Araucana thread anyone?

[Puddin Fluff]

This is one that Im wondering about. It is going on 7 weeks and no sign of tail feathers. I did feel a tailbone though. It just has the strangest feathering pattern going on. Wing feathers then shank and "knee feather
s. Finally she/heis getting some feathering on her chest and down her back. I wish I had somepics of my tailess gray hens. They are so cu te

Cute! I don't know about breed but here is what my female Araucana looked like at 7 weeks.

 

[Lobzi]

Thank you so much for sharing your info and pics with me. By the way, I have some tailed ones with the golden neck feathers too. I first thought maybe marans but experts told me NO.

 

[Puddin Fluff]

Thank you so much for sharing your info and pics with me. By the way, I have some tailed ones with the golden neck feathers too. I first thought maybe marans but experts told me NO.

I am not experienced enough with different breeds to help out much. I do know Araucanas come in a variety of colors. It seems like I remember hearing of another breed that is primarily rumpless as well but I could just be dreaming that.

Have you posted on Breeds, Genetics & showing? You can start a thread of your own and ask people to guess what they might be.

 

[Rumbull]

This is one that Im wondering about. It is going on 7 weeks and no sign of tail feathers. I did feel a tailbone though. It just has the strangest feathering pattern going on. Wing feathers then shank and "knee feather
s. Finally she/heis getting some feathering on her chest and down her back. I wish I had somepics of my tailess gray hens. They are so cu te

It could be the slow feathering gene??? That much chick down at 7 weeks...

 

[smoothmule]

Hatched 4 nice chicks from shipped eggs and hoping to hatch my first from my "other color" pen next. They are all pullets in that pen so I didn't expect fertility to be very good yet, it wasn't.... 1 fertile egg in 6 but they're just getting started. I have about 3 dozen set, some set on the 6th and some the 11th so I can hardly wait to candle and get excited

In the meantime, I'm so happy to have my 2 pens set, the black pen has all of my black hens and pullets, plus 2 very large chocolate Orpington/Ameraucana cross pullets that I've seen setting in the nest box but I won't know if they're laying till they hatch. The eggs have all been blue or greenish blue so it's possible with them. I haven't been too worried since their chicks will be white legged, not yellow like my Araucana's. All of the cockerels from those hens will carry chocolate so I can sort through them this fall and choose the best couple for the chocolate pen. All the pullets from those girls will just be sold as misc egg layers. Both of the cockerels in the black hen pen are young, They are breeding but fertility will come. One boy is black with no leakage, the other is silver birchen. Both are double tufted and rumpless. The birchen has smaller tufts but his brothers from the same rooster are the same and produce large double tufts and he will produce black with the black hens.

The other color pen is a rainbow, BBR, a black with gold leakage, blue, brown/red and others. All of these girls are pullets and just starting to lay. They will have a different rooster every month for a while and I can't wait to see what colors the chicks will be. Some color crosses will match and others way off but I think it will give me more clues about what I have in there. Right now, my rooster Joker is with the girls. He's mature and produces really nice chicks but he's clean faced and a couple stray tail feathers. Most of the pullets in there are double tufted and rumpless with only one pullet having a tail. There will be some culling but there will be more roosters to come and lots of nice chicks. The birchen will get to visit that is in with the black hens too. It's going to be Great! I can't wait to see some chicks hatch from both pens. I expect to add a birchen and a brown/red pen next year.

Here are some photo's I took today while we had nice weather......it's getting ready to go freezing again this weekend.

This cockerel will be breeding come spring. He's for sale, $40 if anyone is interested. He's got nice big tufts, they look like pin wheels! He's fully rumpless and has a gorgeous, correct pea comb. His faults are obvious, crazy feather coloring and yellow legs. The only Araucana variety with yellow legs are the whites. I think he would actually be very good in a white pen. Recessive white covers everything and his leg coloring is perfect. I do ship and would consider a trade for a clean faced hen of any color.





Here is my birchen cockerel, not for sale, that is in with the black hens/pullets, I've named him Hank


I think he is more handsome everyday



Here is a shot of the black hen pen, trying to get them all together for a picture, I turned over a pan that had loads of worms under it....well all I got for photo's were rear ends and blurs





This one is Kingsley, the black cockerel in the black pen along with the birchen, Hank, Kingsley is double tufted and rumpless.



One of my chocolate pullets, an F1

 

[greenhens]

I am preparing to restart my flock this spring, but am finding it difficult to locate TRUE Araucanas (not Americanas, not EE's). I've never hatched eggs and am afraid I would end up with a yard full of roosters! Would prefer to have newly hatched chicks shipped but can't accommodate 24, which is minimum for most hatcheries. Any suggestions?

 

[Stacykins]

Smoothmule, wow! Your birds are all so amazing! Loving that black pen the most!

I am preparing to restart my flock this spring, but am finding it difficult to locate TRUE Araucanas (not Americanas, not EE's). I've never hatched eggs and am afraid I would end up with a yard full of roosters! Would prefer to have newly hatched chicks shipped but can't accommodate 24, which is minimum for most hatcheries. Any suggestions?

Chicken scratch poultry sells TRUE Araucana chicks. Minimum order is 16-18 chicks, so they are warm enough. They are the only place I know of at the moment that sells day old Araucana chicks. They are unsexed, though. But you can buy from them started pullets, too.

 

[smoothmule]

I am preparing to restart my flock this spring, but am finding it difficult to locate TRUE Araucanas (not Americanas, not EE's). I've never hatched eggs and am afraid I would end up with a yard full of roosters! Would prefer to have newly hatched chicks shipped but can't accommodate 24, which is minimum for most hatcheries. Any suggestions?

I will have started chicks this spring, I sell them on showbirdauction.com There are "occasionally" other breeds there but it's primarily Araucana's.
They will be fully feathered but young enough you can still afford to ship more than one or two. They will generally not be sexed unless a color that I can sex early. They are one of the most difficult to accurately sex because both sexes have small combs and even the pullets comb will darken as she nears laying age. Shipping young adults or older can be pretty expensive (postal cost as well as shipping container) but you really only need a good trio to gets started then keep pullets and buy an even better cockerel from an unrelated flock. I can generally ship 4 or 5 young, started chicks (feathered out) in one shipping box.

 

[smoothmule]

Smoothmule, wow! Your birds are all so amazing! Loving that black pen the most!

Chicken scratch poultry sells TRUE Araucana chicks. Minimum order is 16-18 chicks, so they are warm enough. They are the only place I know of at the moment that sells day old Araucana chicks. They are unsexed, though. But you can buy from them started pullets, too.

Thank you !

Every breeding season is better......I can't wait to see this years chicks

 

[greenhens]

Smoothmule and stacykins, thanks for the info! I was starting to think I was asking the impossible!