well then, I guess I need a tufted roo.

 

[Illia]

Yep, tufts are visible at hatch, although some can be really really small, but still, they're visible anywhere from day 1 to week 1. After that if there's absolutely no signs, yeah, you'll likely need a tufted roo.