The chicken family has a variety of interesting chicken breeds. Inside, Ameraucana chickens may be unfamiliar names with a lot of people. If you heard about Ameraucana chickens, producing blue eggs is likely the most mentioned feature.
However, with roosters, do they have any attractive features? Since all roosters are famous for their loud crow which is considered as an alarm clock of farmers, do Ameraucana roosters own a loud crow?
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When do Ameraucana roosters start crowing?
Ameraucana roosters start crowing when they are about 3 or 4 months old. It is similar to other normal chicken breeds. Ameraucana is known as unique chickens with a lot of characteristics.
Today, we are going to figure out some of them to see how interesting Ameraucanas are.
A couple of things about Ameraucana chickens
Sizes
Ameraucana chickens mostly have medium sizes, about 4.5 – 5.5 pounds. However, they still have two other versions of large fowls and bantams. While some large Ameraucana weighs up to 6.5 pounds, bantams just grow between 1.5 and 1.8 pounds. (Source)
Appearance
Ameraucana chickens have pea combs, prominent tails, and full round chests. Their beards and muffs make their cheeks look puffy. So Ameraucana chickens look like chipmunks sometimes. Besides, they have curved beaks, blue feet and large wings.
In addition, Ameraucana colours are various. They come in 8 colours for both large fowls and bantams which include Black, White, Wheaten, Buff Silver, Brown Red, Blue, Blue Wheaten, and the last colour is Self blue. Only large Ameraucana chickens can have Self blue feathers.
There are some differences between roosters’ and hens’ colours and body structure. Generally, roosters’ saddles, tails and combs are more prominent than hens.
Behaviour
Ameraucana chickens have gentle behaviours. They are considered as docile and friendly birds since they love interacting with humans. Some people raise Ameraucana chickens as pets and they also can behave like other pets such as dogs, cats, etc if trained.
Ameraucana roosters are rather mild and polite. They can live with other flocks in harmony. In the meanwhile, hens are stronger to protect their eggs.
However, if there is a problem annoying them, both Ameraucana roosters and hens can be very aggressive and forceful.
Laying eggs
The most special feature of Ameraucana is laying blue eggs. They are good layers. Ameraucana can produce from 150 to 200 eggs per year.
Their eggs have medium and large sizes with high nutrition. Many people seeing those eggs for the first time find them a bit weird, however, blue eggs are very nutritious and beneficial for people’s health. Blue eggs not only contain higher amino acids, zinc, and vitamin contents but also taste more delicious than normal eggs. They are also low in cholesterol which are especially suitable for obsese people or pregnant and postpartum womens, etc.
Meat production
Apart from serving for egg production, some people raise Ameraucanas like meat birds. The taste will be fine, however these chickens take a long time to mature and serve for meat purposes. (Source)
Ameraucana roosters’ noises
Though Ameraucana seems to be quite fierce with red eyes, they are known as docile and calm birds. Therefore, Ameraucana roosters are basically quiet.
They are less likely to crow early in the morning if you have proper methods. As a result, you do not need to worry about having a noisy alarm clock.
Further reading: Are chickens noisy, loud? Roosters are noisy… a lot
What should we do to take good care of Ameraucana roosters?
Providing ample spaces
Giving them ample space is a good way to reduce their noises. Since Ameraucanas are active, they cannot put up with confinement and need a large area to run around and feel comfortable.
If you provide them with limited spaces, Ameraucanas will definitely be upset and anxious. Ultimately, they will crow more often or get into a fight with other chickens easily and make noises.
In addition, you also should equip their living areas with some protection items. It is mainly because Ameraucanas are quite calm and docile, so they are prone to attack by predators.
Feeding sufficient food
Like other animals, Ameraucana chickens will be angry if we do not meet their food needs. Once being hungry, Ameraucanas will be more aggressive and noisier. So, you should feed them fully.
Though Ameraucaunas look for their natural food on a daily basis, it is necessary to give them some supplement. A sufficient diet is also helpful for your egg and meat purposes.
Preventing from common diseases
Luckily, Ameraucana chickens are not prone to disease. However, it is still essential to keep chicken living environments fresh and clean to impede bacteria appearance.
Furthermore, you have to keep an eye on them to recognize the signs and have prompt treatment if your chickens are infected.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, if you are looking for another chicken breed to add to your flock, Ameraucana chickens are good choices. Though they do not need a lot of complicated caring methods, Ameraucana chickens still grow well.
Their products like eggs and meat are also highly qualified and bring a lot of benefits. Besides, Ameraucanas have good characteristics like behaving gently, getting along with other flocks, etc.
Especially, they will not be very noisy if you have a couple of suitable solutions like we said above. That is why even a lot of experienced chicken raisers love having Ameraucanas in their backyard.