[COLOR=333333]Morn peeps[/COLOR][COLOR=333333]
[/COLOR][COLOR=333333] So whats on everyone agenda for today?[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]Well, cut my sons hair, head for a short drive to buy an "auracana" or two this morning and then an hour drive to buy my first pair or Cream Legbars. I hope it is a true auracana, who knows anymore, but the legbars are said to be 100% pure blood from Greenfire farms so I am excited to get this breed. Only 4 months old so no eggs for a while but hopefully start breeding them in the spring. Ive only heard great things about them. [/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]How long do u usually quarenteen your chickens when you bring home new ones? I know the auracanas were are the local fair so they had to have their shots and such and the legbars come from a breeder with good quality control but I assume I should still quarenteen. [/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]Just wondering your thoughts.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]thanks[/COLOR]
More than likely, they will be Easter-eggers. Araucanas in particular are very, very rare and difficult to breed for a number of reasons. If the birds you pick up have tails and beards, they are Easter-eggers. Araucanas are usually rumpless (they have no tail) and have tufts or are clean-faced. But post a picture and there are plenty of people here that can help you confirm their identification.
As for quarantine,
you should always quarantine new birds, no matter where you get them, and also no matter what species they may be. I quarantine a bit differently than a lot of people say to, but I have found that it's the only way to be
certain that a bird is totally healthy.
First,
before picking up the birds, have your quarantine space ready. It needs to be at minimum 100 feet away from wherever your current flock roams, or closed off in a building that your flock doesn't go in. I have quarantined both in the garage and in the basement. The basement worked out better for me, though, because the girls can't go anywhere near the basement door. That's the sort of thing you should be looking for for a quarantine space.
Before you bring the new birds home, look them over. Look for any signs of respiratory illness, external parasites, and general symptoms of not being well.
Don't be afraid to walk away without the new birds if you think they might be sick. In many cases, diseases in poultry leave the birds as carriers and they can never be completely cured. You don't want to bring that into your flock!
For me, the first week or two of quarantine is an acclimation period, where I let them get used to their surroundings. The stress of the move could bring out symptoms in them. Always watch out for new symptoms and check them thoroughly at the end of each week of quarantine.
At the end of the first week or two, if the birds still seem healthy, this is when I usually introduce a bird from my established flock. It's got to be a bird that you would not be too torn up about losing, because if that bird shows any symptoms, especially respiratory, you know that your new birds are carrying something. I have not seen this recommended in many explanations of the quarantine, but
I personally would not bother quarantining without this step. I have read about people quarantining the full 4 weeks without this step, having seemingly healthy birds, and introducing them to their established flocks only to find that the new birds were asymptomatic carriers. This step also allows the new birds some exposure to anything your established flock might have. You need to have one of your established birds in quarantine for at least one week, but preferably two or three to be safe.
The quarantine should last a total of 3 weeks at the very, very minimum, but will preferably last 4 weeks or more. At the end of the quarantine period, thoroughly look over all the birds that have been in the quarantine. If they are still healthy, no symptoms at all, then you get to begin the super-fun task of introducing them into the flock! If they are not healthy, however, you have a difficult choice. You must either cull the new birds and try again with birds from a different source, or introduce them anyway and risk your flock becoming ill.
One last note here. If you're getting your Legbars and your 'Araucanas' from two different sources, they
should be in separate quarantines. If the birds from one source are ill, then you risk the other birds becoming ill as well without knowing which birds are carriers, and then the above choice has to be made in regards to all of them, rather than just some of them. Since you probably don't have the time to set up another quarantine now, though, just keep an eye on all of them and remember that
you are not obligated to take birds home if they appear ill.
ETA: I forgot to mention, take care of your current flock first in the morning, then take care of the quarantine birds, then wash up and change clothes before returning to your current flock!
I've found that chickens are surprisingly perceptive to what people are feeling, or at least mine are. Maybe your girls could tell you were upset and that's why they were being so friendly? Mine have done the same before when I've been upset about things, chicken related or not.
The sucky thing is I thought I had modified it enough that it was safer for them. That was a rough lesson to learn.
Gramma always said english is easier, german is prettier sounding words lol. She would call the turkeys ahh dumkoff ohh! and several words I didnt understand. probably the best as I was so little LOL.
German is phlegmy, not sure I'd call that prettier sounding! 
