Chickenalities...x)

[silverlining]

All righty. SO. I got my first batch of chicks ever last week from the feed store. 3 Buff Brahmas. Sweetest darn things I've ever met. 2 of the 3 are not big on GETTING picked up, but once you get them, they are CUDDLEBUGS. So, needless to say, great 1st experience, and now a huge fan of Brahmas.

Today (2 weeks later), we got another 3 chicks. (Yes, we wanted to get them sooner so the chicks would be closer in age, and therefore, size, but it just refused to happen). 3 Ameracaunas. If possible, even cuter than my Brahmas. However, they are about a third of the size of my Brahmas!! Thank goodness, NOBODY picked on anyone at all! My mom actually found one of our new tiny Ameracaunas chasing one of the Brahmas! Anyway, back on topic...

However, my new 3 Ameracaunas are NOT cuddlebugs. I took two of them out, and one was ok and napped after a little while, but the other peeped furiously for a pretty good while. Wouldn't settle down under my chin for a cuddle *tragic, wounded mommy face*. Whats up with that? They are just a lot less people oriented than my Brahmas were at that age. The Ameracaunas also peck at EVERYTHING. Hard! My Brahmas never pecked hard at all, and with a gentle tap on the beak, they learned within days not to peck the hand that feeds them

(Sorry, couldn't resist).

Anyway, sorry about the rant. Im going to keep handling them and all, and hopefully they will learn to love me too. SO there was actually a point to this rant...

what are your experiences with chicks based on breed? It sounds like everyone has favorites, but I'm just curious as to what the chicken breed stereotypes are!

 

[Judy]

If you bought Ameraucanas from the feed store, they are actually EE's, almost without a doubt. Hatcheries sell them as Ameraucanas but.... there is lots of info on this subject here, it involves genetics and breed standards, and it gets complicated, but anyway. When you have a couple of hours, do a search an Auracana and Ameraucana.

Nothing wrong with EE's, don't get me wrong. Many here love them; they are very popular, and with a little luck you will get blue or blue/green eggs, though you might get olive green, tan, or pink, which is sort of a pinkish tan.

EE's are mutts, so they vary a great deal. I have six of them, supposedly female, but I suspect two are roo's. I can't get near any of them -- and I have others in the same age group but different breeds who jump up on my lap and settle down to be petted, or even approach me and want to be picked up.

 

[silverlining]

I got them from a breeder, but SHE got them from the feed store. So probably EEs? They have super fluffly cheeks and pretty slate legs though...

I'm too new to be able to tell much else about them other than that. Except that they're lil boogers!

I'm going to research it out of curiousity though.

I don't mind if they end up being EEs though. My mum just wanted some of our chicks to lay colored eggs eventually