Black Copper Marans discussion thread

[Carficlucks]

Thank you all for the info. This site and all it's members is GREAT! Here are some pics of our first hatching experience my 10 yr old daughter really enjoyed it. Hope the others hatch, This guy hatched on Day 20 (2/23) there ar 5 more fbcm's due today, tomorrow, and 7 Black australorps 3 days Later. Fingers crossed.

 

[ochochicas]

My humidity is at 65 - 70% during hatching. When I open the incubator to get the chicks out it rarely goes below 60%. If it does, I put hot water in a spray bottle and spray the sides of the incubator lightly with the water and the humidity goes right back up. With a broody hen I once had a sticky chick so I try to keep my humidity pretty high during hatching. I have a cheap styrofoam incubator with a fan. Opening it during hatching has never caused me to have shrink wrapped or sticky chicks.

After I lost the chick due to drowning during my last hatch I think I will be even more vigilant about taking chicks our of the incubator quickly. The chick that died was in one of my only pure crested cream legbar eggs that I had.

 

[scflock]

We have a Wade Jeanne also, and found them to be slower maturing at first than other lines. I photograph all chicks every week so I can see changes and have them to refer back to when needed.

The males (we have at least) normally have a slightly pinker comb than the females, with a wider nose bridge at birth. Pullets had a darker comb at first. (The yellow on white pinfeathers was food color.)

Two days old:
Cockerel

Pullet


Cockerel (a few weeks later.)


Pullet (a few weeks later.)


Cockerel 1 month -Notice how pink his wattles are becoming

Pullet 1month Smaller, lighter comb and wattles

That's very helpful, thanks. It will definitely show me what to look for when I start hatching. Unfortunately, these chicks were 4 weeks old when I got them. Someone more experienced could probably pick them out, but they are so different from anything I have raised so far that I can't figure it out. I bought 8 straight run, and my best guess by combs and wattles is 4 and 4. The color is what throws me. I am so excited to have these marans. I bought cuckoos before I knew that the coppers were the chocolate layers. I love my cuckoos, and I will always keep them. They are awesome layers and a great dual purpose. I sell the pullets for the same price as hybrids, but I think these BCMs are going to be special. The breeder had a couple of nice flocks, and his eggs were gorgeous. I'm hoping they start laying around June or July

 

[snaffle]

I take them out as well to avoid the 'kicked around egg' syndrome; I have lost too many because they have also drowned in the shell when an enthusiastic sibling spins them around. My technique is I heat up some water in the kettle (hot but nowhere near boiling) and soak 3 large sponges in a clean bowl. Then I lift the lid off the hatcher, take out the other sponges and put the fresh ones in (I keep 6 exclusively for this purpose for about 2-3 hatches) and then take the little guy(s) out. I also have started hatching them in open egg cartons - they seem to be able to hatch out well this way.

How big are your sponges? Is your incubator the regular in=home size that holds close to 40 eggs?

I have started using egg cartons too!! Used them for the last two hatches and had better results...

 

[snaffle]

I'm not sure if you meant this or not so excuse me if I misunderstood you. Unfortunately it's not just the "wheaten" colored chicks that can't be labeled BCMs. Any chicks from the same breeding pen cannot be sold as BCMs, even if they look just like a BCMs, due to the recessive wheaten present. If you test all individuals via pair wise mating and eliminate the wheaten carriers then you can set up a new breeding pen with only 100% BCMs. It would be extremely time consuming but if pure is what you are working towards then that is the only way other than what has been mentioned: acquiring all new stock, from a reliable source, to be kept separate from your current flock.

Well this is frustrating. I bought my starter chicks as BCM's ... @Lucky KY Chicks

all the chicks grew up to look like BCM's. All of last year's offspring looked like BCM's

My two roosters were hatched in 2014.
Of my 5 or 6 hens... two were originals... and the others were 2014 hatch

Did not have any wheatens out of last year's hatch.

So what can I sell these chicks as? Brown egg layers?

When I separate adults and test the breedings..how many chicks would have to hatch out before I could be certain the parents are not passing along the Wheaten gene?

 

[Turkeytruff]

How big are your sponges? Is your incubator the regular in=home size that holds close to 40 eggs?

I have started using egg cartons too!! Used them for the last two hatches and had better results...

Ordinary 2 or 3 inch x 4 inch kitchen sponges; I usually buy them 6 in a pack.
I use a Brinsea 40 for the first 18 days and then put them in a battered old Hovabator (1608??) I bought 2nd hand last year. It looks awful but ticks over at the right temperature like a dream and with the inner reservoir filled with water for the first hatches and then just soak 3 sponges at a time and leave them in there.
Egg cartons are the way to go, definitely! Sometimes I cut holes in the bottom of each cup but they seem fine hatching out standing up

 

[Lucky KY Chicks]

Just wanted to mention this again @snaffle

I just wonder, @snaffle, about the Cochin possibly having been the father of some of the chicks as I have heard that a hen can store sperm for 2 weeks safely and some say that 3 weeks is possible. I have not tested this myself. Also you mentioned that you could have hatched some red star eggs. I would recommended separating all your Marans(maybe only one rooster) from the rest of the chickens and wait three weeks then start collecting eggs and see what you hatch then. This could save you from having to do pair wise mating or from buying all new stock.

 

[snaffle]

Just wanted to mention this again @snaffle

Thank you for the reminder.This is going to drive me crazy lol.

There is no indication size wise that any of the chicks could be 1/2 cochin banty.

I am thinking that there must be wheaten genes

my next hatch is around March 7 and if there is a pattern ... there could be a white chick again.

I will try to separate some of these birds when the temps get a bit better. That might not help me much though.
For example... I could have one rooster with the gene...and a hen that would be in a different pen.

Might be better if I simply start all over with new blood. ???

 

[Turkeytruff]

My humidity is at 65 - 70% during hatching. When I open the incubator to get the chicks out it rarely goes below 60%. If it does, I put hot water in a spray bottle and spray the sides of the incubator lightly with the water and the humidity goes right back up. With a broody hen I once had a sticky chick so I try to keep my humidity pretty high during hatching. I have a cheap styrofoam incubator with a fan. Opening it during hatching has never caused me to have shrink wrapped or sticky chicks.

After I lost the chick due to drowning during my last hatch I think I will be even more vigilant about taking chicks our of the incubator quickly. The chick that died was in one of my only pure crested cream legbar eggs that I had.

I like your idea about using a hot water spray bottle!
With BCMs since last year I have always done dry hatches until day 18. I don't know if it's because the BCMs have an extra paint job

but they don't seem to lose moisture in the shell the first 18 days as easily as other breeds. When I did leave water in there, I had a bunch of too large chicks unable to turn around in the shell and a horrible live hatch rate. Now I dry hatch and it's 90-100% success.

 

[ochochicas]

I like your idea about using a hot water spray bottle!
With BCMs since last year I have always done dry hatches until day 18. I don't know if it's because the BCMs have an extra paint job

but they don't seem to lose moisture in the shell the first 18 days as easily as other breeds. When I did leave water in there, I had a bunch of too large chicks unable to turn around in the shell and a horrible live hatch rate. Now I dry hatch and it's 90-100% success.

I totally agree with you. My Marans eggs hatch later than everyone else, and more of them pip in the middle of the egg rather on the fat end where the air cell is. My first hatch I had to assist half of them with getting out. When I hatched with a broody, they all hatched with no problem. I'm getting ready to set some more eggs soon. I'm going to lock them down earlier this time hoping I won't have so many that pip in the wrong place!