The Olive-Egger thread!

[magdelaine]

I think it depends on your market. If you are selling to the hobby farmer who wants the olive color in the egg basket, they would not be happy with you even when you tell them the bird may lay brown. If selling to someone who is interested in genetics and breeding, they would understand the numbers involved and what they "might" get from those birds.

Because I'm nearer to urban areas (25-50 miles from my remote location) where laws allow no roosters, I chose single comb olive eggers and only sell the F1 (first generation) crosses. They "should" all lay olive eggs. I also have some that are sexlinked, so I can confidently sell baby chicks as pullets from those birds. These are Black Copper Marans over cream crested legbar. The others, also having single combs, show themselves as pullets anywhere from 3-6 weeks. These are Isbar over Marans.

I think if you want to be sure you have olive eggers you either have to start with "pure" blue egg layers or you have to grow them out until they lay and you can see the color for yourself.

Question: Do you cull the single comb chicks of your F1 crosses just to be sure they are OEs?

 

[ronott1]

I think if you want to be sure you have olive eggers you either have to start with "pure" blue egg layers or you have to grow them out until they lay and you can see the color for yourself.

Question: Do you cull the single comb chicks of your F1 crosses just to be sure they are OEs?

the breeds used do not have a pea comb so they will all have a straight comb.

 

[Ihilani Coffee]

I think if you want to be sure you have olive eggers you either have to start with "pure" blue egg layers or you have to grow them out until they lay and you can see the color for yourself.

Question: Do you cull the single comb chicks of your F1 crosses just to be sure they are OEs?

These are SINGLE comb OE because I don't care for Ameraucana as a breed (partly because I just don't have any good luck sexing the little buggers until they lay or crow!).

 

[magdelaine]

These are SINGLE comb OE because I don't care for Ameraucana as a breed (partly because I just don't have any good luck sexing the little buggers until they lay or crow!).

LOL!!! Yes of course on the single comb, I read your post wrong.

I plan on using Ameraucanas myself but I've never raised them so I don't know what to expect. I'm planning on using, among others, a Birchen Marans rooster over White Ams and I'm curious to see how they look.

 

[Olive Oil]

My newest Olive Egger laid her first egg the other day. I was very happy with the egg color. She came from hatching eggs I received so I don't know her exact parentage but I believe she is some sort of Marans/Am combination.

This is her first egg

 

[blackgoat]

My newest Olive Egger laid her first egg the other day. I was very happy with the egg color. She came from hatching eggs I received so I don't know her exact parentage but I believe she is some sort of Marans/Am combination.

This is her first egg

I love the speckles! I hope I get olive eggs like that. My one OE is only 4 months old, so I have a few more months to wait.

 

[chicken pickin]

I love the speckles! I hope I get olive eggs like that. My one OE is only 4 months old, so I have a few more months to wait.

Thank You both. I love collecting the assorted color of eggs each day. The Olive egg surprised me I wasn't expecting it to be so olive so it was a very nice surprise indeed.

This is the girl that lays the nice olive egg

 

[Olive Oil]

If I mix my Marans roo with Easter Eggers won't they be Olive Eggers.

I see that you have already gotten some helpful responses. Just thought I would share my experience as I crossed my Birchen Marans roo to an EE hen. I hatched out 6 hens. I kept them until they they began laying to see what percentage were laying olive and if the hens with the beards and muffs were all olive layers. I only have 2 olive layers out of the 6 and 2 of my 4 bearded ladies lay brown! 2 of the 6 had straight combs and both lay brown. One is a pretty pinkish brown though. A bit frustrating, but the 2 that are olive are a very nice olive at least. I broke down and bought some true Ameracaunas!

 

[redrooster99]

yes i am going to try marans to ee but i will probably get some pure ameraucaunas.

 

[aart]

My newest Olive Egger laid her first egg the other day. I was very happy with the egg color. She came from hatching eggs I received so I don't know her exact parentage but I believe she is some sort of Marans/Am combination.

This is her first egg

What is the cross that produced the egg in the middle? It's a very interesting color and the speckles are wonderful.
And what breeds laid the top and bottom ones?