EE, Ameraucanas, Araucana, mutts--my rant.

[Dixiedoodle]

Why do the hatcheries continue to add to the confusion of these breeds? Why do they not just list theirs as EE, Rainbow Layers, or beautiful Mutts that lay colored eggs?? I met a lady who had beautiful birds, they were sweet and laid colored eggs BUT they were not in any shape, color, standard of any Ameraucana or Araucana! She became VERY upset and almost yelled at me when I said I love your Easter Eggers...letting me know right way that these were Ameraucanas from a very well known hatchery! She produced the catalog and sure enough they were listed as everything BUT Mutts..

I do not blame the owners, but these people have been 'had'.. IF everyone, who finds out they've been lied to would call and demand a refund--maybe the hatcheries would change their tune!!

Just think, how many members of BYC has purchased "Ameraucanas, Americanas or Araucanas" to find out they have beautiful, happy, loving, healthy, fun Easter Eggers that lay beautiful eggs!

Do these companies think that people will stop buying them IF they change names, come clean and tell the truth??

I just don't understand... This seems like such an easy thing to correct and the confusion would not be so wide spread.. It's sorta like having dogs that are mix breed and someone selling them as pure breeds JUST because it has some of that breed in it's background...

Confused Dixie

 

[CityChicker]

I already posted this on another thread last week, but I think the whole thing is a little ridiculous. I don't like to see "Easter Eggers" referred to as "mutts" as if they are somehow lesser than Araucanas or Ameraucanas. The absolute *fact* is that nearly all chickens are "mutts" if you go by the definition of having other breeds in their background. Even some of the expensive newer varieties would be considered "mutts".

The other main issue (as I see it) is that most hatcheries in the US have been around for decades and have sold these birds for longer than the terms "Ameraucana" and certainly "Easter Egger" have been around. I don't think we can necessarily force them to change what they call them simply because the national poultry organization (and breed clubs) decide to separate the birds into three breeds. It is not like breeding to the standard is law.

My opinion is that people take their issue with the separation of the three birds to an extreme. I don't think very many even somewhat serious breeders are mislabeling their birds (and even if they were it is not like the price difference is going make them millionaires, LOL). It is usually the hatcheries and backyard hobbyists that are using the wrong names. Is it really that big of a deal? How many really buy anything other than pet/production quality birds from these sources anyway?

If you know enough to know about the three different breeds, you know enough to not buy from these sources expecting anything other than mediocre quality and birds only loosely bred to the standard, if at all.

 

[roosty]

 

[EricShane]

I have two "supposed to be" full blooded aracauna's - however one of them Is Obviously 'not' and another Im pretty Sure is.. most people see her and think she is also, she constantly lays Beautiful Teal Eggs! and the other I think it half aracauna and half OEGB and she lays white eggs, I think!

 

[lilchick]

I think they just sort of "clumped" them together when they laid colored eggs. Why it is easier to just call them EE's...
A true Araucana is rumpless...

 

[SpringChickens]

I think, personally, that the reason that the large companies want to keep listing them as Ameraucanas is that "everyone" knows that only Ameraucanas/ Araucanas lay colored eggs. If one company switched to saying they sell Easter Eggers, a good proportion of people just wouldn't buy from that company any more. They'd go to another company that actually sell Ameraucanas.

That and the fact that Amaraucanas are a rare breed... it's always better to have something that's rare!! So, unless you convince every hatchery out there that they should change their names at once... it's not going to happen. Also, for them to change their name now, it would be akin to admitting that they were lying all along. In other words, not going to happen.

 

[EweSheep]

Yeah it has been going around for YEARS!

 

[conny63malies]

Quote:
Well there starts the problem, not all of them are. Some are partially or fully tailed. Araucanas are science. Nevermind i meant Ameraucanas.
eta
When the Araucana was first introduced to breeders worldwide, in the mid-20th century, it was quickly realized that the genetics that produced tufts also caused chick mortality.[3] As it turns out, two copies of the gene causes nearly 100% mortality shortly before hatching. One copy causes about 20% mortality. The tufted gene is dominant however. Because no living araucana possesses two copies of the tufted gene, breeding any two tufted birds leads to half of the resulting brood being tufted with one copy of the gene, a quarter being clean faced with no copy of the gene, and a quarter of the brood dead in the shell having received two copies of the gene.

In the decades to follow, most breeders took one of two tactics - either to preserve the old style of bird, or to breed out the tufts while increasing productivity.

In 1976, the first standards for the breed were accepted by the APA, conforming to the traditional style.[4] This was followed, in 1984, by a second standard for the "improved" variety.

The gene for blue eggs is dominant, so the term "Easter Egger" is used to describe birds of mixed breeding that produce such eggs. Unfortunately, these mixed breeds are often incorrectly labeled as Araucanas or Ameraucanas, and marketed to backyard poultry hobbyists who aren't aware of the difference.

In short, the differences are as follows:

USA & Canada Araucana – Tufts (lethal allele), rumpless, blue eggs, green legs and yellow skin (with exceptions).
US Ameraucana – Beards and muffs (NO lethal gene), with tail feathers, blue eggs, blue legs and white skin.
British, Irish, New Zealand, Asian, Japanese, Russian, Dutch, French, Spanish, Bellarus, Ukrainian, Scandinavian, Argentinian, Chilean, South African, Pacific Islands, Brazilian, Mexican, Peruvian, Arabic Nations, Indian, Pakistan, Nepalese and Australian Araucana – Beards, muffs and crest, with tail feathers, blue eggs, slate legs and grey/white skin.
Easter Egger – Variable traits.

 

[farmerlor]

I think what needs to happen is that we people who are quite happy and adore our mongrel EE chickens should band together and start demanding that the hatcheries provide us with EE chicks not those evil purebred Ameraucana chickens.
I like the EEs, it's fun to look at them and wonder what breeds have gone into them to make THIS combination:

or this one:

I've got a beautiful red and blonde EE with a black beard....which would be kinda cool if it was a roo....I feel a name coming on.

 

[debilorrah]

I am not sure why feed stores and hatcheries call EE's Ameraucana's. It seems stupid. Both lay colored eggs, but Ameraucana's look nothing like EE's. It is confusing for people, to say the least.