Which would you get??

[Penny spender]

I've een scouring ads for guaranteed blue egg layers (I have 4 EEs that all lay brownish), and I've come across 2 very interesting ads....but I'm not sure which is the better option.

Ad One. 2 cream legbar hens, one crested and one without. Hatched last May and both laying blue eggs. Not been in contact with any diseases (per ad). $20 each. Have to drive about 1.5 hours to get them.

Ad Two. 2 Ameraucana 8 week olds. Both pullets. One light one dark. Should lay around July. $6 each and located a 5 minute drive from my house.

I don't currently have the room to get both sets (or I would! - building bigger coop in summer! Lol). I currently have 6 mixed hens all about a year or less and a young rooster.

Which set of birds would you choose?

 

[cavemanrich]

Go for the closer. Those Ameracaunas @ $6 are most likely mixes, so chances are they will each lay slightly different color/shade of egg.
When you get larger coop build, then opt to get some legbars as well.
WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,

 

[R2elk]

I've been scouring ads for guaranteed blue egg layers (I have 4 EEs that all lay brownish), and I've come across 2 very interesting ads....but I'm not sure which is the better option.

Ad One. 2 cream legbar hens, one crested and one without. Hatched last May and both laying blue eggs. Not been in contact with any diseases (per ad). $20 each. Have to drive about 1.5 hours to get them.

Ad Two. 2 Ameraucana 8 week olds. Both pullets. One light one dark. Should lay around July. $6 each and located a 5 minute drive from my house.

I don't currently have the room to get both sets (or I would! - building bigger coop in summer! Lol). I currently have 6 mixed hens all about a year or less and a young rooster.

Which set of birds would you choose?

I would go for the legbars which are or have been laying so the egg color is already known. The Ameraucana may lay blue eggs but that has not yet been established and won't be known for sure what they will lay until they actually start laying. Twenty dollars each for approximately 10 month old legbar hens is really cheap.

 

[Chicks 'n ducks]

Like R2elk said, with the legbars the egg color is already known, which is good if you really want blue eggs. 1.5 hours is a long way to drive though. I would go with the ameracaunas- you will probably get blue eggs, they are close and they are cheap.
Good luck!

 

[Skipper81]

Have legbar guy send pics of eggs because blue to 1 person is green to another

 

[Hufflefluff]

I'd probably go for the legbars- $20 is a good price for almost any 10 mth old laying hen, and especially one of such an uncommon breed. EEs are everywhere- it'll be much easier to just add them later. Also, because the rest of your flock is older, I think you'll have an easier time integrating the legbars- and, like other people have brought up, you don't have to worry that they might end up laying green or pinkish eggs.

I look forward to seeing pictures after you bring home whichever you decide on!

 

[Mylied]

I'm partial to cream legbars. They will lay blue eggs. With ameracaunas, you could just end up with more brown egg laying ees. I've driven further than an hour and a half for chickens that are nice. Plus you can get a cream legbar rooster down the road and hatch out autosexing chicks. $20 is a really good price for young laying cream legbars.

 

[lazy gardener]

It depends if the Ams are really Ams. Many folks who say they have Ams really have EE, and I'm guessing, at $6/bird, this is what these are. If they really are Ams, they would be advertised as a specific color. (Ams breed true to color.) and they would be guaranteed to carry 2 copies of the blue egg gene. If they are EE, which I'm guessing is the case, even just based on the price, then they may carry 2 or 1 or NO copies of the blue egg gene. If you are set on blue eggs, and that is your primary goal, I'd turn it into a road trip and go sight seeing and pick up the CCL.

All that being said, I'm not very impressed with CCL, though I've never had any! My impression is that they are a bit flighty, and a bit aggressive based on what I've read. I have had good experience with EE, and like their personalities. My most recent new layer didn't start till she was 10 months old. She's a Cackle EE, and lays a large gorgeous blue egg. Though she's a knuckle head, I really enjoy having her in the flock.

 

[aart]

It depends if the Ams are really Ams. Many folks who say they have Ams really have EE, and I'm guessing, at $6/bird, this is what these are.

Exactly!

Tho I've had several hatchery EE that laid pure blue eggs.

CCL are pretty cool birds, got 2 last spring, they both laid a pretty good blue, kinda light tho. Lost one over the winter. The remaining one is a great bird, not too flighty and a great forager in all weather. CCL can have greenish eggs tho in certain lines.

 

[igorsMistress]

What is most important to you? Guaranteed blue eggs, or maybe blue eggs? Are the Ameraucanas truly that, or EE's? Lots of people try to sell EE's under the Ameraucana name.

I drove at least an hour one way to pick up Naked Neck pullets because I wanted some for my flock, they are for sure pullets and they are the color I want too.