Is This An Araucana?

[dretd]

I agree that you can't directly compare hatcheries to puppy mills. Some of them actually produce really high quality birds. In fact, the hatchery that I bought my first EE from gave me a bird that is aaaaaaaaaaalmost standard for a Silver Ameraucana:

Amazing huh?

But, you can't just throw out all hatcheries with the bad ones. They have their place, especially when it comes to people who just want cheap, easy, low-maintenance chickens. Or high-production layers and hybrids. That's how I started my first flock, and it wasThere recently was a really big problem with a large popular hatchery (not naming names) last year with their Faverolles. Not only were they producing off-color and off-standard birds, but the birds had deformed skulls, and were mentally deficient even for a chicken..

Wow, she is really beautiful! How lucky!

So that explanes everything about my poor little Soleil! I have no idea which hatchery she came from but we have always assumed she has the equivalent of Chicken Asperger's :


She's not too far off-type except for the black in her beard.

 

[philbfarm]

I'm sorry Pele...the hatcheries and puppy mills line was more a question than an accusation. I was hearing a lot of talk about their stock not being up to standards, and the word mass production thrown out there...like everything else in the world, there is always good and bad. But after all I have read here, I would be inclined to use a breeder in the future. (Or continue rescuing the ones that need a good homes.)

 

[Pele]

Thanks, I really like her Her name is Iti, and just this year I got another EE named Biti. I'm kind of addicted to EEs because they're so unpredictable. I can't wait to see if Biti will give me a blue egg.

And Soliel is adorable looking! Faverolles have the sweetest expressions. Don't worry about the beard, it's common to have that sort of thing even in purebreds. Here's a pic of mine from a breeder in Texas, they have the same issue. It's mainly size that you lose from hatchery stock.

 

[Pele]

I'm sorry Pele...the hatcheries and puppy mills line was more a question than an accusation. I was hearing a lot of talk about their stock not being up to standards, and the word mass production thrown out there...like everything else in the world, there is always good and bad. But after all I have read here, I would be inclined to use a breeder in the future. (Or continue rescuing the ones that need a good homes.)

Oh! No need to apologize, I'm not offended at all. Just giving my thoughts on the subject. It's kind of a grey area

 

[dretd]

Today I recieved a beautiful bird from a friend today. I was told that she was an Araucana. She is quite young, I'm thinking about 12 - 13 weeks or so. But she has no visible tufts and has a tail. I was told she came from a breeder, who said that she was indeed an Araucana but was not up to breed standards.

Please do let us know when she starts laying and what color her eggs turn out to be!

 

[philbfarm]

Thanks, and sure thing...pretty curious what she's going to lay myself. She's an strange bird - makes the craziest sounds and a bit of an odd ball!

 

[CibolaChooks]

i thought this was another type of bird. but when i went to ameraucana.org and looked at the large breed wheaton female i totally went back outside and sure enough she might be getting her beard and muffs in now. she is 5 weeks old today. what does everyone think

 

[CibolaChooks]

And how far off is this one from ameraucana standard. she is now 3 months old

 

[cashdl]

And how far off is this one from ameraucana standard. she is now 3 months old

First off, the ameraucana is a white skinned bird and will never have yellow skin or green legs. Green legs come from a yellow skinned bird with blue over the yellow. Yellow and blue make green. Something you will not get from an ameraucana. That right there tells me that whether she is close to the breed standard in plumage color or not she is a mixed breed bird.

Lanae

 

[cashdl]

Here is a picture of a nice wheaten ameraucana. I do not know who this bird belongs to I found it on the web. The second pic is your bird. side by side you can see obvious differences.



Yours is too dark, has black in the primaries of the wings and black in the hackle.

Lanae