Pics of Kennygirl\'s Birds

[Guest]

Here are the pics of the birds.....

[Guest]

can someone tell me if these are ameraucanas or easter eggers,and if they are EE tell me whats the difference.thank you laura for posting them for me.

[bantamhill]

Your birds could be mixed Ameraucana\'s, but from the comb on the cock I am assumings some Easter Egger blood. Do you have any leg shots and full body shots?

Michael

[Guest]

the rooster has a full tail,but lost it recently,due to molting,they both have greenish tinged legs.does this help at all.

[bantamhill]

If his legs are greenish (willow) then I would assume Easter Egger blood. Some folks (myself included) have bred up from Easter Egger (mixed) stock. It is a challenge. If you are interested in the 8 standard varieties (buff, black, blue, white, brown red, silver, wheaten, blue wheaten) I would suggest supplementing your flock with a few standard bred Ameraucana to help breed up your flock into standard colors.

If you enjoy a mixed flock of birds that is great and enjoy them as a mixed flock . . . I keep a few mixed birds around myself.

Michael

[Guest]

what color our the legs sopossed to be,how come every ameraucana, i see on different sites looks just like mine,what is the difference between an EE and a pure ameraucana.do you have pics of the two.

[Guest]

amercock_edited.jpg...here is a photo of an ameraucana i got off the web,looks just like mine..whats the difference.

[John]

what color our the legs sopossed to be,how come every ameraucana, i see on different sites looks just like mine,what is the difference between an EE and a pure ameraucana

Start with the FAQ page on our website.  Click on ABC Home Page and then click on FAQ.  
Second get a copy on the APA \"American Standard of Perfection\".  There is a link to  the APA from our Links page.  The book is not cheap, but it is the \"last word\" on the descriptions of all \"standard\" bred poultry.  
Each breed of poultry, just like dogs, rabbits and horses have to meet a standard (or descriptions of each breed).  Chickens that don\'t meet the standard requirements are referred to as mixed breeds, mongels, barnyard chickens, etc.  They may be great chickens, but not showable as standard bred poultry.
 

[faith valley]

My youngest son is working with the Ameraucana breed and this question has been a hard one for him to get ahold of too.  I made a chart comparing the EE, Ameraucana and the Araucana & loaded it onto my web site.  I would love for you guys to take a look at the chart and let me know if I missed an important difference. Link of page below- He will start to memorize this info for his showmanship as I am sure that he will run across this question at many of the showmanship competitions.

http://www.faithvalleywaterfowl.faithweb.com/custom3.html

[bantamhill]

Kennygirl,

Please don\'t be offended. Most of us Ameraucana breeders have a few mixed birds running around. A standard bred Ameraucana will have slate blue or black legs depending on the variety. Your rooster is quite handsome and there is nothing wrong with him or your hens as mixed colored birds. I have quite a few mixed colored birds currently while I am working on several breeding projects around the standard varieties. I would suggest getting a few standard bred if you are interested in showing . . . if not just enjoy your fowl. The link John mentioned is http://www.ameraucana.org/scrapbook2.html

Your second question is quite interesting to attempt to answer. Many hatcheries have sold over time(not all though!)  Araucana, Americana, Ameraucana, Easter Eggers that are chickens crossed with anything that layed a colored egg or hatched from a colored egg. The details are too much for here, but as an example the cover of a popular hatchery\'s catalog had a beautiful painting of a bird referred to as an Ameraucana that was not a standard colored bird. Many views about this were expressed on many websites and chat areas . . . but in the end Ameraucana\'s as a breed suffer from mixing due mostly to long-standing marketing by hatcheries. One wouldn\'t think of buying mixed Orphingtons, Wyandottes, Leghorns, or Rocks, but people have no problem selling mixed Ameraucana as the \"real thing\". This is the most I have ever said publically on the subject and I cannot believe I actually said it publically for the world to read!

Kennygirl - enjoy your flock . . . mixed colored birds are a lot of fun and very beautiful.

[Guest]

the chicks, that i hatched out this summer were from my 2 ameraucanas/EE,the hens all have slate blue legs,1 is a buff,the other is a brown and the others look like their dad.i do have a mixed flock,but ,i dont let the hens hatch out their eggs,only the ones that i thought were ameraucanas.do any of you have  pure ameraucanas,that you can post, or send to me,which ever is easier at gcerillo@hvc.rr.com .maybe later this week i can take pics of them with the legs and body,so you can all see them better.thanks

[John]

do any of you have  pure ameraucanas,that you can post, or send to me

Check out the Photo pages of large fowl and bantams on our website.  Just click on the link to the ABC Home Page and surf thru the photo pages.
I would also suggest reading the breed and club History that is posted on our club\'s website.  
Also, check our the pictures on the ABC Sharing Place site: http://groups.msn.com/ABCShareingPlace/shoebox.msnw

[Guest]

They look a lot like the first EE I ever had. I still own some for layers. I find they are friendly, healthy and very hardy. Not to mention the green eggs are a fav with my kids...They are very pretty!

[Guest]

how can you tell by just looking at their faces,i still see no difference,in the pics i have seen before of ameraucanas.please let me know.

[Mike Gilbert]

One of the topics of discussion at our national show this weekend is whether we want an \"official\" definition of Ameraucana versus easter egger.    In my mind, an Ameraucana is a chicken that will breed predictably true to recognized colors and patterns.   There are other breed characteristics as well, notably white skin, slate legs, pea combs, red ear lobes, a certain shape and size, etc.    Easter eggers are of mixed parentage and throw various mixed colors and shapes and therefore are not a true breed.   Having said all that, easter eggers were used in the making of the Ameraucana breed and remain quite popular with backyard poultry keepers.