Araucana thread anyone?

[ronott1]

I know so many members on here are "anti-treat". They consider everything that is not a true chicken feed a "treat". My flocks get a handful of scratch/mealworms/sunflower seeds in both the morning and evening. To me that is nothing different then they would get if they free ranged naturally. They would be scratching up worms, they would be eating seeds from various weeds and flowers, and if there was a cornfield near by you know they would be in that. I think there is more to the disease then just being diet based. Regardless, Betty's disease must have been hereditary because she wasn't even a year old yet. I know her breeder did not give "treats" and I never did because her and her flockmate would turn their nose up at the offer.

Treats are fine and it sounds like you are giving them treats correctly.

There is actually a treat guideline. Look at the table scraps guideline. It says to give them what they can eat in 10-15 minutes.

The problem is that some give too much and it cuts their nutrition. The hens then become un healthy.

 

[Trish1974]

I got my breeding pairs mated up today! I only have 2 pairs whereas I had planned on four. Ugly Betty died; I had planned to put her with Cholo to hatch some funky blue duckwings. I feel Bonita is still too small to take on a breeding task, so her and the bantam Lil' Girl are in a bachelorette pen. I moved Buck in with Bluebell. It went amazingly smooth! As much as he wing-danced her through the fence I thought for sure he'd be rough with her at first. But he was actually scared of her for the first half hour. At one point he found a seed on the ground, tid-bitted to her, and as she ran up to get the treat it scared him and he ran off !
Bluebell:

Bluebell and Buck(if her rear end looks funny its because she got a vent & butt fluff trim last night):

An hour after they were introduced they were comfortable with each other. That went alot smoother than I thought it would.

Mama and Manolito are back together. They stuck like glue to each other through the dividing fence for the two weeks they were apart. I suppose she'll pick out his tufts now that they are growing back. I'm dying to see them "sprout", they look like they are going to be huge and mottled:

 

[Ms Clucky]

Got them from Murray McMurray, so who knows.

 

[chickengr]

I know so many members on here are "anti-treat". They consider everything that is not a true chicken feed a "treat". My flocks get a handful of scratch/mealworms/sunflower seeds in both the morning and evening. To me that is nothing different then they would get if they free ranged naturally. They would be scratching up worms, they would be eating seeds from various weeds and flowers, and if there was a cornfield near by you know they would be in that. I think there is more to the disease then just being diet based. Regardless, Betty's disease must have been hereditary because she wasn't even a year old yet. I know her breeder did not give "treats" and I never did because her and her flockmate would turn their nose up at the offer.

the healthiest chickens in greece are in villages, fed kitchen scrap and free range (there is little to no grass). once I asked an old lady what she fed the chicks. the answer was amazing: the broody is feeding them what she can find! that lady was shocked when I told her about antibiotics for chickens.

 

[Frazzemrat1]

Got them from Murray McMurray, so who knows.

McMurray doesn't sell araucana. They sell easter eggers and call them araucana. These guys go for high prices, I got my rooster cheap for $40.
Notice the differences in your chickens compaired to the birds pictured above in @Trish1974 post. Or on my old rooster.

 

[Trish1974]

I don't understand how these hatcheries can get away with calling EEs Araucanas? That is blatant false advertising! There is a local chicken farm about an hour from me, who is almost like a little mini-hatchery...he sells on Craigslist and Facebook. He is constantly advertising his EEs as Araucana. I finally called him out on Facebook, telling him what he had are EEs and NOT a true Araucana. Then I explained the differences and added a link to the Araucana Club and told him to "educate himself". He simply replied "Okay", and from there on out advertised them as Easter Eggers. (He also advertises Barred Rocks as BARD Rocks...I'll eventually call him out on that too!)

 

[Brahma Chicken5000]

Mislabeled Easter Eggers as Araucanas or Ameraucanas is one of my biggest pet peeves.

 

[Frazzemrat1]

Totally agree.... and I tried to help somebody on FB recently, and he basically told me to shove it... 'You worry about you're own birds, I know what I have'. He was insisting that his ameraucana laid pink eggs. That it was supposed to. I hate when A. the hatcheries mislead people this way and B. when people refuse to change their minds. I understand that you can't force somebody, and when I realize that the person is one of those types I back off and ignore them... but its still frustrating.

 

[Trish1974]

Totally agree.... and I tried to help somebody on FB recently, and he basically told me to shove it... 'You worry about you're own birds, I know what I have'. He was insisting that his ameraucana laid pink eggs. That it was supposed to. I hate when A. the hatcheries mislead people this way and B. when people refuse to change their minds. I understand that you can't force somebody, and when I realize that the person is one of those types I back off and ignore them... but its still frustrating.

There is an Araucana person on FB that says he carries around the SOP book with him and whips out when people want to argue!

 

[Frazzemrat1]

There is an Araucana person on FB that says he carries around the SOP book with him and whips out when people want to argue!

LMAO!!! Too funny!