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Araucana is a rare breed of chickens native to South America. She is known for laying eggs with an interesting blue hue. This interested European poultry farmers, who worked to improve the breed. Consider the main characteristics of the Araucan chicken breed and their features.

A bit of history

This breed of chickens began to be bred in the South American tribe of Indians with the name Araucan, living in the foothills of the Andes, back in pre-Columbian times. The Indians used the fighting qualities of roosters, arranging cockfights. It was believed that the tail only interferes in a fight, so only tailless individuals were bred. The first mention of laying hens with blue eggs in European sources dates back to 1526.
Although it is an ancient breed, it only became known to the general public in 1926 at the World Scientific Association of Poultry Breeders in Europe. Some breeders from different countries showed interest in exotic chickens with unusual egg colors and began to work on breeding and improving them. Therefore, the Araucan breed has more than one standard.

Description of the breed

Chickens of the Araucan breed can be immediately recognized by the absence of a tail, their coccyx is not developed at all. If there are feathers on the tail, then they are simply cut off. These decorative egg hens are most often bred because of the color of their eggs, which have shades of turquoise.

Important! The English and American standards allow for the presence of a tail, but the British require the presence of a crest. Unacceptable shortcomings include if it is too developed. Individuals with a different (not bluish or greenish) egg color, clumsy angular build, too narrow body, fallen crest in males, too pronounced beard, lack or shortage of feather tufts are also rejected.

Appearance

The appearance of these chickens can be found in the table below.

Did you know? Delayed puberty occurs in fatty chickens or in individuals that were bred during the cold period (autumn-winter). For the onset of egg production, fat women are put on a monthly diet.

Character

Araucan males are pugnacious and aggressive towards males of any breed. They can even attack the owner if they feel a threat to themselves and their family in it. Chickens have a peaceful and calm disposition, but not particularly good mothers. Only one individual out of 7 laying hens wakes up maternal instinct.

Advantages and disadvantages

Araucan chickens have the following advantages:

• unpretentiousness;
• their health and egg production are not affected by molting and weather changes;
• easily tolerate climate change and temperature changes;
• unique color of eggs;
• early maturation;
• high survival rate of offspring and vitality of adults;
• exotic look.

The disadvantages include the following:

• male pugnacity;
• the presence of a semi-lethal gene that causes early death;
• laying hens have no incubation instinct;
• rarity and small number of representatives of the breed.

Content Features

Due to their bullying behavior, Araucan males should be housed separately from other breeds if there is already a male in the family. Otherwise, their maintenance and care are the same as those of other poultry that are more familiar to us.

Did you know? The number of all chickens raised by people exceeds the number of mankind by 3 times.

poultry house

The room for Araucan chickens should be equipped in the same way as for ordinary chickens. These unpretentious birds can be kept in various conditions- from cages to free range. In the usual poultry house floor type the calculation of the area of ​​​​the premises should be based on living on 1 sq. m no more than 4 hens. It would be optimal to make zoning enclosures for each family in order to exclude fights. One rooster can pay attention to no more than 8 females. The poultry house should also be equipped with perches (30 cm for each individual) and nests (one for 5 hens).
The floor can be made of wood, concrete or earthen. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages, but in any case, there should be bedding made of hay, straw or sawdust. During the summer, more good option there will be a choice of sand bedding, more convenient for cleaning. The bedding and the room should be cleaned regularly, and general disinfection should be carried out 1-4 times a year. This breed can easily tolerate temperatures as low as -6°C and can be kept in climates with mild winters without heating the house.

In doing so, it should be taken into account that best temperature to achieve the highest productivity indicators, the temperature is 17–20°C. For the same reason, the poultry house in winter time should be further illuminated. Ventilation or ventilation without drafts should be provided. For small room a vent will suffice. It is also necessary to install feeders, drinkers and an ash bath.

The productivity of laying hens increases when walking. Sunlight contributes to a more intense color of the eggs, so it is recommended to walk the birds even in cold weather down to -5 ° C. To do this, you should make and equip a walking yard. It is best to put a fence from 1.5 meters high from metal mesh. It is not necessary to close the paddock from above - araucans do not fly well. The leeward side (especially if it is north) should be sealed with shields or other material available on the farm.
Be sure to make a canopy to protect the birds from the hot rays of the sun and precipitation. The role of such a canopy can be played by a tree with a fairly dense crown. The territory of the walking yard should be equipped with drinkers and feeders, as well as an ash bath.

Feeders, drinkers, ash baths

In places where birds are kept and walked, they should be fed and watered. For hygienic reasons, it is necessary to choose such feeders and drinkers in which chickens could not step on their feet and contaminate their food and drink. Well suited options that should be mounted on a wall or fence at some distance from the ground. It is important that the drinkers and feeders can serve all the birds, and are installed in an elevated place where, in case of bad weather, puddles do not form.

Important! Keep feeders clean andin a timely manner remove uneaten food, as stale food can be dangerous and lead to severe poisoning, as well as contribute to the spread of various infections.

Seasonal molt and break in egg production

With good care, laying hens of the Araucan breed continue to lay eggs even during the molting period. To do this, they should provide good nutrition with sufficient intake of vitamins and minerals needed during this period.

Planned herd replacement

Araucans can lay eggs for up to 10 years, but the best egg production in chickens of this breed takes up to 2 years. Then you should take measures to change layers. In order not to search and buy young animals or hatching eggs of this rare breed, you can grow a new shift yourself.

Important!Even having created all the conditions for successful conception, it must be taken into account that in this breed, mating is complicated due to anatomical reasons, and only about 60% of the eggs can be fertilized.

However, breeding this breed is not easy. The following points must be taken into account:

• for successful fertilization, the females cut off the feathers on the tail around the cloaca by 5 cm, which interfere with conception. Otherwise, the likelihood of fruitless contact with the rooster increases. This procedure is carried out every 20 days;
• laying hens of this breed do not have an incubation instinct, which means that it will be necessary to use an incubator or lay blue eggs in another breed of chickens in which it is well developed;
• an individual with a crest is paired with an individual without it - this significantly reduces the transmission of the semi-lethal gene.

Feeding ration

Chickens and chickens of the Araucan breed are fed in the same way as other decorative egg or meat and egg breeds.

chickens

The nutrition of chickens of the Araucan breed does not have any particularities. The first 7 days their diet consists of chopped boiled eggs, which are mixed with cereals (semolina, millet), as well as cottage cheese and greens. When cooking egg mash, they adhere to the following proportion: 50 g of porridge is taken for 1 egg. You can purchase specialized compound feed for chickens, which contains all the necessary trace elements for babies.

After three days, you can give wet mash from yogurt and cereals (wheat, corn, oatmeal). From the fifth day, chopped green herbs: nettle, clover, dandelion and alfalfa. Then you can switch to age-appropriate foods. It is important to give clean water and change it more often to avoid intestinal infections.

adult chickens

Adult birds are fed at least three times a day. Usually in the morning and in the evening they give the grain in a dry form, and for lunch they prepare a wet mash. Basically, the feed consists of grain crops (about 50-60%). Be sure to add vitamins and minerals to the diet, especially in winter period. In summer, birds get enough nutrients during grazing in the form of fresh herbs. In the cold period, pumpkin, root crops (potatoes, carrots, beets, zucchini and others), bone and fish meal are added to the feed for vitamins.

It should be noted that Araucans are birds from the tropics and they need greens in their diet. Therefore, in winter, when there is no fresh grass on the range, it is recommended to include chopped needles in the diet; it is poured into a separate container and placed near the feeders. Sprouted grains are also excellent. Gravel should also be placed near the feeders, which helps to improve the digestive process in birds.

You can give food scraps as feed, but they must be fresh. This will help save money on food purchases. Overfeeding birds in order to gain weight faster is not worth it. A large amount of feed will not contribute to a rapid increase in weight, but overeating can inhibit the development of young animals and reduce the laying of laying hens. The daily norm for one individual should be approximately 150 g.
In the first year of life, young animals are recommended to include compound feed with a high protein content in the diet for active growth. As a source of calcium to improve productivity, you can use chalk, crushed shells or special additives that can be purchased at specialized stores. So, the breed of Araucan chickens is kept mainly for the sake of an interesting turquoise shade of eggs. They are unpretentious in maintenance and feeding, but there are solvable problems with reproduction.

Today, in the modern world, everyone can buy chickens of an unusual exotic breed. They are called unique because they are able to produce eggs of an unusual color. Araucan chickens are considered such birds. They lay turquoise eggs, which are no longer found in the world. Some species of birds do not have a tail, but for some it is simply cut off.

You can see a photo of the breed of laying hens from this

External qualities of the Araucan chicken breed

Araucan birds are characterized by the production of greenish-blue-shelled eggs. The reason for the lack of a tail is that they do not have tail vertebrae. This trait is inherited. Chickens have an interesting and unusual feather decoration on their heads, presented in the form of a mustache and beard.

Oryol breed of chickens description and many other data are indicated

This breed is classified as decorative egg, because those who have acquired Araucan can immediately notice how the number of eggs in it will increase every day.

The appearance of pets is regulated by standard norms. The head is small, the beak is small, looking down a little. The eyes are round in shape, have a red-orange color. The comb is small in size, presented in the form of peas or a pod. Whiskers are long and well defined. The earlobes are red and small. The neck is long, the back is short, broad and always looks straight. The sternum is slightly convex, wide. The body is dense and rounded. Wings of small length, very tightly attached to the body. The legs are low, strong, have a blue-green color.

In addition, everyone today can purchase Araucany dwarf chickens.

If the bird is bred in industrial conditions, then there are a number of signs by which they are culled:

• turquoise shade,
• clumsiness or angularity of the animal,
• the body is narrow and flat,
• the males' comb falls off,
• prominent beard,
• there are no feather lumps on the body at all or on one side,
• there is a tail.

The chicken coop and aviary should be equipped with feeders and drinkers. These devices must be disinfected every day. Pets need mineral supplements all the time. This may require an additional feeder. It should be constantly filled with gravel, crushed shells and other products that contain calcium.

That space on the street, where the chickens will be most of their time, must be protected with a net, awnings should be made. Need to think protective fence so that the chickens are protected from predator attacks. You can not keep Araucan chickens with other breeds. The reason is that the former have a very pugnacious character. In addition, mating with other breeds is undesirable.

If you create weight for chickens the necessary conditions residence, then you will be able to achieve high productivity of eggs from these exotic inhabitants.

Although chickens have such an extravagant appearance, the owner does not need to be particularly wrapped up in choosing a diet. It is compiled taking into account local conditions. It is also necessary to add greener feed, waste, vitamin flour, whole grains, mineral supplements. The process of feeding in birds occurs 3-4 times a day. In the morning you need to give whole grains, and throughout the day - wet mash. It is often necessary to add greens and vitamin supplements to their diet. If you take care of the birds in this way, then this will have a positive effect on their productivity and excellent health.

Is it possible to feed laying hens with boiled potatoes?

Chickens of the Araucan breed are gaining more and more popularity and prevalence every year. Today, such pets can be found even in private courtyards. To purchase breeding individuals, you need to seek help from a reliable seller. At the same time, it is important to remember about placing acquired birds in quarantine. If a virus gets into the chicken coop, then you will have to spend a lot of effort and money to fight it, and the result obtained from this will greatly disappoint you.

It is necessary to acquire a hatching egg very carefully. The reason is that the structural features of the skeleton of animals require special preparations before the birds have sexual contact. If the poultry farmer did not carry out any preparation, then the eggs will be infertile. To achieve high quality hatching eggs, it is necessary to cut the feathers and down near the genitals of the male and female.

Araucan chickens during selection do not show the instinct of motherhood. Growing chickens occurs according to the same methodology as the rest of the breeds of cubs.

In the photo - Araucan chickens Araucan chickens:

Modern farmers very often buy chickens of this breed, and only because it has a decorative and exotic look, and also because of the laying of turquoise eggs. In addition, birds are unpretentious in care, and their meat has high palatability.

Content:

Modern poultry farming is replete with breeds of chickens belonging to an exotic direction. This can also include chickens that lay eggs of an unusual blue and turquoise color. I especially want to highlight the Araucan breed - birds not only have a unique appearance, but also products that no other chicken gives. Unusual feature is the absence of a tail in some subspecies, while in others it is specially trimmed by the owners.

Breeding history

Araucans are very ancient and unusual breeds. The birthplace of birds is considered South America, namely Chile, where they were brought out by the Indians, originating from the tribe of the same name. History indicates that chickens have already existed for long years before Columbus made his journey.

The Indians carried out a kind of selection selection, selected such birds that can carry eggs different color, as well as roosters, who have a fighting disposition. Males without a tail belonged to a special category. According to the beliefs of the natives, this decoration only interferes in cockfights.

The bluish-greenish color of the eggshell can be considered a truly unique feature of the Araucan, but this trait is not transmitted when birds are crossed with other breeds, or rather, it disappears already in the first generation. The products themselves have the same composition as the eggs of the most ordinary chickens, but, apparently, outlandish shells make some consumers consider them extremely useful.

According to legend, wild pheasants or someone very reminiscent of them are to thank the araucana for the unusual color of the shell. But no scientist has so far confirmed the existing hypothesis.

Thanks to modern research it became known that turquoise eggs are so colored because the pigment biliverdin is formed in the oviduct. The first mention of Araucan falls on 1526. After 300 years, a small number of birds were taken out of Chile, which marked the beginning of the spread of new chickens around the world. The standard for chickens was introduced only in 1965 in Germany.

What do birds look like?

The breed has several characteristic features. The most important of them can be called the unusual color of the egg shell. In second place is the absence of a tail, because birds do not have tail vertebrae (this is considered a dominant feature that is inherited). The head is decorated with a mustache and a beard of feathers.

Araucana belongs to the egg-decorative breeds. By purchasing unusual birds, the breeder receives not only a real decoration for the farmstead, but also beautiful laying hens.

There is a strict standard for the appearance of the breed:

• small head;
• beak of medium size with a slight bend;
• eyes are round, orange-red;
• comb small in the form of a pod or pea;
• ears with earrings are red;
• whiskers, consisting of feathers, can be clearly seen;
• the neck is of medium length;
• the thoracic region is convex and wide;
• birds have a dense physique;
• wings are moderately long;
• limbs with metatarsus have an unusual greenish-blue color;
• the tail is missing.

Chickens of the Araucan breed can be distinguished by color. It happens:

• wild;
• golden;
• snow-white;
• black;
• blue.

There is also a dwarf form of the breed.

Productive qualities

Araucans are medium in size. Chickens gain weight from 1.5 to 1.7 kg, roosters - from 1.8 to 2 kg.

Sexual maturity is early, 160 eggs can be obtained from one hen in 365 days, one egg weighs up to 58 g. Laying hens have no incubation instinct, and this is a problem when breeding at home.

Subtleties of content

When arranging a chicken coop, if a decision is made to breed araucans in his backyard, the owner must remember that they will need separate room in which they will live as a family. Also, when containing several subspecies, a separate room is allocated for each of them.

Such features are due to the fact that Araucans have a very difficult character. And if the laying hens are calm enough, then the roosters have a very cocky character, especially with the onset of spring. They do not tolerate strangers, there are known cases when aggression was directed directly at the owner. This can happen if the rooster begins to think that a person is a threat to his family.

Araucans are fairly small birds and, if the diet is not properly composed, can become extremely fat very quickly. The main thing is to comply with the regulations and not overfeed your pets. The diet consists of a standard set of feed.

For birds, it is very important to maintain a balance in minerals, they are necessary for the shell to form strong, and the health of chickens always remains at its best.

You can keep Chilean beauties or in a cellular way, or floor with access to the walking space. With the first method, no more than three laying hens and one rooster are planted in one cage, such a population density should be observed by 1 square meter. If the second method is chosen, then you can populate a little more birds, most often one family consists of eight hens and one producer.

The walking space must be enclosed with a net, and inside make a canopy, it will protect chickens from birds of prey as well as bad weather conditions. Outdoor food and water containers need to be cleaned regularly with disinfectants. It is recommended to periodically clean the yard from possible poisonous plants, which can not only harm the Araucans, but also cause the death of livestock.

Despite the fact that the country with a fairly warm climate is the birthplace of birds, the araucana is quite adapted to endure small frosts down to -8 ° C. If the farm is located in an area with warm winters, you can not worry about additional heating of the bird house. But if the araucana lives in the northern zone, then you need to take care of additional heating devices that are installed in the chicken coop.

Nuances of breeding

As mentioned earlier in the article, chickens do not have a brooding instinct. In this case, you will have to purchase incubation material, chickens or already reared livestock, here each farmer makes his choice - who prefers what.

When buying young animals or incubation material, you need to pay attention to some features:

• there is pigmentation in the color of the shell or the shell itself is brown - these are signs of marriage;
• the presence of a tail;
• lack of a "beard";
• a scallop falling to one side or another;
• laying hens have an angular physique.

When buying incubation material, it is important to know one feature. When a breeding rooster is crossed with laying hens of any other breed, eggs are obtained that are characteristic of the Araucan breed in color, but the hatched young cannot be considered purebred. In order not to become a victim of fraud, it is best to contact a proven farm that breeds the breed to buy eggs.

There are some other features of breeding, which can be attributed to the difficulties. The biggest problem is the difficulty with fertilization. As already mentioned, birds do not have a tail, and therefore it is very difficult for a rooster to get close to the laying cloaca. It is recommended to remove feathers near this area for easier and more successful fertilization.

The young have a good percentage of survival, in addition, the chickens are unpretentious, and they are kept in the same conditions as the most common chicks of other breeds.

Features of feeding

Araucan poultry farmers often make a very common mistake. They are trying to increase the amount of meat products, and therefore they simply overfeed the chickens. The growth of broilers is stimulated by the amount of feed, which is not typical for araucans, the birds will not gain weight, they will simply get fat.

If there are chickens of other breeds on the farm, the feed is prepared exactly the same for both. Chilean beauties are distinguished by unpretentiousness in food, and they do not need to cook something special. It is only important to make the diet as diverse as possible.

feed table

On the advantages and disadvantages

Aarukana is a very elegant bird that will become a real decoration of any farmstead. Before deciding to breed this breed, you should familiarize yourself with its advantages and disadvantages. The undoubted positive characteristics include the following:

• birds are unpretentious and quickly adapt to any conditions;
• get along well at any temperature, if you follow all the rules of maintenance;
• young animals have a high survival rate;
• early maturation and early oviposition;
• birds are very unusual in appearance.

Such interesting pets also have their disadvantages:

• pugnacity of roosters;
• lack of incubation instinct;

the breed is rare, in connection with this the bird is very expensive.

Among the types of chickens that people have been breeding since ancient times, there are many breeds. And in this list there are very unique varieties.

These include araucana chickens. Description they can start with the following characteristics, subject to a strict standard defined in Europe in the last century.

Representatives of the breed do not differ in special sizes:

• weigh about 2 kg
• have a small head
• medium size, curved down, beak
• scalloped scallop
• round reddish-orange eyes.

But apart from relatively ordinary signs, as can be seen on a photo, araucana are distinguished by rather colorful features of appearance: feather long sideburns, beard and mustache that adorn the head.

Pictured is an Araucan chicken

Plus, nature has provided them with red "earrings", that is, tassels hanging from small ears. Neck of birds of this exotic breed middle length, the back is straight and wide, the chest is slightly convex, the physique is dense, and strong long legs are distinguished by a green-blue tint.

There is also another curious feature of this species - the absence of a tail, as evidenced by a photo. Araucan chickens either from birth they are deprived of this detail of their external appearance, or their tail is removed shortly after their birth.

The reason for this requirement of standards lies in the history of the breed, because once upon a time, when breeding, individuals were selected for cockfights. And the correspondence of male qualities was determined not only by their ability to fight, but also by the absence of tail vertebrae, which, it was believed, interfered during fierce fights with opponents arakuana rooster.

However, in modern chicken breeding, the breed belongs mainly to a very rare, decorative egg direction. And there are good reasons for this, hidden in another unique ability of the breed.

Aracuana chickens lay greenish-blue or turquoise eggs, which are not worse than the most common chicken eggs. A rare shade occurs due to the presence of a special pigment biliverdin in the shell.

True, as practice shows, a similar color in many cases disappears without a trace when crossing araucana with other breeds already in the first generation, and the eggs of hybrids, very often, become the most common.

The shade of the feathers of the impressive birds of the described breed is distinguished by an enviable variety and depends on the subspecies. According to the standard, there are:

• wheat blue
• black-red
• white
• hawks and even
• specimens that delight with a golden or silver neck.

In total, according to the necessary characteristics, twelve colors of this breed are allowed.

Care and maintenance of Araucan chickens

When equipping a chicken coop for birds, one should take into account their lifestyle and character. The Araucan breed is best kept in enclosures. small families. It is also possible to place them in cages of suitable size, where a pair of females and a rooster are quite capable of existing. When kept in enclosures, the number of chickens can be increased to eight.

Females of this breed, as a rule, are quite peaceful and calm. But, especially in the spring, they often show signs of aggression and start fights with strangers.

These bullies are even able to pounce on the owner if they did not like his behavior or something angered and aroused suspicion. Given the similar quarrelsomeness and absurd nature of males, Araucan chickens should be placed in nests separate from other breeds, equipped with perches and feeders.

These do not fly well, so the cages for their maintenance may not be too high, but bird walking should be equipped without fail. Hens need heating only during the frost period, they tolerate cold well and at moderate temperatures (down to -8 ° C) do not need additional heating.

At good content and proper nutrition araucana can produce up to 180 eggs per year. Usually, hens start laying their first eggs before six months of age, but delays often occur.

In the photo, eggs of araucana chickens

Experienced chicken breeders attribute this to a number of reasons, the first of which is bird obesity. To cope with such a problem, it is necessary to reduce the feeding norms, at least for a month.

In addition, the ability of the Araucan to bring eggs may be delayed if it belongs to the late: autumn or winter brood, so it is very important to take this circumstance into account for the intended owner of the birds when buying them.

It is considered normal that the color of the eggs may change depending on the season, and in the cold season they may become less bright. And you don't have to worry about this at all.

Typically, chicken eggs of this breed weigh about 60 grams or more. There are specimens of smaller sizes and weights. This, again, is not a violation of the rules, and most often such eggs belong to one of the subspecies of the breed - dwarf araucans.

Breeding and nutrition of the Araucan breed

Araucan chicken breed, an amazing property to present its owners with multi-colored eggs, has Chilean roots, and received the name by the name of the Indian tribe, whose members similar domestic ones were bred long before the discovery of the continent by Columbus.

According to some sources, this happened by crossing chickens with wild birds or birds of similar species. After the mass development of America, the arakuans came to the European continent, but only in the last century were they officially assigned to the German standard, which determined the main characteristics for this breed of chickens.

Araucan chickens

There are, of course, other views on stringent requirements. The British, for example, believe that the absence of a tail in Arakuana is not at all necessary, but a crest must certainly adorn these birds. It is useful for amateur chicken breeders to know that often the absence of a tail interferes with roosters when mating, which, perhaps, refers to some of the minuses of the breed.

Breeding of such poultry should be started with the acquisition of chickens or a pair: and a rooster, but not with the purchase of eggs, in the hope that chickens will hatch from them - the owners of the necessary external parameters and useful characteristics.

This is done in order to have perfect confidence in the purity of the breed, which is easy to confuse with others, for example, Easter chickens and some others. unusual species because of the similar color of the eggs.

Araucan rooster

In addition, information is very useful for amateur chicken breeders that araucana chickens up to a certain age with difficulty exact definition gender. This is due to the peculiarities of the structure of the scallop and other external factors, which makes it difficult for the birds to settle properly in the nests.

Only after 12 weeks, pigtails appear on the neck of the roosters, helping to distinguish them from chickens, which makes it possible to properly form chicken families. Such birds, having a small size, with immoderate nutrition, get fat quite easily, which can negatively affect the ability to lay eggs.

It is better to prevent this by preventing the poultry from overeating, but to fully provide the feed with the minerals necessary for healthy development and the formation of a strong shell of an unusual color for which they are famous araucana eggs.

To provide valuable chickens mineral supplements it is better to build additional feeders, regularly filling them with small shells, gravel and chalk.

Special coniferous flour is also needed as a valuable nutritional supplement. And the diet must include greens, fruits and vegetables. Dry grain is not entirely suitable for the full digestion of chickens; it is better to prepare special mashes. But it is especially important that the nutrition of birds, in addition to the above, be supplemented with bran, cake, pumpkin, cabbage leaves and bone meal.

Breed price and owner reviews

Chickens of this breed have always been considered excellent mother hens and have an exceptional maternal instinct, which is confirmed by the reviews of bird owners who are seriously involved in their breeding.

These pets do not reduce the productivity of laying eggs, depending on stressful circumstances, changes in housing conditions, the vagaries of the weather, or the onset of a molting period.

Exceptions can only be during transportation and changing the place of detention, which for a couple of weeks may affect the ability of chickens to fully lay eggs.

All of the above properties and the original color of the eggs make amateur content convenient. araucana, a buy and to breed representatives of this breed of poultry, there are enough people who want to.

But it is quite difficult to find a good breeder who supplies chickens in Russia that meet accepted standards. And the risk of becoming an object of deception is too great and to receive, instead of purebred specimens, individuals that do not correspond well to the characteristics of the breed.

Enough and negative feedback from dissatisfied customers who have made such transactions, therefore, when choosing a breeder, you should be more careful and use the services of professionals.

araucana price is 250 rubles, is approximate cost day-old chicks, which, according to reviews, are best bought at the beginning of the season, but not in summer or autumn.

Some of the decorative chickens not only have aesthetic value, but also bring practical benefits to the household.

These include the old breed of Araucan - these are beautiful, exotic birds with good egg productivity. An additional highlight is the blue color of the eggs.

Description of the breed

The name of this breed of chickens of South American origin was given by the name of the Araucan Indian tribe, who bred a bird for cockfights. Europeans described chickens with unusual eggs as early as 1526, but only at the end of the 19th century were they brought to the Old World. In 1920, the breed was presented to bird lovers at the World Scientific Association of Poultry Breeders, after which it gained popularity among poultry farmers and breeders.

Appearance

Araucanas are medium-sized chickens: the weight of laying hens reaches only 1.5-2 kg, for roosters - 2-2.5 kg. The body has a soft rounded shape, well developed shoulders, lower back and abdomen. Comb - pea-shaped, lobes small size. The legs are short, without plumage, blue-green hue. The wings are close to the body.

Distinctive outward signs breeds are the absence of a tail and tufts of feathers on the head, which can be of 3 types: symmetrical tassels near the beak, resembling a mustache, and a beard, only tassels or a combination of a beard and sideburns.

Interesting!

The breed standard was fixed only in the middle of the 20th century. At the moment there are 3 types of Araucan: German, English and American. If German breeders cull birds with a tail, then English and American breeders allow it. At the same time, according to the English standard, there must be a crest on the head of chickens.

There are 12 variants of Araucan colors registered:

1. Wild. The head and neck are brown with a red tint, fading to black on the chest and legs. In roosters, the shade of the feather is darker than in hens by several tones.
2. wild blue. The color is similar to the Wild, but instead of black, the chest is decorated with blue feathers.
3. Blue. One-color color, the entire body of the bird is covered with feathers of a gray-blue hue.
4. The black. The feathers are dyed black sunlight noticeable emerald tide.
5. Black red. Red-gold plumage on the head and neck, and the body, wings and legs are painted black.
6. Blue bordered. The head and neck of the bird are covered with golden-red feathers, as in the Black-Red color, but the feather on the body is blue.
7. Wheat. The plumage of hens is creamy yellow, in roosters yellow in color more intense, rather reddish.
8. Blue wheat. Combination of blue and wheat colors.
9. Golden-maned. The plumage on the head and neck is dark amber, on the back and wings - red, on the belly and hips - black.
10. Blue golden mane. The color is similar to the Golden Mane, but instead of black areas - blue.
11. Silvermane. The whole body of the chicken is covered with silvery feathers, the tone of which brightens towards the head. There should be dark patches on the wings. In roosters, silver plumage is present only on the head and neck, the main part of the body is painted black, with the exception of brown wings.
12. Hawkish. Bird feathers are colored with stripes - alternating black and blue colors.

The nature of the breed

Araucan roosters are aggressive, especially towards strangers. They can attack other birds and even people. The nature of chickens, on the contrary, is calm, non-conflict.

Puberty and egg production

Laying hens start laying eggs at 5.5 or 6 months. In birds from an autumn or winter brood, laying may be delayed up to 10 months. On average, the weight of Araucan eggs ranges from 50 to 57 grams. In young chickens, the eggs are smaller, subsequently their weight increases. A laying hen lays 160-180 eggs per year, showing the highest productivity during the first two years after the start of laying.

Eggs are interesting appearance: the shell has a blue or green tint. The brightest color in the eggs of young chickens, gradually the shade of the shell turns pale. Seasonal fluctuations in color intensity are also noted - eggs become noticeably discolored in winter.

Araucan chickens are characterized by stable egg-laying - its intensity only slightly decreases during molting, in the cold season or under the influence of stress.

Attention!

Transportation of birds is capable of provoking a break in oviposition. Despite the rapid adaptation to new conditions, Araucan chickens do not tolerate transportation well. But after 2 weeks, a maximum of a month, the birds will begin to rush with the same intensity.

Advantages and disadvantages

There are enough reasons to highly appreciate Araucan chickens:

• decorative;
• good egg performance;
• stability of oviposition, which is maintained in winter and during molting;
• tasty meat;
• early age start laying;
• endurance, adaptive abilities;
• unpretentiousness in care;
• not susceptibility to disease;
• frost resistance.

But the shortcomings of the breed can become strong arguments against its content:

• difficulties with breeding the breed;
• high mortality among chickens;
• pugnacity of roosters.

Araucan chickens will not cause their owners any particular difficulties if it is possible to settle them separately from other breeds. The high level of aggression in roosters makes it impossible even to keep two males of the same breed in the same territory. Birds should be divided into families of 7-8 layers for each rooster. Chickens can be kept in cages, which can solve the problem of separation.

Conditions of detention

Breed shows to the place of residence usual requirements- cleanliness, dryness, absence of drafts in the room. In addition, it is worth getting a paddock, as the chickens are actively foraging.

Required parameters of the chicken coop:

1. It is allowed to place 4 birds per 1m2.
2. The nest relies on every 5 layers.
3. For one bird you need to allocate 30 cm perch.
4. You should not make perches high, because birds do not fly well.
5. In winter, temperatures up to -6 ... -8 ° C are allowed in the chicken coop. Optimum thermal conditions for birds: +16…+20°C.

Feeding the adult herd

For the normal functioning of the body and the formation of eggs, the diet of birds must contain:

1. Protein food. Proteins are rich in legumes, fish and meat waste, cake, meat and bone meal, earthworms and other insects.
2. Vegetable fats. The main bet should be made on corn and oats.
3. Fiber. From vegetables, preference should be given to pumpkin, carrots, potatoes, cabbage.
4. Vitamins. It is necessary to add greens, yeast, bone meal to the feed, in winter - silage, dried herbs and coniferous flour.
5. Minerals. To form a shell, birds need a lot of calcium, the need for which is replenished by chalk, crushed shells, and ground eggshells. In addition, wood ash should be added to the diet and chickens should be given the opportunity to consume fine gravel and sand.

In caring for this breed, it is useful to adhere to a regular daily routine. Meals, walks, going to bed and getting up should occur at the same time, and equal intervals should be maintained between feedings. In this case, the layers will be as productive as possible.

Moulting period

Moulting has little effect on the egg production of chickens. Birds do not require specific care during this period, but the proportion of foods rich in calcium, protein, and sulfur should be increased in their diet. You need to add more cabbage, legumes, fish, meat, cake to the feed. Such nutrition contributes to the rapid replacement of plumage and high quality pen.

Diseases

The breed is characterized by a tendency to obesity, especially when living in cages without walking, so chickens should not be overfed. Due to being overweight, laying hens may be “late” with laying eggs or produce eggs less actively. Overfed birds should be limited in the amount of feed, reduce the proportion of carbohydrates in the diet (eliminate crackers, yeast, etc.) and provide food with a high content of calcium and vitamins or appropriate additives. After 1-1.5 months of such a diet, chickens, as a rule, return to their weight norm.

Buying Araucan Chickens

Despite the large number of offers from private traders, it is recommended to purchase birds only from official breeders, since cases of selling other breeds under the guise of Araucan are not uncommon. In addition, buying from a private seller does not guarantee correct breeding of birds, which is fraught with a low percentage of fertilized eggs and high mortality in chickens. In this case, you need to give preference to chickens not younger than a month old, you should refuse to buy eggs. It is possible to distinguish a cockerel from a hen only after 3 months of life, when males have pigtails on their necks.

At the moment, only Genofond LLC is engaged in the distribution of birds of the Araucan breed in Russia, while there are no adult birds for sale. Day-old chickens are offered for a price of 350 rubles. In a private sale, chickens can be purchased from 250 rubles, the cost of a month-old young is from 700 to 1200 rubles.

On a note!

The blue color of the egg can be obtained by crossing an Araucan rooster with a hen of another breed, so when buying eggs there is no guarantee of breeding purebred chickens. In view of this, only adult chickens or young ones, but not eggs, should be purchased from amateur poultry farmers.

Chicken breeding

Breeding the Araucan breed has two difficulties. One of them is associated with a low percentage of fertile eggs due to the special body structure of chickens and roosters. The tailless Araucan lacks not only feathers, but also the last few vertebrae. Because of this, there are difficulties with the mating of birds, as a result, the proportion of fertilized eggs does not exceed 60%, and can reach zero. Therefore, adult birds (of both sexes) must be subjected to the procedure of cutting out fluff in the cloaca area. After that, the egg fertility rises to a level of 90 to 100%.

The second problem is the presence in birds of a semi-lethal gene linked to genes responsible for the absence of a tail and specific plumage on the head. When two individuals that are carriers of this gene are crossed, the percentage of fertilized eggs and the survival rate of their offspring drops significantly. To avoid this, when composing families, chickens and roosters should be selected so that each of the pair has only one sign - either a beard or tassels on the head, while the signs should not coincide. For example, a chicken with a beard, and a rooster with a tassel.

hatching instinct

Araucan chickens have not completely lost the instinct of incubation, although they rarely show maternal qualities. Only every seventh or eighth laying hen can become a full-fledged hen, but such hens not only incubate clutches, but also lead chicks.

Chicken care

Raising chicks has no specific differences from the standard rules for keeping chickens. The exception is the diet:

1. You can not start feeding with boiled eggs. On the first day, it is recommended to give the chickens starter feed. Later, boiled eggs are given moderately, mixing each with 50 g of semolina.
2. Dry millet is contraindicated, only boiled is acceptable.
3. On the third day, you can add cottage cheese, sour-milk products, as well as crushed grain to the diet.
4. On the fifth day, greens are added to the menu, which should be finely chopped.

At the age of a week, chickens are transferred to a normal diet. It is necessary to accustom young animals to adult feed by 2 months.