# This little lady



## ChickNewbie

Hi everyone! As you can tell by my user name I am very new to anything chicken related. We (my husband and daughter and I) just got our first batch of chickens about 4-5 months ago. We are pretty sure we have two americana chickens but are having troubles identifying our third. I was wondering if someone out there could help. 

I ask because last night our daughter went out to "tuck in the girls" (close them in their little sleeping coop) for the night and came back in the house very excited. Seems one of our little girls laid an egg for the first time. My in laws said that this is strange due to the fact that their three girls (all americanas) didn't start producing eggs until they were about 9 months of age. 

We keep the two groups of chicks separate due to the younger ones still eating medicated food. We are trying to find out if it is our mystery chick or one of the two (possibly) americanans that are producing so we can separate her with my in laws chickens that do produce so the ones that are ours can continue on their medicated until they start producing. I'm going to add pictures of our mystery chicken as well as pictures of her egg and her egg compared to the egg of one of my in laws chickens so we can try to find out if mystery chick is the one laying the egg or not. 

Thank you to any who is able to help us figure this little mystery out!


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## ChickNewbie

Mystery lady


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## ChickNewbie

Mystery egg


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## Nm156

Ameraucana's eggs are blue.
Easter Eggers are blue , green or brown.
True Aruacana start laying very late.
Easter eggers can start laying anywhere from 16 - 36 weeks.


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## Nm156

That is not an Ameraucana or an Easter egger.


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## ChickNewbie

Mystery egg (brown) compared to in laws egg (green/blue)


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## ChickNewbie

Nm156- any idea what kind of chicken she is?


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## ChickNewbie

We are thinking she may be a brahma (spelling possibly not correct, sorry) but any pictures we have seen of those kinds they all seem much larger then our girl is. Puffy (our mystery chick) was the larger chick when we first got them, now she's the smallest one so we all (in laws included) are completely clueless about her >.<


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## Nm156

My guess is a mixed chicken,or a chicken I'm not familiar with.Your In-laws have Easter Eggers not Ameraucana.


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## robin416

With those feathered feet and soft looking feathers she could be a Cochin mix. And a bantam and not a large fowl.

At five months I would not be feeding medicated feed. Amprolium blocks the uptake of some vitamins to keep an overload of cocci in check while they are still too young for the immune system to fight off. At their age and if they are laying it is past time to get them off.


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## nannypattyrn

She kind of looks like our silver laced Wyandotte, maybe a mixture of that and something else.  I concur with Robin. They are well past needing medicated feeds.


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## Nm156

As Robin said a Cochin mix.Some of the pictures were added after my original post.


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## nannypattyrn

I missed the feathered feet. So, my guess isn't valid. My SLW were standard sized.


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## ChickNewbie

robin416 said:


> With those feathered feet and soft looking feathers she could be a Cochin mix. And a bantam and not a large fowl.
> 
> At five months I would not be feeding medicated feed. Amprolium blocks the uptake of some vitamins to keep an overload of cocci in check while they are still too young for the immune system to fight off. At their age and if they are laying it is past time to get them off.


I will look up the Cochin and see what I come up with. As far as the medicated food, I was informed that they had to be on it for nine months and then they could be strictly "regular" chicken feed. As I said I am extremely new to chickens and have been going on what my In laws have told me based on what they were told when they got their chickens. Thank you for the advice and help.


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## ChickNewbie

So stop the medicated for all three or just the possible Cochin? Sorry to ask so much. Need to do more investigating into having chickens. >.<


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## Nm156

They don't need medicated feed for 9 months.
Some people don't even use the medicated feed.


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## robin416

Do NOT apologize. The main principle for this forum's existence is to help others and to learn from each other. And of course to goof off some.

You were told incorrectly. The only time they need medicated feed is when they are still quite young. Most remove the medicated feed just before point of lay and get them on a layer feed or add free choice calcium to their diets.

I stopped using medicated feed years ago. Years before I sold out my breeding flock. I kept coccidiostats on hand just in case but I never needed to use them.


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## 8hensalaying

Nothing to add, just wanted to say welcome, and that she is very pretty  Love her coloring


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## robin416

8hensalaying said:


> Nothing to add, just wanted to say welcome, and that she is very pretty  Love her coloring


I like that silver lacing too. She might still be some sort of pure breed because I would think the lacing would be muddier if mixed with another breed.


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## chickenmommy

She looks like a Cochin. I will post a pic of mine


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## nannypattyrn

I have only used medicated feed while they were in the brooder box. I have gradually gotten down to just the first 2 or 3 feeding if I get them from the store. The last ones that hatched on our place didn't get it because if I put it out for the chicks then the big girls ate it up. So, I just let mama hen take care of them. They all did well until the coyote got two of them.


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## chickenmommy

my Cochin hen


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## chickenmommy

My photo bombing Wyandotte lol


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## seminole wind

chickenmommy said:


> My photo bombing Wyandotte lol


During my owned by chicken life, I've had 2 SLW, and both were highly photogenic and were the only ones to "strike a pose" and not move. I never got fluffy butt pictures from them.

Welcome Chicknewbie! Your chickens look good. Most people I know use medicated feed up until about 4 months. It's not a guarantee, and it does deplete their system of vitamin B. A few of mine got coccidiosis when they were on it. So I keep a coccidiostat at home because if you need it , you need it right away. And coccidiosis most likely occurs before 4 months old, but that doesn't mean that an older chicken won't get it.


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## chickenmommy

Lol fluffy butts


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## chickenmommy

a blue Cochin


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## ChickNewbie

Thank you everyone! For the warm welcomes and insights, advice and lovely pictures of fellow feather babies. (Which by the way looks exactly like our Fluffy) so I think I'm going with fluffy as a Cochin. The medicated food I will be stopping immediately. They eat more regular feed from the older chickens side of the coop anyways. I can't wait to "meet" and talk with more of you about our babies and learn as much as we can and hopefully expand our backyard family by more and very soon. (Daughter wants a batch of silkies next!) I'm honestly excited haha


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## TheLazyL

I'm conservative so if I was you I'd feed them medicated until it was gone. Not because they would need medicated, just so the feed didn't go to waste.

FYI. I'm on my 3rd flock and have never used medicated feed.


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## rosco47

sounds like you are narrowing down the breed...good looking bird though
welcome to the club. make yourself at home and ask questions.


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## ChickNewbie

Thanks rosco47! Fluffy is my favorite of our three. She's very lovey. Will sit in my lap and let me hold and pet her till my heart's content. She's also very good with our six year old who can be a little rough sometimes in her handling of the girls, but she's learning.


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## seminole wind

Cute bird. I live in florida too and keep an eye on those fluffy birds because I've had to dunk a few when they got overheated and were panting so fast they couldn't drink. And they have all day shade.


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