My FBCM just layed her first egg, it's GREEN

[nunlef]

Hi,
I wanted to share my little story because I have recieved so much help and good advice around here over the last few months.

Back in October, I bought my first 6 chickens. They were 4 weeks old and ON SALE! I saw an add on CL for French standard black copper marans for $5 and could resist. We weren't prepared to bring home chickens, but I was able to build a coop in a week, and we were in the chicken buisness. We had 4 FBCM and 2 marans/ameraucana crosses. I was thrilled.

They are now 24 weeks old, and "Princess" just layed her first egg. She has always been the prettiest, and has beautifully feathered leggs, not too much coppering, and a good build. I was hoping my kids would be able to show her in the local 4-h fair this summer. Over the last 2 weeks she has been sitting in the nesting box and doing all of the other great things chickens do before they start to lay. I was THRILLED to see an egg in the nesting box yesterday. I opened it up expecting to find the most beautiful chocolate brown egg EVER.

What I found was a cute little green egg.

I've never seen a green egg before, and it was fitting that Friday was Dr. Seuss's Birthday (I suppose). I've heard of green eggs, I figured we would get a few EE someday to experience the novelty of the green egg. I guess I don't have to wait after all.

My lesson to other new people.... Chickens don't go on sale. People charge as much as a chicken is worth. I'm not unhappy about my purchase, she really is a nice little chicken. I can't show her because, well - what if she lays an egg just before a judge walks by, marans don't lay green eggs. Just thought I would share my experience. We will buy another chicken somewhere when the kids want a real show bird, until then, we will keep our green-egg-laying Marans

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

Looks like you have more then 2 Marans/americana crosses to me. In my experience, if you're already knowingly buying mixed breed chickens from someone, you can probably expect that any "pure breeds" they have could be mixed too. Look at it this way, you said you would probably get EEs someday, now you already have one

 

[runsw/scissors]

Are you sure it wasn't the marans / Ameracaunas aka EE that laid the egg?

 

[nunlef]

The cross has a beard, and will likely lay this kind of egg, as well. I actually saw princess1 go in the nesting box, and 15 minutes later this egg was in there. I did have another one start laying today, and is is clearly a marans egg. The 2 princesses look like twins, but one has a green egg, one has a brown
I went to the lady's farm when I bought these chickens. She had a pen of marans (blue and black copper) and a seperate pen of ameraucanas and auracanas. She explained her intentional cross breeds - they were even brooding in seperate boxes. I think princess1 looked too much like a regular BCM and was accidently placed in the marans brooder box.
Either way, they are good natured pets that give us beakfast. I have a contact here for show chickens now, and will be getting our next few from her

 

[wolftracks]

I have crosses with no beards. Not all EEs or Olive Eggers have them. I try for them and can't get them. Sorry that your FBCM didn't turn out to be one. It's pretty though.

 

[kitmarlowescot2]

Couldn't your daughter still show her, not as a purebreed but maybe for productivity ?

 

[Turkey1]

Hi, I also live in Modesto and I know someone that would like a green laying chicken. Do you know where he can get one?

Thanks

 

[bairo]

I just wanted to chime in and say that I actually purposely cross certain breeds...among those are (true) Ameraucanas with other dark brown egg layers (mainly a welsummer)
I wanted to say first that any colored egg layer besides blue is an Easter Egger. The olive green color is from a blue egg layer crossed to a dark brown and people have begun calling them olive eggers.....but they are actually an easter egger that just lays an olive colored egg. Of course neither are recognized breeds. You were right in assuming that she is an Ameraucana / BCM cross that probably just got mixed up as was the above poster who stated that these crosses do not always have beards. Sometimes in cases like this it is more reliable to look at leg and skin color for indicators.