Need professional help 🙂

[Hillbillesholm]

Me and my wife are thinking about raising some chickens from our existing group and have some questions .

1. We have some Araucanas and Brahmas. If we mix these two, will it be olive egg layers? Can they still lay blue eggs if the "blue egg gene" transfers to the chicken?

2. Is it only the Araucanas pullets that have the blue egg gene or does the rooster aswell? Can we mate a rooster Araucanas and a female brahma for example and still get olive eggs?

3. Am wondering if our silkies have started laying, have some polish that does. Can you tell the difference between these to eggs?

Thanks for your time and have a lovely Christmas .

 

[aart]

1. Are they real Araucana? Many hatcheries/farm stores call Easter Eggers Araucana or Ameraucana. The cross you propose, if the blue shell gene passes down, would be green but probably not dark enough to call Olive due to the light color of brahma shell.

2. Yes, but points in 1 still apply.

3. Catching them in the act is the best way to know, and/or:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/who-is-laying-and-who-is-not-butt-check.73309/

 

[Hillbillesholm]

1. Are they real Araucana? Many hatcheries/farm stores call Easter Eggers Araucana or Ameraucana. The cross you propose, if the blue shell gene passes down, would be green but probably not dark enough to call Olive due to the light color of brahma shell.

2. Yes, but points in 1 still apply.

3. Catching them in the act is the best way to know, and/or:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/who-is-laying-and-who-is-not-butt-check.73309/

Thanks alot. I believe they are pure breeds. Are rumpless and bearded. They have not started laying yet though so we will see.

True, the brahma eggs are quite light in color, but some a bit more brown and dotted aswell.

Thanks for the link, I'll check it out.

 

[Ridgerunner]

1. We have some Araucanas and Brahmas. If we mix these two, will it be olive egg layers?

I agree with Aart, if those are true Araucanas and true Brahmas the offspring should lay a light green egg, not an olive egg.

Can they still lay blue eggs if the "blue egg gene" transfers to the chicken?

Not exactly sure what you are asking. They do not "transfer" any genes, they keep what they have. But they give a copy of that gene to their offspring. Since the blue egg shell gene is dominant the pullets from that cross will lay a green egg, probably a light green egg.

2. Is it only the Araucanas pullets that have the blue egg gene or does the rooster aswell? Can we mate a rooster Araucanas and a female brahma for example and still get olive eggs?

Yes, both hens and roosters have that gene pair and pass them down to their offspring. So any pullets from that cross should lay a light green egg.

3. Am wondering if our silkies have started laying, have some polish that does. Can you tell the difference between these to eggs?

If your Silkies and Polish are all bantam then the eggs should be about the same size.

Polish eggs are supposed to be white. Silkies can lay different shades or colors of eggs but are usually some type of cream or tinted. The problem is that there is no chicken police tossing people in jail if their hens don't lay eggs the exact correct color and shade so not all lay exactly as they are supposed to.