Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome! - Page 3310

Bill's Olive egger daughters have started laying again.

Lil' Bill out enjoying the big yellow ball overhead yesterday.

Pretty eggs! Pretty boy!!!  Enjoy the sun. Sunny here too for another day, then the rain is back in the picture. Finished the Silkie pen yesterday, today I have to mow! Then hopefully, I'll have enough go left to paint the Silkie coop..

Quote:

Originally Posted by Debbi 

Quote:

Originally Posted by flgardengirl 

I bet he is a little roo then.  Haha that reminds me of how my little Silkie Splash roo was, when he was little. He thought he was really something and was also the first to mature and thumped his feet around like a little Godzilla. I was calling him that for a while when he was little. Now I call him Little Monster (or Mr. Cookie as in Cookie Monster lol). Its hysterical when the little silky roos think they are tough.  Little Monster always tries to get out of his pen when I open the door and fight with the big Marans roosters. I have to grab him quick before he gets his little butt kicked. He won't back down and they would kill him.
 

 

Oh I know their little "Napoleon Complexes" too well. My Blue Silkie roo, Big Boo, got in with the Marans one day, and my 5+ month old Marans cockerel, Pekkar, decided to pick a fight with him. They went into a chest bumping contest, then the hackles flaired! I was on the inside of the Silkie pen and was on my way out to stop the nonsense. The next thing I know, Big Boo is furiously chasing Pekkar around the coop! Poor Pekkar didn't know what he was in for when he showed his arse to Boo! Finally, Pekkar ran into the coop, and jumped up on the roost. Boo stood down below scolding him! "C'mon ya big jerk, get down here like a man!!"    When I finally caught my breath from laughing so hard, I collected Boo, and put him back with his own kind. They are such funny little birds, but braver than their sense should allow!
 

 

My avatar, Elliot, also jumps right in and is ready for abuse. Freaks me right out but he seems to LOVE it. Silkies really are the most entertaining birds. He's not entirely dense outside either. He reacts to birds overhead, for example, and barking dogs.

I have 11 new Silkies hatched so far including a pair of lavenders! I'm not holding out a lot of hope for the remaining 5 eggs but I won't pull the plug until tomorrow night - day 24. I would love to see the second porcelain hatch ....  First porcelain hatched just after midnight last night so it could still happen. Second lavender just finished hatching.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zanna 

Can anyone tell me if chicks hatch with feathers on their middle toe if there is a chance they will molt out and not come back?  Parents have no middle toe feathers and did not as chicks but are fairly heavily feathered down the outside leg and toe.

Quote:

Originally Posted by flgardengirl 

They will not molt out in my experience.

Thank you!

Pretty eggs, Pink!  Love your blue boy, too!

Still waiting for mine...those OE girls are maturing even later than their BCM hatch mates! 

sigh....hopefully they will be worth the wait!

Lynette - I'm lactose intolerant, but do like the goats cheese and the yoghurt!!

Right now, the milk is going to a calf I'm nursing along....

his momma (maiden) dropped him on his face (gave birth standing up) and ran away screaming

So...he has a bruise,d bloody mouth, and a really swollen eye, and the other eye has a cataract....

He's also underdeveloped and contracted behind, which doesn't help him stand...

Anyhow - he's 2 days old and finally learning to stand, as well as, swallow - breath - swallow without choking...

Hoping he makes it!! 

Pink- Not sure when we got the Birchen eggs I will look if I get a chance. I was so disappointed in mine I sold all of them. I had gold and yellow leakage and a couple of funny combs so just let all of them go! Yours looks great good for you!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hens and Roos 


We have several different breeds and to be honest they are all very good tasting to us. Some might be able to tell the difference though-my mom has mentioned that when she gets eggs from us she can taste a difference in Marans eggs vs the other breeds eggs.
Happy Easter everyone told the older two they have to wait for the youngest to wake up before searching for baskets- could be awhile

I have two friends that swear their baked goods and pastry taste "eggier" when they use my BCM eggs. It seems that some how the flavor survives baking better. Also I found a reference that the Marans eggs resist invasion by bacteria better so yes I am a total BCM snob

I just purchased 2 French Copper Marans this weekend, a black pullet and a blue pullet.

Here they are:

They're around 6-7 weeks old so it's the ugly stage. The breeder had some very pretty birds though! I'm trying to get them friendly, but right now they want little to do with me!

Congrats!!!!!!!!!!!!