EE/Ameraucana frustration

[Frost Homestead]

Anyone ever find someone who just will not accept that their birds are not Ameraucanas? I have a friend that posted pics of his eggs online and one of our mutual friends said the green eggs were from "Americanas"...so I just kinda added that the green eggs are from easter eggers, not purebred Ameraucanas.

He goes on to add that he just got some "purebred" Ameraucanas. I don't know why he used parenthesis...but I asked him what color they are. He says red. RED. ok, so I'm pretty sure he has no idea what he's talking about, but I don't say that of course. I just told him I was asking about the color because purebred Ameraucanas only come in silver, white, buff, black, blue, red brown, and the wheatens. So he says they're brown red....(I thought they were red? brown red is NOT red looking)

So I replied "wow, what breeder did you get them from? I would love to get some brown reds"

you see where I'm going with this? he tells me he got them from a hatchery in Dripping Springs

I just guess I feel frustrated because 1. someone was dishonest or ignorant and mislead this guy 2. he is continuing to perpetuate the falsehood and 3. everyone else on the post now thinks his birds are Ameraucanas.

anyway, I gave up after he said hatchery.

just sometimes I want to pull my hair out because I do have purebred birds and easter eggers but now way would I go around acting like my birds are purebred if they're not

 

[Okla-doodle-doo]

And that leads to the very reason there is always a fuss about EE or Amer. You know the argument could be turned around! Before the Amer. were "standardized" they cam,e in an aray of colors. After being standardized the odd colors were no longer "allowed to be called Amer.! Thats silly there should still be a catagory for the odd colors.
Anyway to avoid any more fussing and arguments,I jsut decided to call mine EE and know in my heart that they are as much Amer. as the "allowed" colors.

 

[chicklover16]

When I went to the feed store the clerk promised me "Yes they are really americaunas!" then I got home and after a few months descovered that they where EE's

so much dishonesty.

 

[Frost Homestead]

True, when I first got my chicks from a feed store I was also told they were Ameraucanas. I get that there's a ton of confusion about it, and the hatcheries selling their easter eggers as Ameraucanas doesn't help matters.

Thing that gets me is that I did some research and found out on my own that mine were in fact Easter Eggers, and when I posted pics of them in the Ameraucana thread folks told me they weren't real purebred Ameraucanas and I believed them. I don't expect everyone to take such an interest and go doin' a bunch of research about the differences, but when someone tells you that your birds are not purebred and are easter eggers you should at least look into it, and in the very least stop calling them Ameraucanas until you know for sure.

the next day he posted pics of himself holding a pretty red & black EE with the pic titled "we think she's a red ameraucana" - I told him she's not an Ameraucana, it seems like he's either in denial and doesn't want to admit he got duped or he's just being intentionally dishonest. or maybe I'm a chicken snob (I don't think I am.....

)

 

[Chic-n-farmer]

Here's another point of view:

If I take all my pure bred Ameraucanas of all colors and let them mix together.... the resulting chicks may be purple with pink spots, but they will still be Ameraucanas!

They won't be standard colors, but they are still pure Ameraucanas. Yet you'll find people climbing on their high horse to "educate" everyone on what birds they have.

 

[Chic-n-farmer]

When I went to the feed store the clerk promised me "Yes they are really americaunas!" then I got home and after a few months descovered that they where EE's

so much dishonesty.

I don't believe it is intentional on their part. The birds are sold that way to them and they repeat what they learn.

If you are not a chicken fancier, it's difficult to know ALL the breeds of chickens, and the difference between a bird that carries the blue egg gene and a bird bred to the standard of perfection set for Ameraucanas. Sure, we know, but to some people all chickens look alike.

 

[lucky123]

Its the same thing when someone is selling eggs for rir's, when most of the time they are a egg production hybrid. Many people that have only had hatchery birds will claim your a snob for knowing the difference. Some people don't want to be educated on facts, which I find very odd on a chicken forum with so much information.

 

[RHRanch]

Well I think its the hatcheries that have confused folks with the selling of mixed breed chickens with ameraucana blood and calling them ameraucaunas. But yes, you could have pure ameraucaunas of mixed colors, but they are not up to the standard and only good for layer/pet quality. Chances are tho - your friends birds are just easter eggers. Ameraucaunas, even those that don't match the standard exactly, should always lay blue eggs and have beards/muffs and pea combs.

 

[redhen]

I agree, the hatcheries sell them as Ameraucanas... not EE's...
It confuses people...

 

[Chic-n-farmer]

Maybe they should start referring to a percentage #

Like with goats!

But I don't care how mixed up the colors get, if you start with pure Ameraucanas they don't become " Easter Eggers" by mixing the varieties and hatching a non-standard color. I have seen that argument made on here in the years past.

That is where chicken snobbery comes in. I've seen posters just hounded when they post a picture of a chicken and call it an Ameraucana. It gets really awful. I respect the OP for knowing when to let it go. Yes, it is a shame that the friend may market his birds as something they are not. You can only hope that his prospective buyers take the time to educate themselves. If they don't they may be perfectly happy with easter eggers.

Not everybody wants a purebred dog, either.