Araucana thread anyone?

[cashdl]

Please don't follow my train of thought. I was kinda being silly. I accidentally forgot to turn the incubator back on after I candled the eggs and didn't notice for like 6 hours. The temp in the incubator dropped to 72. I went ahead and moved the eggs that were due to hatch to my hatcher and nervously waited to see if I killed them with my neglect. Weirdly enough I am having the best hatch ever. Do I think it is because they got cool. I have no idea and don't want to try it again. I have been messing with feeding my birds various feeds to try to boost fertility and hatchability, so all of that could be a factor in why I am having a good hatch this time.

If I have a bad hatch next week without accidentally forgetting to turn the incubator back on then I may decide to actually try the cooling off period just to see how it goes.

Lanae

 

[gootziecat]

Can someone give me the size leg bands to get for Araucanas? I'd like to get my order right the first time. Thanks.

 

[cashdl]

I use several different sizes as they grow I change out leg bands. I am not sure what size I use for the adults. I will have to go look because I want to order some new ones also and want different colors for different pens.

Lanae

 

[cackleberrycoop]

Does anyone here use the wing bands? I'm not happy with the leg bands and keep thinking about trying to use the wing bands instead, but I haven't actually done any researching on it yet.

 

[Shaffer]

Does anyone here use the wing bands? I'm not happy with the leg bands and keep thinking about trying to use the wing bands instead, but I haven't actually done any researching on it yet.

After working in the poultry industry for over 40 years + wing bands are usually the hardest ones to remove or get lost off of the birds. I do not wing band but have thought of doing so since they are the most reliable of what I have seen so far other than maybe tatooing IMO.

 

[cackleberrycoop]

Thank you! I need to get serious about it; I have way too many chickens running around out there who I know are pure breed and would be great to have in a breeding program, but because they've lost their leg bands, I can't be absolutely sure and so there they are, running around with the free range egg flock. It sure has slowed down some of my breeding goals.

 

[Illia]

If you're talking adult leg bands, I ordered size 11 for my Am's and Araucanas. The chart says that's what fits. Personally I think a 12 can do too, as at least for me, the 11 was rather tight on males. The 12 was tight on my Shamo too even though I figured that's the size he needed. But, I've little experience really. All I know is, it seems to dig into the lower scales after a while. (the metal ones)


Well well. . . . My first OE's hatch out, still got some more due Easter (day before actually) and so far I'm getting better tufts on them than my purebred Araucanas have given me. Got a chick here with absolutely huge bilateral tufts, very nice looking. One sweeps downward, one sweeps upward it seems. They're horizontally placed but the tips point opposite directions. Sooo cute.

 

[cackleberrycoop]

Well well. . . . My first OE's hatch out, still got some more due Easter (day before actually) and so far I'm getting better tufts on them than my purebred Araucanas have given me. Got a chick here with absolutely huge bilateral tufts, very nice looking. One sweeps downward, one sweeps upward it seems. They're horizontally placed but the tips point opposite directions. Sooo cute.

If it comes out right, the upward facing on one side and downward facing tufts on the other side can be absolutely adorable. If a bird was fantastic in every other respect and had very artistically lopsided tufts like that, do you think that it would do well in a show, or is it always necessary for the tufts to sweep back and up?

 

[Illia]

I think as long as they're quite symmetrical and don't flop they would do well. The old illustration and standard asked for upward medium sized tufts, now it just asks for a curl, so even a backwards curl or flowery spiral or cloud like form seem to win quite well, as long as they're symmetrical and decently sized.

 

[cashdl]

This weekends hatch is over. WHEW! It was a great hatch. I have 24 araucana chicks with 11 being tufted. 4 of them are pure wheaten and several appear to be split wheaten. Only 3 araucana didn't hatch this week.

I put another batch in the hatcher that are due to hatch this wednesday. These are from shipped eggs. 22 of them have made it to lockdown. It will be interesting to see how many hatch.

Lanae