Well-tucked Up Stern

[Steve Neumann]

How hard is it to improve and select for this with Orpington-heavy birds that have a lot of junk in the trunk?  Did the tucked sterns originally come from OEG?

[Mike Gilbert]

How hard is it to improve and select for this with Orpington-heavy birds that have a lot of junk in the trunk?  Did the tucked sterns originally come from OEG?

Steve, you hit upon an important piece of breed type that is so often overlooked or ignored.   Ameraucanas were never meant to be a heavy breed, just a nice medium, in-the-middle kind of chicken or bantam.   Unfortunately, some have crossed in the heavier breeds in years past to get size.   And that is okay, as long as proper feathering and type are bred back into the line.   I have noticed this problem in birds from certain parts of the country in particular, and the problem has been compounded by judges who pick these birds as winners.   Check out the standard weights - they are a lot smaller than Orpingtons. 

[John W Blehm]

Also, note that although Orpingtons were used to create LF buff, white and blue decades ago.  Australops were used to create LF blacks and outcrossed with the other three eliminating much of the Orpington fluff and type.  LF blacks are the "standard" that all other LF Ameraucanas should be bred to emulate. 
I've heard that some have crossbred Orpingtons with Ameraucanas in recent years and that can be a problem.  Sometimes when creating a new color/pattern variety of Ameraucana, as I did years ago, it is the only way to go.

[Steve Neumann]

In terms of correcting this issue in a line of birds that have "Orpington booty,"  how would you go about it?

[Mike Gilbert]

No need to re-invent the wheel, so to speak.  Find better stock and either breed from it or cross it into your present lines and work from there.

[Steve Neumann]

OK, that is what I was after.  So this is not something you can simply select away from with heavy hatching and culling.  It requires outcrossing?

[John W Blehm]

OK, that is what I was after.  So this is not something you can simply select away from with heavy hatching and culling.  It requires outcrossing?

Heavy hatching and culling works if the genes you desire are there to select for.  If not and without a chance mutation in your favor, outcrossing or crossbreeding is required to bring in the required/desired gene(s).