Black Copper Marans discussion thread

[chickengr]

Chickengr What ever happened with the chick with the bad eye?

I am not sure what you ask about. I had a bcm chick that got trapped and the broody might have tried to kill him when she saw he was not ok. unfortunately he died. another one was born with a copper spot on his head. he grew up in a nice cockerel, still has 2 white feathers on his wing, but I had to rehome him. and I have an araucana hen that had some eye infection but she got well.

if you are asking about something else please remind me.

 

[Red Banks]

Quote:
This was about someone elses little cockerel a few days ago. It was not Chickengr, chickengr just commented on the situation.

 

[Choco Maran]

Sorry chickengr wrong person you copied the post and I thought it was you.


jpatton713 how is your little chik with the bad eye?

 

[chickengr]

Sorry chickengr wrong person you copied the post and I thought it was you.


jpatton713 how is your little chik with the bad eye?

no problem.

I also would like to know what happened, @jpatton713 please let us know!

 

[Braxton Brigade]

I finally got around to replying, sorry about that lol. I've decided that with the combs being such a big issue with marans I will not be using him in any serious breeding right now. I'll hang onto him for a while, hoping to get a little peddler cockerel soon. Probably just sell pet quality chicks/fertile eggs once my girls are matured.

Anyone got a opinion on my roo? I'm curious to know an experienced breeder/Marans owners opinion.

 

[One Chick Two]

Anyone got a opinion on my roo? I'm curious to know an experienced breeder/Marans owners opinion.

First you want to look at type before you check color.

His type is off. He is pretty lanky, with little body cavity width/depth. He is all chest, and has very little rear end, so his balance is off. (Legs too far back as in diagram.)




Next look to color. Look at saddle feathers to determine the true coloring of the male. He is fairly overmelanized. He has very little (if any) saddle coloring, and should show the same color in saddle as hackle by this age. Tail is also high and a bit large. (Marans should have smallish, 45 degree angle tails.)

 

[baunlee]

First you want to look at type before you check color.

His type is off. He is pretty lanky, with little body cavity width/depth. He is all chest, and has very little rear end, so his balance is off. (Legs too far back as in diagram.)




Next look to color. Look at saddle feathers to determine the true coloring of the male. He is fairly overmelanized. He has very little (if any) saddle coloring, and should show the same color in saddle as hackle by this age. Tail is also high and a bit large. (Marans should have smallish, 45 degree angle tails.)

Great photo! thanks. Trying to learn more about the standard but a lot of stuff seems subjective. Your photo is quite explicit and helpful to me for this reason

 

[One Chick Two]

Great photo! thanks. Trying to learn more about the standard but a lot of stuff seems subjective. Your photo is quite explicit and helpful to me for this reason

No prob. Yes, there is a LOT that is subjective and interpretation. However, the birds need a balanced body to start from, and that is clear.

If you look at the SOP suggested drawing, you can see his legs are placed right in the center so he has plenty of rear end and abdominal width. I would like to see a tad more chest on this drawing, but, that is subjective as well. lol



There is a really excellent classic vintage book online I suggest reading, called, "Call of the hen." Walter Hogan was an expert and really knew his birds. There are wonderful suggestions about which poor laying hens to cull from your flock and why. And I believe in my experience, there is much merit to a large amount of what he suggests.

Walter Hogan talks of measuring both male and female's abdomen from the keel bone tip to pelvic bones. He suggests that the male is more than 1/2 the flock. And that all males with a 2 finger width (or less) should be removed from a flock as they don't have the abdominal capacity to eat well, and pass this trait down to pullets who need to have plenty of abdominal capacity to eat, and produce good amounts of large eggs. A 4 finger width- 6 finger width is what we want for the best producing males. 6 is less common, but, absolutely a top notch breeder in his opinion.

I have checked our own males, and find the ones having 5 or 6 widths really do produce the best pullets in terms of eggs, and length of bodies (it does reflect in a longer topline as well.) I feel that some males having less abdomen shows up sometimes as being unbalanced.

 

[CalgaryFarmer]

Anyone got a opinion on my roo? I'm curious to know an experienced breeder/Marans owners opinion.

I am a newby at BCM and I can tell you he is not even close.

 

[ShanandGem]

Has anyone ever had experience with a nasty BCM hen? I have four pullets and a cockerel, all hatched in April. They are beautiful birds, but a couple of times now one pullet has waited until my back was turned and come racing toward me. She has never pecked at me because I always turn around and face her. She just did it a moment ago and I stopped, turned, and yelled and clapped my hands at her. Then I went and got my 'chicken sticks' (4 foot long bamboo poles I use to herd everyone into their coops after free ranging). I walked very slowly past the flock again, inviting her to chase me and sure enough she did. She got a none too gentle lesson with a chicken stick (to say it was a whack is too strong, a shove not strong enough lol).
I have trouble telling the pullets apart since they are all identical so I couldn't even point out the culprit when they are all together. I've never had a hen behave like this though, and I don't like it.