***OKIES in the BYC III ***

[Ksane]

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If you want to keep that bright green or even blue egg you should be able to locate an aracauna rooster to put over your americauna / EE hens. All teh young will lay a blue or Green egg. You can likely find one in Shawnee on saturday.

If I didn't know better I'd think you were enabling again....lol! I just placed Chicken Larry and honestly, I'm sick to my stomach over it and wish I'd have just kept him. But I have too many boys that I raised from tiny babies that I felt I had to put 1st. I'm getting an LF Faverolles pair but that'll be the last boy I get. Is there a short answer to the difference between Aracauna & Americauna? I will have quite a bit more room next month after I get the turkey's pen done though.....you just HAD to put that thought into my head, didn't you??

 

[bird/wire]

Hey everyone! I've been following along as everyone battens down the hatches for the incoming weather... I'm going to Shawnee next week and I will be looking for poops shirts!

I am nervously checking on my girls as it gets getting colder and colder...this is my first winter with chickens and I just almost can't bear leaving them outside. In their heated coop.

(Serama enablers who are smelling the tender-hearted blood in the water know I am working on my husband on the concept of indoor chickens)

I went ahead and brought in just one because I was worried.

She is a banty frizzle and she is still getting her big girl feathers....large parts of her are naked. Not a little skin showing naked, more like skin with a few feathers showing. She is 1/2 the size of the other breeds I have that are the same age and the slowest to feather up..everyone else is completely covered weeks ago and she is just now getting feathers on her head... so I am worried that she is just not getting enough food to keep herself warm and grow herself and grow new feathers....does that sound right? I am thinking that I will keep her in at least till she gets all feathered up and give her playdates during the day with the flock so they don't forget her. I had been holding off on bringing her in as keeping her in the house all winter is probably not the greatest idea...anyone else got any ideas? How long do you think it will take her to feather up if she does not have to spend all her calories keeping warm? Ideas? Advice? Is there better food to give her to help her? I know I am probably going a little over the top but I am willing to do that as I just cannot face another dead chicken or telling my daughter about another dead chicken. I am also thinking she may have gotten windburned/chapped on her skin...is there anything I can I do for that?

Also, what are the signs of cold-weather trouble in a bird? What kinds of cold-weather trouble can I expect?


Thanks for taking the time to help out us okienewbies....

Kelly

 

[Kassaundra]

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When it comes to colored eggs, more is better!!!! lol lol

This is right after all my EE started laying.

Oh and I forgot

congrats on the green egg.

 

[Ksane]

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Looked it up myself. It ssems an Araucana is what I want. Hens. The ones with ear tufts and no tail.
Do you suppose there'll be any of those at Shawnee?

 

[Ksane]

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WOW!! That's what I want

 

[sjarvis00]

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Looked it up myself. It ssems an Araucana is what I want. Hens. The ones with ear tufts and no tail.
Do you suppose there'll be any of those at Shawnee?

They will be there, in small numbers though. there is a reputable breeder in AR. and she has Blue's. She sells birds and eggs sometimes. I know someone who will hatch them for you if needed and keep them till we know wich are males if need be.

 

[Kassaundra]

Quote:
If you want to keep that bright green or even blue egg you should be able to locate an aracauna rooster to put over your americauna / EE hens. All teh young will lay a blue or Green egg. You can likely find one in Shawnee on saturday.

If I didn't know better I'd think you were enabling again....lol! I just placed Chicken Larry and honestly, I'm sick to my stomach over it and wish I'd have just kept him. But I have too many boys that I raised from tiny babies that I felt I had to put 1st. I'm getting an LF Faverolles pair but that'll be the last boy I get. Is there a short answer to the difference between Aracauna & Americauna? I will have quite a bit more room next month after I get the turkey's pen done though.....you just HAD to put that thought into my head, didn't you??

Ameraucana's have the beards and muffs like the EE, but they have standard colors and patterns of feathering. Standard color for legs, pea comb, white feet (undersides) and always lay blue eggs.

Arucana's have tufts coming out of their cheeks (some are tuftless but still arucanas) this is an actual boney protuberance that has a feather or two attatched to it, and they are missing the last vertebrea or two (I don't remember how many) making them rumpless, they also lay blue eggs only. Arucana's have breeding issues making them more challenging to hatch. (fertiltiy issues w/ the rumpless thing and high chick mortatity if you breed a tufted to a tufted.)

 

[sjarvis00]

Quote:
WOW!! That's what I want

they are by nature extremely hardy, disease tolerant, free range very well. It is a good breed. They were used in various crosses to develop the Americauna and the EE, this is teh origin of the blue / green egg.

 

[sjarvis00]

Quote:
If I didn't know better I'd think you were enabling again....lol! I just placed Chicken Larry and honestly, I'm sick to my stomach over it and wish I'd have just kept him. But I have too many boys that I raised from tiny babies that I felt I had to put 1st. I'm getting an LF Faverolles pair but that'll be the last boy I get. Is there a short answer to the difference between Aracauna & Americauna? I will have quite a bit more room next month after I get the turkey's pen done though.....you just HAD to put that thought into my head, didn't you??

Ameraucana's have the beards and muffs like the EE, but they have standard colors and patterns of feathering. Standard color for legs, pea comb, white feet (undersides) and always lay blue eggs.

Arucana's have tufts coming out of their cheeks (some are tuftless but still arucanas) this is an actual boney protuberance that has a feather or two attatched to it, and they are missing the last vertebrea or two (I don't remember how many) making them rumpless, they also lay blue eggs only. Arucana's have breeding issues making them more challenging to hatch. (fertiltiy issues w/ the rumpless thing and high chick mortatity if you breed a tufted to a tufted.)

Aracauna's do carry a deadly allele which is associated to the tuft, by breeding Tufted to non tufted birds you slve this problem. They will not hatch if they carry a double dose of teh tufted genes.
Poor fertility has been noted by a few but there are plenty of good reputable breeders who have no issues and accomplish this by often running more than 1 male in a brood pen. they are like any other with no competition for a mate they get complacent and slack off.

 

[upcdayz]

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Nice looking eggs! Having blue or green egg laying hens is on my wishlist for later down the road. Aren't they upside down though? I have read that eggs should be stored with the big end up.