Please let me see your stock from Ideal Hatchery

[NottinghamChicks]

Hi BYC folks! I am going to be ordering Langshans, Ameraucana, and Deleware in March and would love to get pics from anyone that has their stock. Most interested in these but please show off all your babies and let me see what Ideal has to offer!!

 

[dsqard]

If you are looking for real Ameraucanas you will have to go to a breeder. All of the hatcheries advertise Ameracana, Americana or Ameraucana but they are really Easter Eggers (mixed breed chickens that will probably lay a blue or green egg). Now if all you want is the colored eggs, EE's can be really pretty birds! It all depends on what you are looking for.

 

[NottinghamChicks]

Quote:
They say theirs are the real McCoy so I am hoping they at least have the attributes but not worried if they are not show quality. Just want some pets that are nice to look at and lay my breakfast. Hope someone can post some pics of what they got from Ideal!

 

[speckledhen]

Ideal sells Easter Eggers, not true Ameraucanas- I can attest to that as I've seen their shipments to the local feed store every year for the past five years. They are fine birds, though not all lay blue or green eggs, so don't be surprised if you get a brown egg from one of them. Same deal with their Delawares, which seem to carry Columbian Rock blood, an outcross made by some hatcheries when the breed was almost extinct. My original flock of RIRs, Silver Laced Wyandottes, Buff Orpingtons and Barred Rocks were not great examples of the breed and neither are my Brahmas or bantam Cochin, also from Ideal. They'll lay well for you, but most of the very common breeds they sell, like the ones I started with, will probably die from internal laying after about two years of age. At least, that has been my experience with their stock. I have only three of the original ten left, all the rest having died from that genetic/hormone based ailment.

Their stock is generally healthy, thought they won't meet any standard or be as large as breeder quality stock.

Here are some of my Ideal hens, the first three are five years old and the others are four years down to two years old-I realize you aren't getting these breeds, but they may help you see what Ideal sells:

The hens below are deceased from internal laying, but were all part of my original ten hens from Ideal (I am not saying it's just Ideal's stock, but most hatchery hens bred to lay well will probably have reproductive issues)

 

[bock]

They are not, trust me. Only a few very small hatcheries sell true ones. Ideal has EE's.

 

[TriciaHowe]

On my BYC page is a picture of my BL roo Toby Jr. and Toby. On the 2nd page is the mottle cohins, red frizzle cochins and white cochins from them. Also the BL hens and oeg bantams. I also had a blue silkie hen. My BL roo was my favorite roo and I was so sad when he died. He was a true sweet heart and so was his son.

 

[rancher hicks]

My first chickens were from Ideal. I ordered eight breeds.

One of the Dominiques is noticebly small a runt. I order three of each.

Two of the Silver laced wyandottes had single combs, not rosecombs and were skinny.

The two GLW, I have (one was killed by a coon) are not as heavy as I've seen and right now I think they are dissapointing layers, even though they will be two in Feb.

I have two BO's and I do like one of them and they too are not laying well.

I have two Dels one that lays a pink egg, one died, but I have 8 hens and 4 are at least two and they are my best layers. These four I bought from a private chickens person and have no idea where they originated. The other two I bred myself.

I had three CM's and they don't lay as dark an egg, as the three I bought from a private person though I will say only one of those lays a dark egg.

I got three Aus. and they too weren't as fat as I'd have liked. I gave them away.

The roos liked the Aussies, GLW's and SLW's so well they lost alot of feathers and have yet to grow them back and it's been at least a year. The only thing I can do is seperate them.

I also order 4 frizzles which I thought would be standards but are bantams. One died in the coon attack and two i gave away. Three of the four were frizzled but one was clearly not all "red". I still have her.

I've had the frizzle hens go broody and a BO and a Dom. All were good mothers.

Now I will say this if you must order from a hatchery. While at the recent ALBC conference I was told by people who know a lot more than me that McMurray has nice dels. Personally I won't order from a hatchery but if you must I'd go there for Dels.

 

[Chris09]

Quote:
They say theirs are the real McCoy so I am hoping they at least have the attributes but not worried if they are not show quality. Just want some pets that are nice to look at and lay my breakfast. Hope someone can post some pics of what they got from Ideal!

Here is a Quote from Ideals website.

Ameraucanas, known as the "Easter Egg Breed", are a multicolored breed. They have beards, muffs and a normal tail with a tail head.

https://secuservices.com/ideal/newideal/selectproduct.aspx?qty=1&ID=AMERS&Product=1187

Chris​

 

[NottinghamChicks]

Thanks to everyone so far! Nice pics and allot of info. I have ordered from McMurray before and I was happy with them. They are quite a bit more than most but I think I just may go that route. Thanks!!

 

[dsqard]

I don't really want to start the EE vs Ameraucana argument but Ameraucanas are NOT known as the Easter Egg Breed. Here is the definition from the Ameraucana breeders web site: The Ameraucana Breeders Club defines an Easter Egg chicken or Easter Egger as any chicken that possesses the blue egg gene, but doesn’t fully meet any breed descriptions as defined in the APA and/or ABA standards. Further, even if a bird meets an Ameraucana standard breed description, but doesn’t meet a variety description or breed true at least 50% of the time it is considered an Easter Egg chicken.

Sorry OP

don't mean to hijack your thread, and don't get me wrong, there are some beautiful EE's out there (I am breeding some myself right now) and a lot of them do lay green or blue eggs. Like I said, it all depends on what you are looking for.