YO GEORGIANS! :)

[truckerlsu]

Even some of the old breeds aren't exactly pure blood anymore. Theyve been tinkered with for production purposes. Had a local hatchery telling me how much RIR had been mixed into the Welsummers to up the egg production

 

[Flowerbh]

What makes me nuts is they act personally insulted if you inform them what they actually have, as if you insulted their children. Folks, it's chickens, not world peace. So, you have EEs, not Ameraucanas or Araucanas. They'll most likely still lay colored eggs, which is usually the point with most people. Me, I love my BBS Ameraucanas as well as my EEs. I have one hen who is 1/2 Blue Wheaten Ameraucana and 1/2 EE. She lays gorgeous turquoise blue eggs. But, I call her an EE. She could almost pass for a Wheaten Ameraucana. I have a 9 year old EE hen who was a breeder project, trying to create Salmon Ameraucanas, but obviously, she was far from that. But, my black Ameraucana hen and my splash Ameraucana hen are 9 years old as well. They have the better personality, though their eggs were smaller than my EE.

No, they don't get it, not at all. Thanks to misleading advertising and plain old deception by the hatcheries on this one.


ETA: And hatcheries creating the hybrid mutt layers and giving them exotic names cracks me up. How about "Asians"? Tetra Tints? Dixie Rainbows? They'd be better to improve what they have, IMO, than create all these other things.

I agree with you.

A 'breed' by definition is when all the chicks will look identical to their parents. So, even if you mix a purebred white Ameraucana with a purebred black Ameraucana, their chicks would be considered Easter Eggers. (This is in accordance with the Ameraucana people) because those chicks will now produce chicks of different colors (like some black and some white). All purebred White Ameraucanas should only produce White Ameraucanas, etc. There are some breeds (BLR Wyandottes, Isbars, etc. who hatch blue, black or splash chicks. And, for some reason that is ok, but, heaven forbid if you do that with Ameraucanas!!! LOL!

But, for the most part, all White Leghorns should hatch white chicks that look just like them, all Silver Laced Wyandottes should hatch chicks that all look them.....etc.

Any other outcomes are considered mixes. Easter Eggers are not a breed, they are mixes.

 

[Flowerbh]

The latest sales pitch I heard at a feed store that was selling chicks was the following: "Ninety percent of the chicks we get and sell are pullets." The store owner said this with a straight face while I was looking an older chick in the bin that was obviously a cockerel. Preying on customers like that isn't cool or smart for a retail business.

90% of the 'Pullet' bin is correct. Even the hatcheries have a statement in their catalogs that although they try to accurately try to sex them, they are allotted a 10% error rate before they will help 'correct' any problems. So, if you order 10 pullets and you get 9 pullets and 1 cockerel, they won't send you a new pullet. But, if you get more than 10%, they will send out new females!

 

[brucifer]

Before I post on craigslist, I'll make an offer here: I have 5 BBS Orps and 2 hybrid Buff/Australorps for sale for $25 for the entire lot. We hatched them 3/5, and all are in good health. For the BBS, 4 are blue and one is black. The black is definitely a pullet. Two of the blue have pea combs, and I don't know how to determine sex based upon that kind of comb. They're beautiful birds. I'll try to round them up and upload a photo later today. As for the the two hybrids, the father is a buff and the mother is an Australorp. I usually don't keep mixes, so these two have to go. This is a package deal for the lot. I just want to move them.

I also have two-week-old straight run FBCM chicks for $5 each (5-chick minimum).

Let me know soon if you're interested. I plan to advertise on craiglist on Monday.

Hope everyone is enjoying this great weather.

Remember, your unwanted cockerels make great Easter gifts! J/K!

 

[brucifer]

90% of the 'Pullet' bin is correct. Even the hatcheries have a statement in their catalogs that although they try to accurately try to sex them, they are allotted a 10% error rate before they will help 'correct' any problems. So, if you order 10 pullets and you get 9 pullets and 1 cockerel, they won't send you a new pullet. But, if you get more than 10%, they will send out new females!

Becky, I appreciate you letting me know this. I've never bought from the major hatcheries, so this is new info to me. This has redeemed the feed-store owner somewhat in my eyes. However, I still think selling the cockerel as a pullet wasn't cool.

 

[speckledhen]

90% of the 'Pullet' bin is correct. Even the hatcheries have a statement in their catalogs that although they try to accurately try to sex them, they are allotted a 10% error rate before they will help 'correct' any problems. So, if you order 10 pullets and you get 9 pullets and 1 cockerel, they won't send you a new pullet. But, if you get more than 10%, they will send out new females!

Yup, but they do not sex by color on BRs, of course.

I agree with you.

A 'breed' by definition is when all the chicks will look identical to their parents. So, even if you mix a purebred white Ameraucana with a purebred black Ameraucana, their chicks would be considered Easter Eggers. (This is in accordance with the Ameraucana people) because those chicks will now produce chicks of different colors (like some black and some white). All purebred White Ameraucanas should only produce White Ameraucanas, etc. There are some breeds (BLR Wyandottes, Isbars, etc. who hatch blue, black or splash chicks. And, for some reason that is ok, but, heaven forbid if you do that with Ameraucanas!!! LOL!

But, for the most part, all White Leghorns should hatch white chicks that look just like them, all Silver Laced Wyandottes should hatch chicks that all look them.....etc.

Any other outcomes are considered mixes. Easter Eggers are not a breed, they are mixes.

I call Easter Eggers a mixed genetic soup, not a breed. There is zero standard. They can lay any color eggs, including brown, have any color legs, any color eyes, have beard or no beard, etc.

Becky, I appreciate you letting me know this. I've never bought from the major hatcheries, so this is new info to me. This has redeemed the feed-store owner somewhat in my eyes. However, I still think selling the cockerel as a pullet wasn't cool.

Sexing is more an art than a science so it makes sense there is a margin of error. Some are better at it than others and some chicks are just confusing, even with vent sexing.

 

[Lookin4GoodLife]

I have CCL roos' needing a new home!!!

Wish I was a little further along with my farm. I want to raise some CCL's.

 

[Lookin4GoodLife]

ETA: And hatcheries creating the hybrid mutt layers and giving them exotic names cracks me up. How about "Asians"? Tetra Tints? Dixie Rainbows? They'd be better to improve what they have, IMO, than create all these other things.

And along those lines (although not chicken related) has anyone seen what people are selling on Craigslist as "breeds" of dogs these days? Asking a mint for what we called "back in the day" a MUTT! And saying they're REGISTERED. Hard to register something that's not actually a breed. It amazes me every day the level of stupidity our society is rising to these days. (sigh)

 

[truckerlsu]

And along those lines (although not chicken related) has anyone seen what people are selling on Craigslist as "breeds" of dogs these days?  Asking a mint for what we called "back in the day" a MUTT!  And saying they're REGISTERED.  Hard to register something that's not actually a breed.  It amazes me every day the level of stupidity our society is rising to these days.  (sigh)

I bought a American Staffordshire. The amount of fake pitbull breeds I saw was insane

 

[speckledhen]

And along those lines (although not chicken related) has anyone seen what people are selling on Craigslist as "breeds" of dogs these days? Asking a mint for what we called "back in the day" a MUTT! And saying they're REGISTERED. Hard to register something that's not actually a breed. It amazes me every day the level of stupidity our society is rising to these days. (sigh)

And charging exhorbitant prices for those MUTTS. That's all they are, mutts. A goldendoodle is a mutt, plain and simple, and frankly, IMO, rather ugly at that, but I don't like curly haired dogs and don't like poodles at all. They're designer dogs! That's what I called my designer chicken when I crossed my Belgian D'Anver rooster over my lavender Cochin bantam hen. They were Coch'Anvers. Actually, they were very cool birds. They usually veered more toward the Cochin body type, usually with feathered legs, but with rose combs. I loved those birds.