hatchery Araucanas/Americanas ...

[hunterjumper999]

I currently have one Araucana who lays blue eggs. I'd love to get a few more to make a seperate pen with since I'm currently selling eggs to a few local famlies and they like the colored eggs. I'm wondering if i buy a dozen or so of them will they be from different colored eggs? I would hate to order 12 and get 12 blue egg layers..if i make any sense. I'm looking for variety.

 

[alicefelldown]

Your BYC page says you got your birds at a feed store, so in all likelihood your 'Araucana' is not an actual true to breed Araucana. Does it look anything like the examples on this page? http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/CGA/Arau/BRKArauTrue.html

I'm guessing you have an Easter Egger that lays blue eggs. And if you are looking for a variety of green to blue to even pink eggs, then EE's are your very best bet!

Just look at fellow BYC member CottageGarden's basket of EE eggs:

Hatcheries do not sell Araucanas - instead they carry what are called Easter Eggers that are labeled as Araucana, Ameraucanas, or even 'Americanas' breeds.

http://www.apa-abayouthprogramsite.org/Edu_Material/Easter Eggers vs.pdf :

The EASTER EGGER OR AMERICANA as people like to call them are actually a mish-mash of mixed breeds, with definitely some of the lethal gene of the Araucana or Ameraucana mixed in. This is what causes them to lay eggs of several different colors. The eggs can be anywhere from light tan, dark tan, blue, pinkish or even a pale yellow.

These chickens are actually very pretty, with a mix of color in their feathers and they are often found in the backyard flock that farmers use for egg layers. Of course with all of the beautiful colors they became known as the Easter Eggers because they look like eggs we color for Easter.

Being these Easter Eggers are a cross breed type of chicken their feathers can be as colorful as a painting with every color imaginable on one bird, whereby the two standard breeds have very definite colors indicative of their particular breeds. The AMERAUCANA and the ARAUCANA are both fancy purebred breeds that are listed in the American Standard of Perfection published by the American Poultry Association and the Bantam Standard that is published by the American Bantam Association.

The EASTER EGGER/AMERICANA is a cross breed that hatcheries sell to fill the need of the hobby farmer that wants a colorful backyard flock and beautiful eggs. If you don’t wish to show your birds, the Easter Egger is the perfect bird for you.

If you want actual Ameraucanas (or their harder to hatch rumpless "cousins" the Araucana) please take some time to go over the BYC Sellers Guide - Breeder List to find fellow members selling their true breeder stock.

Best of luck!​

 

[GardeNerd]

Everyone I know around here that keep chickens (outside of BYC members and shows) call Easter Eggers "Araucanas and Ameraucanas," including all the feed stores. They don't know what I am talking about when I call them Easter Eggers. I don't think the O.P. wants a debate on EE vs. Amer., just simple help with the color question. She can go to all the other heated threads for debate.

The Easter Eggers (typically sold as Araucanas and Ameraucanas) that come from a hatchery might have a bit more variability in egg color than breeder or show quality Ameraucanas. Hatchery birds will also be bred for good egg production, which is what you are probably looking for. You will get a little variety in shades or color intensity, but probably not a true rainbow. Most of the hatchery birds will lay blue, blue-green, or green, after that you might get one or two that lay a slightly different shade of pinkish brown or brown, or even white.

Out of the Easter Eggers around here, mine laid a yellowish brown egg, and my neighbor has 2 that lay blue and one that lays light sage colored green.

I love Easter Eggers! They are great chickens!

 

[GardeNerd]

Here are some of my favorite links at BYC all about Easter Eggers and how wonderful they are!

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=273489&p=1

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=3448665#p3448665

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=2630999#p2630999

 

[cluckcluck42]

Really, I don't think there is anyway to make sure you get different coloured eggs, but I think likely you will get a mixture of colours. I know people cross their EEs with Marans to get olive eggs, so maybe you could look into that if you end up not getting what you want.

Cheers, I love my EE eggs, they are definitely a favourite with people.

 

[OverEggstended]

Purely Poultry sells blue and green layers seperately!

Not sure how to get pink.

Hope this helps a wee bit at least!

 

[lildinkem]

From my experience with hatchery's, it is a crap shoot. I have my best, lightest blue eggs on my property being laid by EE's. I have a very young flock of purebred blue Ameraucana's from top quality breeders, and the one which is laying, lays a greener egg. Many will cull that pullet, or just not hatch anything from her, but I know the egg color is mostly influenced from the roo's genes. So, in short, I find the hatchery's in some cases providing excellent egg layers, which lay gorgeous Blue eggs. If you just want to sell pretty colored eggs, I would go with EE's just as quick as I would a purebred Ameraucana. IF all you want is to sell pretty eggs.

 

[hunterjumper999]

thanks alot! i know that egg color is genetic so i was basically just wondering if folks had ordered hatchery "colored egg" chickens ( be they what they are- as long as the egg has color i could care less at this point!) .. I know when buying hatching eggs from private breeders you end up with mostly one color, because they may have 5 chickens laying blue eggs... so i wondered if hatcheries had diverse flocks i guess

thanks for the imput tho- i'm going to go with the EE's from the feed store again i guess.. i gave one away to find out shes laying pink

 

[lildinkem]

Outta my 5 EE's, I do have 2 lite blue layers, one pink layer, and two green to blue layers. So you will definitely get a great variety with EE's. And their eggs are huge.

 

[mudlakee]

My 2 cents. All Americanas's and Araucanas are crosses. Crosses with brown egg layers will give green eggs crosses with white egg layers will give blue eggs. I have had rumpless and tuffed bantams. Very hardy chicks. (for cold) I now have large Amercana chicks not very cold weather hardy. I got these chicks from McMurry "Araucana" yea Right no tuffs and tails. There are a few breeders that have rumpless and tuffed chicks keep looking. They are are all great chicks have fun, I give eggs to everyone, young folks love green eggs and ham. Good luck Tony