Blue Copper and Splash Copper Marans Discussion

[pinkchick]

One blue marans hatched last night still waiting on the rest....

He's been running around in there like a crazy bird, knocking all my other eggs together, spinning them around!
I hope he's not doing damage to the other chicks all positioned to come out.
Sometimes they can end up getting stuck or drowning that way.

When do I open the bator and take him out?  My official 21 day mark is this evening, but a lot haven't done much of anything yet towards coming out.
3 others have pips,  but they haven't gotten any bigger in the last 12 hours...

Patience!!!!!! Those other babies are just taking their time. You will be surprised.


What type of 'bator are you using? I am the type of person that will reach in and grab the little soccer player and put him in the brooder if he is causing chaos with the other eggs.
Just be very quick about it.

Have you ever tried hatching eggs in a styrofoam egg-carton? I hatch all of my eggs that way and don't have issues with chicks that have hatched making a soccer game out of the remaining unhatched eggs.

 

[pinkchick]

Don!!!! I know you are out there...gotta question for you. Are you up for it?


Here goes..ready or not. Remember we were talking about the young males that I am growing out and if you would keep one with dark eyes and you told me to keep the one that is best type Marans. Well, I kept the one with dark eyes because he is the one that is best type, he also has better copper coming in, but here is my question.......his eyes have now changed from dark to nearly perfect color. He is 5.5 months old. Have you ever seen them turn from dark to correct?
I have raised many females with dark eyes and never watched them change to correct color upon maturity.....this is the first time I have seen this happen and especially in a male. Infact, this is the first male I have had that has had dark eyes so I really didn't know what to expect, but am glad to see that they have changed to the orangey color.

 

[snowbird]

Don!!!! I know you are out there...gotta question for you.

Are you up for it?

Morning Kim, Fire away.

 

[pinkchick]

Morning Mr. Don!

I put the question in the previous post.

 

[pinkchick]

DelcoChix~

This is a photo of a Splash Copper male that I had a couple years ago or so.....this is how he started out with his coloring, however,, he changed drastically by the time he reached sexual maturity.

http://cdn.backyardchickens.com/1/13/900x900px-LL-138a48c1_DSCF8818.jpeg

Around 4-5 months of age.
http://cdn.backyardchickens.com/d/df/900x900px-LL-dfb82d0b_DSCF7163.jpeg

This is him around 6-7 months of age.
http://cdn.backyardchickens.com/e/ea/900x900px-LL-eafc121f_DSCF0355.jpeg

 

[snowbird]

Don!!!! I know you are out there...gotta question for you.

Are you up for it?


Here goes..ready or not.

Remember we were talking about the young males that I am growing out and if you would keep one with dark eyes and you told me to keep the one that is best type Marans. Well, I kept the one with dark eyes because he is the one that is best type, he also has better copper coming in, but here is my question.......his eyes have now changed from dark to nearly perfect color. He is 5.5 months old. Have you ever seen them turn from dark to correct?
I have raised many females with dark eyes and never watched them change to correct color upon maturity.....this is the first time I have seen this happen and especially in a male. Infact, this is the first male I have had that has had dark eyes so I really didn't know what to expect, but am glad to see that they have changed to the orangey color.

Kim, as you know we are all to impatient with the fowl. I do not cull for Dark Eye until I am ready to put the fowl together for the breeding season. I have to say I have used the Dark Eye fowl in breeding and single mated and have not found it to be a problem in the breeding aspect. I have some young pullets that are 6 months and are just now getting the correct color.
We all know that it doesn't take an SOP bird to raise SOP showable off spring. The only time I would worry about the eye color is if I was getting ready to pick showable fowl.

 

[dutchbunny83]

Helping his friends out

 

[pinkchick]

Kim, as you know we are all to impatient with the fowl. I do not cull for Dark Eye until I am ready to put the fowl together for the breeding season. I have to say I have used the Dark Eye fowl in breeding and single mated and have not found it to be a problem in the breeding aspect. I have some young pullets that are 6 months and are just now getting the correct color.
We all know that it doesn't take an SOP bird to raise SOP showable off spring. The only time I would worry about the eye color is if I was getting ready to pick showable fowl.

Thank you Don!
I am going to use this male back over his mother, my 5 year old Splash Copper hen. She makes nice babies and I have been very happy with her. For sure I will get some dark eyes as she has dark eyes, but I found a great read about how to eliminate the dark eye when I am ready to do so. I have been using females with dark eyes since I started out and find it very easy to get good eye color when bred back to males with correct eyes.

Have the next couple of days off thanks to the long overdue rain and will try to get a couple photos of the young fowl that I kept from single test matings this spring. I am happy with the girls and their type....however, one of them that started out with nice copper has turned dark. The other pullet is still showing some copper so I am happy with that.

Baby steps are good with me.

 

[pinkchick]

Helping his friends out

Yep, I'd be reaching in a nab that little bugger right out of there.

 

[DMRippy]

Absolutely--I will see what I can do with additional pics.  He seems to prefer I photograph his better side I guess
And bummer--five points is what is on the standard, right?  I'll get some more pics tonight...thanks for the input 'dutchbunny' and 'pinkchick!'

Yes, 5 points is what the standard asks for........BUT, 4 points is good, and IMHO, nothing that should be worried about at this time. You can worry about combs later. Improving the number of points or decreasing the number of points is relatively easy and something that a person can work on after the "barn is built." The only time I worry about combs is when I see a twist, sprig or the dreaded carnation comb.

Thanks for the new photos of him......I love how chunky he appears from the full front view.

Now to talk about his color.......I wish Vicki or Don would stop by and comment on him as well, but I am going to go out on a limb and say that my money says he is a Splash Copper. What makes me think this is the washed out look of his coloring overall and the silver-ish bottoms of his hackles and how his tail sickles are colored. I am going to dig around to see if I can find a photo of one of my old Splash males that makes me think of your boy.

Donna~ When I first saw him, I too was going to say that he was a very washed out Blue Copper that came from too many breedings of blue to splash, but then I saw his hackles and his tail coloring.

Kim I am sure you have more experience with splash than I but.... none of my splashes ever had color in the hackles like that. just spots of copper. I was looking at the legs too but mine have always been white like the cuckoo's legs. Guess she will just have to test mate to find out for sure.....hehe.