How big should the LF Ameraucanas Be at 7 months?

[vanalpaca]

 
I have had my birds all in a large mixed flock pen so haven't paid a lot of attention other than feeding out and chores. Most of the time when I attend the pen it is close to dark and one group of birds is always piled in the large breeder cage. I cleared out a pen yesterday (alas some cocks off to the butcher...sigh) and moved these Ameraucanas into that pen.

So catching them up and hands on, I'm thinking they are mostly hens and on the small size. A couple had real rolly polly butts.

I have a few nice sized cocks that are a year or two old from a friend and was expecting that these birds would have all been pretty much 'grown up' by now. I'm actually wondering if they are closer to bantams than LF simply because they aren't really big.

I am very new to chickens, coming up on my second full year, and the majority of my LF Ameraucanas I brought in as chicks in May/June.

My buffs from John 'look' larger than this group of birds, but they have been in with the Welsummer hens all winter and it just might be fluff. BTW, I have one Buff crowing and another not that has the same size comb as the cockerel, both have the whitish/grey legs. At least 3 others have the yellow legs, and I have a total of 7 Buffs that grew up out of the 14 that I got in. So I am basing my SIZE issue off of these birds and the 3 older cocks.

Thanks, sorry I haven't been on to update you all as my birds grew up this year, been busy as hubby has health issues, and just having time to do basic farm chores.

I am thrilled to have Ameraucans and be part of this group. Bonnie from Clyde, OH

[Mike Gilbert]

At seven months they should be close to pullet and cockerel weights as listed in the standard.  If they were in with a group of larger or older chickens they may have been intimidated enough to keep them from eating as much as they wanted, which means they would be slower to grow out, but I don't know what the situation was there.  Seven months means they were hatched in late July or August.   Late hatched birds are sometimes smaller or slower to develop because they use more of their nutrition for body heat and maintenance, meaning there is less for growth - especially if they were crowded.   Which variety are they?

[vanalpaca]

The birds were hatched in May. Blue, Black, Splash, and Wheaton , Blue Wheaton. Most of them came in from Paul/TX this year or from an Indiana breeder that got his lines in last year. (Shar at Flyaway Farms is not a member but has been working with her birds for 6 years now and has the groups lines Jean/Paul/Wayne)

Yes, they seemed to be huddled in the cage a lot, I would roust them out, but they were in a large mixed group of fowl with 5 Welsummer, guinea keets, 5 turkeys, and the 3 older Ameraucana cocks. EVERYTHING in that room started out last year as chicks except the 3 older cocks, so they all grew up together........I thought it was just the cocks/cockerels keeping them 'rounded up' at dusk.

 I fed free choice in 3 different pans. I did notice that even the turkeys developed slower than normal schedule, too, even though there was always still some food in the pans when I out the next batch.

They are now in their own pen and will be getting 20% feed. Probably layer mix unless y'all advise grower.

They were in a well sheltered house with open windows and lots of body heat in that room as the water never froze and now they are outside on deep bedding straw with, plastic tarps, metal roofing around the sides of the pen , and a large plastic doghouse for extra heat preservation. They all stayed well grouped in the new shelter. So now they will be using more feed for keeping warm.

Most are in fair flesh and a splash and a blue wheaton are real rolly polly (big round heavy) butts. Out of 20 birds, there might be one or two that are underweight. But I suspect the group is mostly pullets and they seem smallish. Guess I will have to get out the scales and the camera next.....

[Mike Gilbert]

Bonnie, I'm not at all familiar with the term "rolly polly butts."
Another possibility for not thriving is parasites.   Have you checked them for mites and lice, and administered a wide spectrum wormer?

[vanalpaca]

I had mites once on a different group on a different property. Those hens had them around the vent area and on the rear end feather shafts. I did not see any mites. Would the 'lice' be feather lice or something else? I've seen feather lice on parrots before years ago when I raised them.

I'm believing that the size is either genetic or growth due to feed restriction by the cocks.

I believe a 'rolly polly' used to be a toy that was a ball on the bottom weighted with lead and it would rock from side to side .........surely you had one growing up, I did......

The blue wheaton had a really fat heavy round bottom/butt........and I'm thinking one of the splash did as well.

[Mike Gilbert]

I believe a 'rolly polly' used to be a toy that was a ball on the bottom weighted with lead and it would rock from side to side .........surely you had one growing up, I did......

Nope, I doubt they had been invented yet when I grew up.  And we were too busy fighting off the British to play anyway.     Seriously, if they have not been wormed I would sure consider it.

[John]

BTW, I have one Buff crowing and another not that has the same size comb as the cock, both have the whitish/grey legs. At least 3 or 4 others have the yellow legs, and I have a total of 7 Buffs that grew up out of the 14 that I got in.

Bonnie,
If I'm reading it right you are saying some buff birds have yellow legs.  Are you sure they are Ameraucanas?  I also have buff Chanteclers and they should have yellow legs. When did you buy chicks from me?  Photos of the birds would be a big help.

[vanalpaca]

I got all the buffs from Deb Yeagle's order of 25 LF sent to Fremont, OH. She did get a lot of partridge chanticleers in that order and you sent 14 Buffs, I assumed those were all Ameraucana's, one of the last orders in May...

So whats the diff between the chanticleers and the ameraucanas in buff? Leg color and muffs/tufts? All mine have the short odd combs (not single like my wellies) ...but I haven't caught them up and eyeballed them in the sunshine. I just count the 7 to make sure I haven't lost any and they've all gone in the coop.

They are all nice looking and the same size except for the yellow legs on some of them. I assumed that the buffs just still needed culling cause I haven't culled anything from last year yet...

Please keep educating me....

Do chanticleers throw white eggs (none laying yet)?

[John]

whats the diff between the chanticleers and the ameraucanas in buff?

If they have yellow shanks they aren't Ameraucanas and I would guess Chanteclers if they came from me.  I don't recall yellow or even willow shanks showing up on LF buff Amerauacanas in decades if ever.  Chanteclers would not have muffs and would have cushion combs, rather than pea combs.  They lay brown eggs.

[vanalpaca]

Ah well, I will have to count the yellow legs and see how many of the 7 buffs are Chanticleers then, it will be 3 or 4. At least one of the slate legs was crowing and another looked to have the same sized comb so may also be a cockerel. And the Chanticleers will have to be removed from the Wellie flock as can't have brown eggers in with that breeder group for hatching eggs. So glad you cleared that up for me. And it is great to know that the Buffs are 'set' for leg color and that will be one thing I shouldn't have to cull for. Thanks!