# Easter eggers that aren't



## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

My poor daughter. Last year she saved her money from her birthday and bought 4 arecauna/amercauna chicks. She loves the green eggs! They recently started laying and they lay normal brown eggs! She's so disappointed. :Bawling: I was kinda surprised, I knew the hatchery chicks were mostly likely mutts, but they usually still lay colored eggs. These aren't even olive colored. And the chickens have muffs and the right coloring to be easter eggers, but apparently not! Oh, well.....so it goes.


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## KSALguy (Feb 14, 2006)

what hatchery did you get them from? and just out of curiosity do they have five toes and feather legs? i know its a dumb question but its a possibility, 

getting hatchery stock that doesnt lay blue or green eggs has to be a mess up on their part, eather the wrong breed or well actually one way or another it would have to be the wrong breed or mutt, 

are there any other hens laying in the same pen with them?


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## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

They were feed store chicks. I believe they used Privett hatchery. Only two are laying for sure and we sat and watched them lay to be absolutely sure. We were getting more normal brown eggs than we should have. We have her 4 chickens, a brahma, a BR and the rest are welsummers, so the egg ID is fairly easy.


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## KSALguy (Feb 14, 2006)

do they have white legs and a fifth toe? also depending on what feed store, if its a mom and pop or if its a chain, some mom and pop stores buy chicks or hatching eggs from locals, if this is the case that would explain alot, 

the reason i ask about the fifth toe is Faverolie hens have muffs, a color pattern similar to some EE's and lay brown eggs, its just a thought


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## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

They have greyish legs. I've never noticed a fifth toe, but can't say as I've ever really looked. Doesn't mean there isn't some faverolle or what have you floating around in them. I don't particularly care, an egg is an egg is an egg, but my DD had her heart set on green eggs.


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

Sounds like your daughter's momma might need to give her a gift of a few EE pullets. Ours came from Farm and Fleet, who got them from Cackle. We have three left (started with five). All three lay nearly every day. One lays a light blue/green egg. One lays a pretty, light green egg. The other one lays an olive green egg.


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## chickenista (Mar 24, 2007)

That's a shame.. if we were closer, I would trade you even for bright blue egg layers adn I would take your brown duds.


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## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

I told her we'll 'buy' her chickens from her and she can go buy some more. It just doesn't quite make it up for her though. So goes life, eh?


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## wofarm (Nov 30, 2009)

just from curiosity, rub off the brown and see what color the shells are, also look at the inside of the shell, remove the membrane a note the shell color. Its possible the shell may have a very slight blue tint. 

I doubt they are a Araucana X Ameraucana cross, they could be 1 of those crossed to some kind of brown egg chicken or they could be the result of several crosses.


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## Sanza (Sep 8, 2008)

Awe, I wish I could slip you a few hens across the border. I know all the kids love the blue eggs and I'll bet she's heartbroken.


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## Guest (Feb 12, 2010)

Easter Eggers are always a craps shoot. _Usually_ they'll have the blue egg gene so that you'll get blue eggs or green eggs if they also have the genetics for the brown coating that turns the blue to green. Usually, but not always.

For her next batch of birds if she is giving the option of choosing from a batch of chicks at the feed store have her look for birds with a pea comb rather than a single comb. If a bird has both the blue egg gene and the pea comb gene they are nearly always closely linked and will nearly always be passed on together. If the birds are sold as easter eggers/ameracaunas/arucaunas (hatcheries and feedstores sometimes use any of those names) and they have pea combs then chances are very good they'll have the blue egg gene.

.....Alan.


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## Terry W (Mar 10, 2006)

I got my original amercaunas from hoover-- got green eggs from the hens. the second set came from strombergs-- the birds are colored more like partridges, are a bit heavier, more 'muffy'- both sexes-. The two girls,are just starting their first go round of egg laying-- one is laying green, the other is more blue than green. the older hen from Hoover has been laying a lighter colored egg now- the pales fo greens--year, her eggs were sage green...


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## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

A.T. Hagan said:


> Easter Eggers are always a craps shoot. _Usually_ they'll have the blue egg gene so that you'll get blue eggs or green eggs if they also have the genetics for the brown coating that turns the blue to green. Usually, but not always.
> 
> For her next batch of birds if she is giving the option of choosing from a batch of chicks at the feed store have her look for birds with a pea comb rather than a single comb. If a bird has both the blue egg gene and the pea comb gene they are nearly always closely linked and will nearly always be passed on together. If the birds are sold as easter eggers/ameracaunas/arucaunas (hatcheries and feedstores sometimes use any of those names) and they have pea combs then chances are very good they'll have the blue egg gene.
> 
> .....Alan.


That's good to know, thanks! One of the two laying at the moment has a comb so big, I thought for a while she might be a rooster,... or maybe a hermaphrodite as she also had no rooster sex feathers. It's the biggest comb I've ever seen on a hen of any of the four breeds that I have experience with. The other one has a pea comb. Hopefully the other two will have colored eggs when they start laying.


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## Jay27 (Jan 11, 2010)

Choose light colored chicks. I find the dark feather araucanas usually lay orangey-brown eggs but the light feathered ones lay olive or blue. 

All my araucanas have dark legs and do not have extra toes. They come from a reputable hatchery and were quite expensive compared to other day old chicks.

Are the eggs brown or are they a pastel orangey-brown?


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## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

The eggs are brown. They look exactly like the eggs that come from the brahma and the barred rock.


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## katydidagain (Jun 11, 2004)

As a child, I had green eggs; I had to wait 40 years to see another so I understand your daughter's disappointment. I don't think my EEers have extra toes and they don't have muffs but they do have peacombs and grayish/blue legs. I purchased mine as adults. I'm hoping someone goes broody but, with 2 roos (1 is an EEer) and no way to separate chickens, I suspect I'll have a real hodge podge. Does anyone know how soon the leg color and comb type become obvious in chicks?


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## Guest (Feb 12, 2010)

Leg color, leg feathering, feather color, extra toes, none of those things necessarily have anything to do with with the color of the egg the hen will lay. They are all controlled by different genes than the ones that control egg shell color. It's even possible for a bird to not have the pea comb and still lay green/blue eggs or to have a pea and not lay green/blue eggs.

But generally speaking most of the time if the birds are represented as being easter eggers and they have the pea comb they're the ones to go with. If the bird has both of those genes they are nearly always passed together.

.....Alan.


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## Joshie (Dec 8, 2008)

chickenista said:


> That's a shame.. if we were closer, I would trade you even for bright blue egg layers adn I would take your brown duds.


Where did you get your bright blue eggers? I'd love to get some good blue egg birds but all I've found is mutts.


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## onthespot (Oct 7, 2007)

Pea combs on day old chicks feel like a wide smooth area instead of a narrow comb area with a ridge of tiny teeth. Don't feel odd to bring a magnifying glass and a good flashlight with you to look at combs. If you get day old chicks with smooth comb areas, muffs, brown striped down chances are excellent for a blue/green/olive egg. Anything with a single (single row of pointy teeth on the comb) will not lay green/brown regardless of if it has beard or not. Beards are not associated with blue/green eggs, but pea combs are, but only in blue laying lines. For example Brahmas have a pea comb but lay a light tan egg. Hope this helps. Ya learn something new every day, sometimes the hard way.


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## egg head (Nov 11, 2009)

We have a beautiful easter egger with a great pea comb and light feathing, she lays real smooth, large eggs and lots of them, They are beautiful if you like white eggs and I mean white, not cream. We do have some that are laying good large green eggs. Alan your right about the shoot in the dark


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## onthespot (Oct 7, 2007)

Joshie said:


> Where did you get your bright blue eggers? I'd love to get some good blue egg birds but all I've found is mutts.


I sell hatching eggs. I have one bright blue egg layer that is a white ameraucana, in with a splash ameraucana roo with color faults, silver hackles and rusty shoulders. The chicks should lay bright blue though, but not be showable most likely. You can see some of my birds on my site.
http://pattycarson.com/poultry.html
I have a lot of kinds of chickens, most hatching eggs are $3 apiece, shipping extra. Some varieties have a waiting list right now, but none are long.


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

Patty, you might want to check your website. It seems to be parked.

If you will put a white egg layer breed roo (a silky would be best to improve the color) in with that bright blue layer, I'd love to buy some of the eggs.


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## onthespot (Oct 7, 2007)

Thanks for the heads up about my site. It is not parked. For me it shows fine. For some reason there are people who can not see it for any reason, no matter what they do. It does have flashing banners on it because it is free hosted, but not sure if that is part of the problem. Sorry you couldn't see it. 
The only white silkie roo I have is a showgirl, doubt anyone would want Ameraucana/showgirl crosses,


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