Araucana thread anyone?

[HaikuHeritageFarm]

I think there might be a lot MORE people breeding them if they weren't so darn difficult to get a decent show specimen. (I say this based more on what I have read from long time breeders vs. personal experience.)

Also, "lethal gene" is in and of itself a huge turn off to folks. Most don't bother to figure out exactly what that means—to them it just sounds like Araucanas are weaklings as opposed to the potentially fascinating dual-purpose breed they might otherwise become. I love the look of the rumpless birds, with or without tufts. I would be more inclined to figure a way to keep them if I could show non-tufted varieties. As it stands, it seems to take more dedication and space than a more casual fancier might be willing to invest at the outset, and if you can't snag them to start, it's more difficult to really sink your claws in, so to speak.

And, keep in mind I say these things from the outside, as someone who is fascinated by and in love with Araucanas, but doesn't think they have the space or resources to "do it right".

 

[smoothmule]

I think that it simply takes patience and a desire to learn how to work with the genetics to improve them as well as a love and interest in the breed.  I don't "expect" to see any number of show specimens any time soon but what I do expect is to see improvement in as many areas as I can manage at one time.   Things I am working, besides trying to get them up to standard for variety, leg color, type, egg color etc, are things like size, hardiness, egg size etc.  There seems to be a lot of etc that need work but as long as I'm getting there slowly, I'm good.  I started at the bottom.  I have hatched a few shipped eggs, bought started chicks and bought culls from breeders, bought several from a breeder going out of business, bought adults from breeders and swapped with breeders and after almost 4 yrs, I finally getting to some major kinks worked out and will still have years to correct issues as they show themselves.   I'm going to try hardest not to have to backtrack and fix mistakes I make but hey, if it happens I'll figure it out.  That's been half the fun anyway and seeing such a mess I started with evolve has been far more satisfying than taking someone else's show stock from a breed that has only a couple of varieties and the type is already set.  I guess all this says is that I like to do things the hard way

 

[jerryse]

LETHAL GENE:
I was always curious why APA accepted the double tufted rumpless without accepting the counter part the clean faced rumpless becuase of the lethal gene. I raised other birds like canaries and they accepted both the crested and the crest-bred(clean head) birds. Just like the ducks they have the crested and the regular without a crest. This I believe has hindered this variety very much since there are fewer birds available to show. IMO

At one time they were in the standard mid to late 1970's.At that time what we now call ameracana and a clean face version also were called araucana.The two breeds went their seperate ways.The breed clubs have the right to request changes to the standard.That is how we got 2 breeds with very different traits.

 

[Shaffer]

Jerry,
I remember those days. Almost anything was called an Araucana. David Caudhill disappeared and WInfred(Red) Cox had and unexpected tragedy. So two of the gladiators for what is now called the Araucana disappeared to help make the decisions. I just thought that adding the clean faced rumpless in the Araucana section would increase entries and help the club increase with members. I know no way a clean face should take top honors over a quality tufted rumpless bird because of all the difficulty it takes to make such a heterozygous type bird. Just after hatching over 100 blacks this year and only have one or two contenders it seems to be a shame not to be able to show a quality clean faced entry.

 

[syble]

Yes, but beards are not lethal.

oh i know, i was just pointing out that the president is there... i think that it could be done 2 ways. in breeds that are white, they are judged harder on other traits because body is solid... so if a bird is tufted, vs a non tufted bird, the non tufted should be handicapped to respect the extra challenge of a tufted bird. i still have no tufts... not that i haven't been trying... so i tend to favor the concept of having cleanfaced birds too. i don't think it would take away from tufted or the breed, i think more people would embrace them if they didnt have to worry about 75% of their offspring being unshowable.

 

[smoothmule]

Here is one of my latest Araucana chicks. It's blue, I think anyway. I seem to have so many different types of blue. Maybe Illia or someone can comment.

Some of mine hatch out like any other blue, and these type are generally the usual, laced blue. Some hatch out blue barred looking but don't stay barred. And then there are these chicks, they hatch out a silver color. They are not blue like the blue chicks, they are silvery, dove grey. This one is feathering out a little and there is no lacing or barring, it's just a pure, soft grey.

Anyone have any ideas? I have to say that I know the laced blue is what is accepted in ABA but I think I like this blue better, I just wish I understood the genetics behind it better.

 

[Illia]

Psshh, me and blue, I couldn't really help ya. Any blue chicks I've had hatch out a nice blue like that, then feather out either the same shade like yours or a darker shade, none of them laced or anything, so I wouldn't even know how to help you in achieving a nice lacing, but yes, far as I know ALL blue birds should be laced.

 

[cmsdvm]

The issue of showing clean-faced birds comes up every few years in the club. I agree, it might be helpful, but, I think, given the difficulty of getting changes through the ABA and APA, it is unlikely to ever come to pass. I only WISH 25% of birds were showable. For me, it's more like 1/75-80 chicks.

 

[cashdl]

My husband and I are on vacation right now, and I have been waiting to see which of my chickens is going to die. One of my chickens always dies when I go out of town, without fail. So my poor daughter calls today. The temperature was 10 outside this morning and 1 of my cuckoo chicks was frozen solid because the heating mat in their pen quite. It was the tufted rumpless one. The other chick is still alive. It is tailed and cleanfaced. Whoo Hoome, why couldn't have been the other one. So the rest of my chickens should be fine now till I get home.

I made sure to either deliver all the sold birds or have someone come pick them up, so I wouldn't have to worry about one of them being the sacrificial bird.


Lanae

 

[nivtup]

One of our friendliest hens checking out the feed bucket.

Sorry for the poor quality photo, she really was not sitting very still.