i am really interested in the araucana

[queenhoneeybee]

and i dont know what questions to ask a breeder before i purchase. i know what i want, what i expect it to look like, etc. but other than that i am clueless. is it better to hatch my own eggs and if so-should i try hatching chicks that aren't araucanas before i make the leap? i don't know what to do and so new at this so any advice would be greatly appreciated! thanks!

 

[cashdl]

I first tried hatching araucana before I had hatched other chicks and it is a very expensive lesson to learn. None lived to hatch all the way out. OOOOHHH I was flaming mad. So I read everything I could about hatching, ( I had two polish roos running with my laying flock because they were free and I had the space ) so I started collecting eggs and hatched my first batch of them, success!!! about 50%. Could have been better but I couldn't let nature take its course and was sure they were dying Yada Yada Yada, cracked some open to soon. Anyhooo, I was hooked. I then managed to buy two roos and 6 hens from different breeders who I thank everytime I write about the birds. ( Gary, Ann, thank you) Now I have a serious addiction. I am putting every egg from my araucana's in the incubator. It is still trial and error but I am loving it. Be aware that even hatching eggs will not give you show quality araucana's and if they do I am jealous and will probably cry. (then I will be happy for you but only a little.) My first batch of purebred araucana's, out of ten only 2 are rumpless and none tufted. Even with rumpless parents you can get tails.

Lanae

 

[queenhoneeybee]

thanks so much for the info =] do you have rumpless or tufted?

 

[klf73]

cash, funny you should say that about the tails. I just hatched out some ameraucana(roo) x araucana(clean faced rumpless) and hatched out 5 rumpless/bearded chicks, funny how that works

(btw this wasn't on purpose, she decided to go broody and I couldn't get her out and a skunk got in there and spooked her. Rolled out the eggs with a hockey stick cuz she wouldn't go back. I am hoping to finish my breeding pen and put her with my lonely tufted/rumpless araucana roo....he's in the bachelor pad with a lav ameraucana

 

[SarahIrl]

I just hatched 15 from 24 lavender araucana eggs. One infertile, three died in shell before day 18, one pipped internally and died, the other three probably day 18-19. One died after hatching too quickly. All the rest are bombproof chicks, all strong and very healthy. For a first attempt at incubating, very impressed! See below one fo them...

 

[queenhoneeybee]

awww! its so adorable! how cute! thanks for sharing! =]

 

[cashdl]

I have rumpless clean faced ( no tufts ) and rumpless tufted, and am picking up two rumpless tufted roos in the next week or so. Yeah Me!!




I have a pen with an araucana roo and EE hens and am hoping for rumpless, tufted, beards and muffs all on the same chick. Heres hoping.

Lanae

 

[SarahIrl]

I have european bred Lavender Araucanas, so they will have tails, but I have no idea about the tufts/muffs/beards. Don't think they breed that into them here, just try to keep the black skin and lavender colour. Thinking of crossing the hens with a black silkie roo (dark skinned araucana) and a buff orpington roo (light skinned, like the pic), see what I get! Out of the five I get to keep, two are black skinned and three are pale skinned. The mottled beaks are adorable!

 

[cashdl]

The european araucana still have the tufts correct, even though they have tail?