Araucana thread anyone?

[ForrestGump]

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[cashdl]

I'm proud to admit I've read almost this entire thread! And enjoyed every minute.

My first exposure to Araucana was when I was about 10 - a family friend with a farm got her first chickens, 'Araucana'. Now I understand they were Easter Eggers. Some tailless, some with muffs etc, but the smartest and nicest chickens I ever met. Decent layers of blue and blue green eggs, and tasty. I've never wanted any other kind of chicken, doubly so now that I've done all my research. Now I finally have the space for chickens though I am waiting til next spring so I have all this year to build my set up and cultivate some nice forage for them.

Two questions for you all. Everyone around here keeps telling me I should start out with basic feed store chicks to get my feet wet before spending money on purebred chickens. I don't want to but I also don't want to lose all my expensive Araucanas due to inexperience or poor planning. I'm trying to eliminate the possibility of poor planning. Everything will be well predator proofed - and dog proofed - and I have a LGD breed dog who I'll be training to do night watch. Worth the risk?

Also, I'm most interested in the Araucana as a hardy dual purpose breed with good natural instinct. I will be perpetuating my own flock but I won't be showing. I want rumpless birds but tufts aren't such a concern and my main priorities will be selecting for healthy, meaty birds who are reliable layers, and blue over green or light eggs. Plumage is last on my list. However - for the betterment of the breed should I go the extra mile to put together a starting flock of compatible colors so what birds I sell are more useful to people who might want to breed to APA standards? I didn't think this was possible at first but now that I've seen the community here I think I could manage it though it may take longer and be more expensive.

Thanks all!

I would recommend figuring out which color of araucana you like best and then getting birds in that color. Try not to get a mix of various colors. If you get them all in the same color family ( Golden Duckwing, Silver Duckwing, black, white, blue, splash etc) you will have an easier time selling them to those who are looking to add to their flock. So many people mix their colors and then just end up with a bunch of color messes which is only good for back yard layers.

There are several facebook Araucana pages

https://www.facebook.com/groups/105544352820794/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/araucanaSOPbreeders/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/531157033717595/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/796452563834248/

I recommend joining the Araucana Club of America which will provide you with lots of valuable information, plus the ability to contact other members around the US.

www.araucana.net

Lanae Cash
ACA President

 

[Tina Warne]

I thought I had Aracauna chicks. But now they are roughly 2 months old they all have short tails. Does that mean I actually have Ameracauna? My Silver has a shorter tail with a bit of a rounded rump and fluffy cheeks. And I shred a pic of my odd ball named Eagle who is just kinda weird looking and is the same bread as my Silver.

 

[junebuggena]

I thought I had Aracauna chicks. But now they are roughly 2 months old they all have short tails. Does that mean I actually have Ameracauna? My Silver has a shorter tail with a bit of a rounded rump and fluffy cheeks. And I shred a pic of my odd ball named Eagle who is just kinda weird looking and is the same bread as my Silver.

Those are muffs, which Araucana never have. You have typical hatchery Easter Eggers.

 

[Artemis Moon]

This is my Araucana chick Edna, but I'm having some doubts that she may be an EE (which I'm ok with if that's the case)
She's almost 4 weeks old

 

[junebuggena]

This is my Araucana chick Edna, but I'm having some doubts that she may be an EE (which I'm ok with if that's the case)
She's almost 4 weeks old

If you got her from a feed store, there is no chance it's a real Araucana.

 

[Artemis Moon]

I did get her from a feed store so i wont really know until she lays right?

 

[junebuggena]

I did get her from a feed store so i wont really know until she lays right?

You can be sure that she's not Araucana. They can only be obtained from breeders. You have an Easter Egger, and you won't know what color she will lay until she actually does start laying.

 

[luckysaysgo]

Ed donated a bunch of hatching eggs for a classroom project a few years back. I was new to chickens and didn't know what to expect. We had an unexpectedly good hatch rate and I ended up helping several families set up their own flocks. I kept few birds also and now have a small army of buttless double tufted beauties. They lay very well..both green and blue eggs. It's worth trying to get some of his birds if you can

I've never gotten eggs from Ed. Other breeders though. More people are on the Facebook group than here.

 

[ForrestGump]

I have this cute little Araucana chick that is 8 days old now. Unfortunately it can't eat on its own. For some reason he/she hasn't figured out how to get the food from the tip of its beak to the back of the mouth so it can be swallowed. Is this a common problem in Araucanas? All my other chicks are getting big and doing well. This one poops OK and goes nuts at the feeder trying to eat. He/she even picks up food and runs around with it but always drops it before it can get it down the hatch.

Any ideas on how to help the little bugger out?

And what is up with the beard? It is adorable, but are they supposed to have beards?