calling all Ameraucana, Araucana, and EE experts

[greentree]

That was good, Kev!!! I think part of the problem is that there is NO such thing as a purebred chicken, since breeders use other breeds to improve characteristics, and there is no "registry", because none of them are pure lines.....

Nancy

 

[Guitartists]

Same goes for dogs... there are no purebred dogs, all are derived from different breedings and the occasional addition of a breed to help "fix" problems.

Looking at Feathersite..... some of the confusion may stem also from the two different standards of Araucana for here and across the pond

 

[Kev]

Quote:
Thanks and I completely agree. There is a LOT of gene flow between breeds, far more than most realize(or want to admit). Even the old breed with romantic histories going back a century can have a considerable bit of gene flow between breeds.

It's not uncommon for experienced and excellent show breeders to do outcrosses to improve their stock. I suppose some may object to this idea but personally I think it's an extreme testament to their understanding of how to breed.

 

[Kev]

Quote:
I don't think the foreign standards contribute much to the confusion amongst Americans.. but that is a good point anyways. Australia and New Zealand have their standards matching British ones.

I find that so interesting. Why such a difference?

For what it's worth, confusion between their Araucanas, Cream Legbars and their version of EE is also common over there, not all that different from the situation over here..

 

[Kev]

I've said this before but want to say it again.

EE have no standard. So feel free to breed them however you like! Deliberately mix the colors.. or if there's a color or pattern that strikes your fancy but love the Ameraucana type, go for it! I think they would look really nice in the Columbian pattern (same "color" as Light Brahmas).

Frizzleds, silky.. don't limit yourselves.

 

[Guitartists]

LOL I know... I'm going to have fun with some EEs once mine get old enough to lay eggs

edited to say .... oh my, that kinda sounded bad

I meant I will have fun deciding WHICH ROO to breed with my EEs !!! Hahahahahaha

 

[scrapmom5]

Thanks for the help on this...Kev you really did the job with your explanation. I love my EE and since I currently have no roos...I will continue to buy whatever breed suits my fancy. As for dogs, I will stick with my yorkies. My first has been gone a year now and we are searching for a second. IMO there is no other dog out there.

At least now I understand the chicken thoughts on breeds. It may not always make sense but at least it is a start. I am sure that someone with time and money will start a National Chicken Club and we will all be buying papered chickens just as we buy the papered dogs. It is just too bad the pets can't read the papers.

 

[Cottage Rose]

Coming in kinda late on this topic but I wrote an article to explain the basic differences between EEL, Ameraucanas & Araucanas.
Hope this helps.
http://groups.msn.com/ABCShareingPlace/ameraucanamythsandfacts.msnw

 

[amazondoc]

Chicken breeds tend to be very confusing in general, at least for me!

As Kevin alluded to, IMHO the biggest confusion arises because, unlike dogs, chicken breed registries are not "closed". In dogs, as long as you breed a registered dog of one breed to a registered dog of another breed, then the offspring is automatically a purebred. For example, I can breed a terrible example of a doberman to another terrible example of a doberman, but as long as those dogs had purebred parents then their offspring would be considered purebred as well -- even if the puppy looks like a rottweiler. OTOH, if I breed a good example of a registered doberman to a registered rottweiler, their offspring will NOT be considered purebred no matter how much they may LOOK like dobermans. And even if I then breed one of those crossbred dogs to pure dobermans for five generations down the road, then they will STILL not be considered pure dobermans.

But in chickens, all bets are off. A bird is considered purebred as long as it meets the APA standard for that breed, especially if it produces offspring that also meet the standard. Cross breeding is done VERY frequently, in order to introduce new colors and such -- but few registries are kept, so the ancestry of the bird is much less important than its external appearance and the offspring it produces. It's a different world!

I hope this helps!

 

[SewingDiva]

Now that Araucanas and Ameraucanas have been standardized, "Easter Egger" usually refers to the mixed-heritage colored-egg-laying birds sold by hatcheries. Essentially, they are mixed breeds crossed with mixed breeds crossed with mixed breeds for many, many generations. Since they have so much genetic variability, their appearance varies from bird to bird. Most retain some Ameraucana-like traits, such as beards/muffs, pea combs, and colored eggs, but that's where the likeness ends. It is extremely, extremely rare to get a bird from a hatchery that could actually qualify as an Ameraucana.

This is a good explanation I think, and I also agree with everyone who has noted that the hatcheries are not consistent in how they disclose their breed information when it comes to Araucanas and Ameraucanas.

Our birds came from MPC and one of them is an EE. MPC sold her as an EE and never claimed that she was an Araucana or Ameraucana. I’m grateful they did that because when people ask me what kind of breed she is, I can be accurate and say she's a not a breed but a hybrid with the colored egg gene. She's our prettiest bird too, and she has cheek muffs.

Given the misinformation out there, I don’t blame the breeders and owners of the "authentic" birds for being annoyed!

~Phyllis​