What breed are my chickens?

[Sylviaanne]

australorps should have black legs and white/pink soles of their feet
3 looks like an australorp pullet to me

I'm pretty sure her legs are black but they could be a dark green. I will check tomorrow and look at the soles of her feet too.

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

Only EEs have green legs?
Thanks!

No, some breeds of chickens like some color varieties of Modern Game chickens have willow legs as well.

Willow legs are common in Easter Eggers, but are a DQ for any bird being an Ameraucana, no matter what the rest of the bird looks like. The presence of willow legs is a really easy, quick way to know that a bird is an EE not an Ameraucana or Araucana.

 

[mlrod1914]

you mean...chickengarten!
I think we all are...no matter how much we think we know.

What Subhanalah says is right. There is always so much to learn. I think you will find that most of us have experience or special knowledge in one or a few areas. But who can know everything about everything?
I have several breeds I am quite familiar with, if i'm out of my realm of experience I wait to see what others have to say and try to learn from their experience.

Regarding the "Puffy Cheeks", this is an Ameracauna trait. An easter egger is basically an Ameracauna chicken that does not conform totally to the Ameracauna breed standard, so it is kind of a catch all for non standard chickens that have greenish legs(the green legs is a must). But you don't see a lot of EE chicks with very puffy cheeks, at least not around here. So congrats! Those chickens look great! I love the trait. True Ameracauas are hard to find. I can't find them around here. I would have to travel quite a distance to get some.

 

[Bethel3330]

Only EEs have green legs?
Thanks!

No, I didn't mean that, just that EEs also have green legs. My rooster's are a nice light olive color. I don't know enough about them to know if all of them do. I also am not sure how many other breeds there are that have them. Still new myself

 

[Bethel3330]

No, some breeds of chickens like some color varieties of Modern Game chickens have willow legs as well.

Willow legs are common in Easter Eggers, but are a DQ for any bird being an Ameraucana, no matter what the rest of the bird looks like. The presence of willow legs is a really easy, quick way to know that a bird is an EE not an Ameraucana or Araucana. 

I didn't know the green legs were a DQ. Interesting

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

I didn't know the green legs were a DQ. Interesting

Ameraucanas MUST have slate legs and be one of the eight standard colors. That's one of the easiest ways to look at a bird and almost immediately tell the difference between (most) EEs and Ams. In fact, if you mate two Ams together and get the wrong color, it's not an Am even though it has Am parents. A common example is mating two blue birds. You'll get blue, black and splash from the cross. The blues and blacks would be Ams, but the splash would be considered an EE since it's not a standard color. I don't agree with this; I think Splash out to be a standard Am color. But I don't get a vote with the Ameraucana Breeder's Association. The BBS problem is part of the reason that some are trying to introduce the Lavender color, since Lav x Lav = Lav.

 

[gamebirdsonly]

2 He looks like a welsummer Roo

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

What Subhanalah says is right. There is always so much to learn. I think you will find that most of us have experience or special knowledge in one or a few areas. But who can know everything about everything?
I have several breeds I am quite familiar with, if i'm out of my realm of experience I wait to see what others have to say and try to learn from their experience.

Regarding the "Puffy Cheeks", this is an Ameracauna trait. An easter egger is basically an Ameracauna chicken that does not conform totally to the Ameracauna breed standard, so it is kind of a catch all for non standard chickens that have greenish legs(the green legs is a must). But you don't see a lot of EE chicks with very puffy cheeks, at least not around here. So congrats! Those chickens look great! I love the trait. True Ameracauas are hard to find. I can't find them around here. I would have to travel quite a distance to get some.

Just a correction: An Easter Egger is a bird that carries the blue egg gene but does not conform to any breed standard. They could have Ameraucana in their lineage, they could have Araucana in their lineage, they could have Legbar in them, they could be purebred Ameraucana that don't meet the standard. It doesn't matter what they look like, it doesn't matter what color their legs are (LOTS of EEs don't have willow legs) all that matters is that they lay a blue or green egg or carry that gene (if they're a roo).

Since the blue egg gene is closely located to pea combs and puffy cheeks on the chromosome, most EEs have those. Since slate legs (required for an Ameraucana) crossed with yellow legs gives willow legs, lots of EEs have them. But it doesn't matter what the bird looks like; if she lays a blue or green egg, she's an EE. If she does not, she's something else (including a regular mutt instead of a mutt with a fancy name).

 

[missnu01]

Well then my easter egger mutt is just a green legged mutt. Lol

 

[WalkingOnSunshine]

Well then my easter egger mutt is just a green legged mutt. Lol

This happens a lot when people cross an EE with another EE. If the original parents are heterozygous for the blue egg gene, then 25% of the offspring won't receive the blue egg gene.