Please help us with breed identification

[amdonahou]

Hello,

This little girl was sold to us as a Barred Rock, but she looks nothing like any Barred Rock pic I have seen. Below are pictures from 2 weeks and again at 4 weeks. My guess is Ameraucana.

Thank you for any help!

2 weeks

4 weeks

 

[shmccarthy]

She is probably an Easter egger. Unless you got her from a reputable breeder, 99% of the time they are Easter Eggers. For future buys, barred rock chicks are black and have a white dot on their heads.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Haa haa...yep...your reserach is correct, that is no Barred Rock...not even close. Maybe they meant Partridge Rock? But it's not a purebred Partridge Rock either (bottom half white) but may have some of that in it...or another partridge type bird.

It's not an Ameraucana either as it would have slate colored legs and a muff and beard as true Ameraucanas must have those.

It likely could be an EE (Easter Egger) which is an Ameraucana or Araucana "mutt"...any other breed on one side with Ameraucana or EE or Araucana on the other.

Chipmunk pattern as a chick is very typical of EE, however they usually have slate or green legs...but sometimes can have yellow.

Usually they have a beard or muff, but that isn't always true either as the other bird type may have come through rather than the Ameraucana or Araucana.

And they usually have a pea comb...which the top photo is pretty blurry in my monitor but looks like it could be a pea comb forming? But an EE can also have a single comb, so if it is single it wouldn't rule out EE either.

So it could be an EE....or simply a mutt mix of something else.

No matter what, it will be a pretty bird and hybrids are hardier and lay better and in my mind are often prettier (with all those genes creating unique patterns) than many purebreds.

Will it lay colored eggs? Well that depends upon a lot of genetics, but if it has a pea comb, and truly has EE blood, your chances are good if it is a hen...which right now it looks to be a pullet to me (small, pale yellow comb). Check the comb...supposedly if it has 3 distinct pea rows it could be a roo, but I've read that doesn't always make it so.

Lady of McCamley

 

[donrae]

Did the bird come from a hatchery or a backyard breeder?
I can't see the comb well at all, but I'm not seeing any classic EE sign. Chipmonk is a common pattern for a couple different breeds, plus tons of mixed breeds. Maybe post a pic again at 6-8 weeks.

I do think this bird is female.

 

[amdonahou]

Thanks! She came from the Urban Farm Store in Portland, OR. They seem to know their stuff, so I'm not sure what happened; could have been just a mistype on our receipt. She's adorable, and with any luck will give us blue or green eggs, but since we are in this for the pure joy of raising chickens, we don't care, just want to know!

 

[donrae]

Does she have a straight comb or a pea comb?

 

[amdonahou]

I had to go look up comb information - this is all new to us! Looks like pea comb; definitely not a straight comb like her Rhode Island Red, Buff Orpington, and Russian Orloff sisters are developing. I tried to take a pic.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

The photo is still blurry when I zoom in to get close detail, but she does not imho have a single comb...it looks to be pea comb to me...possibly rose comb as I can't tell if the comb is "hollow" in the middle or if that is a row of bumps in the middle. Horsehoe and hollow in the middle turned into a Wyandotte rose comb, pea combs will have a single row of bumps down the middle with either uneven-ness or a row of bumps on either side (making 3 rows of bumps...like a corn row).

Looks still pullet to me, and I'll say pea comb...so likely EE.

Lady of McCamley