Quest for easter eggers

[Silvija]

I'm trying my luck to find some fertile easter egger eggs. In my country (Lithuania -Europe) I could find none and chickens that lay eggs of different colors are still new here, so I hope to import some from somewere in Europe. It is still quite some time till spring, but I start early Or maybe I could just buy ameuracanas and its more or less the same? I could find those in my country. I'm quite new at keeping chickens so sorry for strange questions

 

[Percheron chick]

Sounds like it would be easier to just make your own. Pick up a few ameraucana and cross them with a good native brown egg laying breed. You will end up with some nice birds that do well in your climate.
If you can't find them no one else can either. Might create a side business for the extra eggs.

 

[Silvija]

Thanks! I was thinking if I can make my own having in mind they are not a pure breed. So you just answered my question.

 

[Percheron chick]

They aren't pure bred and you will have a colorful flock with lots of variation. That is the beauty of raising EEs. My best crosses as far as production and egg color have been Brabanter, welsummer and barred rocks with ameraucana and araucana roosters.

 

[Silvija]

It's better to use roo from ameraucanas, not hens? Those beards of EE are so cute, do yours come with them or it's not that easy to get bearded EE? Or maybe not bearded are better?

 

[Percheron chick]

I had a mixed flock to begin with so it was easier to find a nice ameraucana rooster as they are practically free around me. Most of his chicks had beards and muffs ( the Brabanter also had the poof on their heads). The araucana chicks were all clean faced and 50% rumpless.
What are your best or most available breeds?

 

[Silvija]

I was reading another discusion about EEs and marans is one breed I can think about. Just don't know yet how good they are in cold weather. It gets pretty cold here at winter. Also some comercial layers to boost egg production maybe, but I'm mostly interested in nice egg colours and healthy, hardy chickens. In my flock now I have few comercial crosses (brown eggs), kochin roo and two pullets and hanfull of mix breed, some half bantams so I would not try those. I can find quite a few breeds here, but easter egger is not something people breed. I guess some have few in mixed flocks but it's not well known chicken "breed". Sounds like an interesting project

 

[Trish1974]

You could also use a white egg layer like a leghorn with an ameraucana rooster to get a blue egg layer. I have two sisters that are an ameraucana x brown leghorn mix that lay large blue eggs. One has muffs and the other is clean-faced.

 

[Silvija]

Thanks! I understand correctly that any mix with ameraucana will mostly produce chickens that lay blue or green eggs, not plain white or brown?

 

[lomine]

If you get a true Ameraucana or Araucana rooster he will be pure for the blue egg gene. That means that all of his offspring will carry the blue egg gene. The blue egg gene is dominant over white so all his female offspring will lay an egg with a blue shell. If their mothers are brown egg layers, they could potentially lay a green egg (brown coating over blue shell). If their mothers lay dark brown eggs, they could lay olive colored eggs.