Which color Easter Egger and Silkie do I have?

[JAsimmert]

Hello! I got myself a handful of chicks for my Urban Homestead

I'm just not sure which color Easter Egger and Silkie I ended up with! Here's some pics.

First up is the Ameraucana. I'm guessing they are about a week old?








Next up is my Silkie. Age/gender of this one??











And just for kicks, can anyone spot the gender of these cuties?? There a several pics of each chick. I have 1 of each RIR, BR, and BuffO.



Rhode Island Red









Barred Rock






Buff Orpington







Thanks so much!!

 

[Alexandra33]

It seems pretty early to tell the gender of your beautiful little babies.

You MIGHT be able to get an idea as early as 2 weeks, but that's only rare occasions.

The first chick is actually what you call an Easter Egger, rather than Ameraucana. Feed stores and most hatcheries label their EEs as Ameraucanas, while it's very difficult and expensive to find a true Blue/Black/Splash/Wheaten/Blue Wheaten Ameraucana (those are some of the specific color types they come in). I can't wait to see what your EE ends up looking like when mature, because you really can't tell by the down!

-Alex

 

[JAsimmert]

I was so confused by the Ameraucana and Easter Egger terms! lol Your comment confirmed for me that I indeed have an "easter egger"

not a true Ameraucana. But that's okay! I'm very curious to see what she (hopefully a she!!) will look like as she feathers out.

 

[Alexandra33]

I was so confused by the Ameraucana and Easter Egger terms! lol Your comment confirmed for me that I indeed have an "easter egger"

not a true Ameraucana. But that's okay! I'm very curious to see what she (hopefully a she!!) will look like as she feathers out.

I know! I was extremely mixed up at first, too, so it's quite normal.

Labels can be misleading for sure.

EEs are every bit as special as true Ameraucanas, just in a unique way. I've got both breeds myself, and love each for their differences and similarities!

-Alex

 

[JAsimmert]

Here's a little update on how my girl is feathering out. I love her light colors! She's very sweet as well.

 

[Alexandra33]

She's beautiful! Gotta love those puffy cheeks.

I haven't had an EE that looks quite like her, so I'm even more excited now to see what she looks like in a few months.

~Alex

 

[Gnarled Carrots]

The Easter Egger looks like she'll be black and white stripped. There's a great forum on before/after picks of what Easter Eggers grow up to look like!

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/479766/show-me-your-easter-egger-chicks-please

It's hard to tell because there's no standard coloring for EE, but generally the chipmunk colored ones grow up to be multi-colored! They're adorable

 

[JAsimmert]

I'm really starting to love the EE's because of the unique variety of colors! So what exactly makes an EE? An Ameraucauna mixed with what else?

 

[Alexandra33]

I'm really starting to love the EE's because of the unique variety of colors! So what exactly makes an EE? An Ameraucauna mixed with what else?

I'm not sure that there's a specific breed that true Ameraucanas are mixed with, actually.

It technically could be pretty much anything!

[~Alex/B]

 

[Gnarled Carrots]

I don't think that there's a particular one breed that they were crossed with. I just know that they're the result of breeders trying to mass produce the blue/green egg color, so they were crossed with higher production birds. I actually really like them! I have 2 right now and they look completely different. It's fun watching their feathers change having virtually no idea whether they're going to actually be the color that I think they are!