Black Copper Marans discussion thread

[Debbi]

Thanks Wynette and Pink, that's pretty much what I was thinking. I need more color around here, not less! As much as I don't really care for the "look" of the copper flecked breast, I can see this is something I need to get more hackle coloring on my girls.

 

[FOGELLY]

Thanks Pink and Wynette.
Here is another pic of the same roo. Think angle of last pic made comb look funny. Also I guess I need to quit whistling at my birds to get their attention to take their pics. Although I do think you may be right about his uprightness but I need to take a look when he is just hanging out naturally. Man here it goes again. Picture in you mind, wife to Fogelly " Why are you in the chicken pen setting in that lawn chair and staring at those chickens again!"

 

[Wynette]

Fog, for SURE it's hard to get good pics of a chicken unless you have special equipment. I often will go in the pen and sit right on the ground (on an empty feed sack...) - seems like pics taken from their level turn out a bit better to see type, and also, they seem to relax a bit more when you are down low.

In this pic, he still looks a bit roach backed to me, but again, I bet it IS due to the angle of the camera. His comb looks better in this pic, can see it better...but, it shouldn't be attached at the back of his head - I forget what the word is, the back of it should sorta float out there in no mans land - sorta like this:

I do like this guy's color balance.

Debbi, isn't it interesting that so many of us are having "too dark" issues? So...we will all correct, and next year, we'll have "mossy" issues? I wonder...

 

[FOGELLY]

Wynette, please excuse my dumb question, but what is roach backed?

 

[brkuk]

Quote:
Thanks Wynette. It's tough to see which rooster to keep. Some have good points and others don't, but I can't tell until they really mature. I do like feedback though. Thanks. Take care.

 

[Wynette]

brkuk - I'm big into "use what you have" - I also can see good things that can be used in most any rooster. It's probably a downfall, and it makes decisions super tough for me!

Fog - I'm sorry! Roach backed is when the back is not straight - viewed from the side, it humps up a bit. I did a quick Google images search and couldn't quickly find any chickens, but here's a GSD with it - this is an EXTREME example:

http://dogtime.com/system/pictures/0000/7963/roach_back-roach-back-dogs-dog-puppy-fur-big.jpg

It very well could be the angle of the camera, since the pic is sort of taken from the top, looking down.

 

[Debbi]

Quote:


O lawdy, I hope not! I've decided to keep at least 3 roos of each variety, in my case, BCM, Blue Copper, and soon Wheaten. A dark one, a redder one, and a near as normal as I can get one! That way I can compensate for all of my hens' issues. Gees, 9 roos?? Is that all??

Hopefully it will be easier to get a more correct Blue Copper roo (thanks to Kim!), so maybe it won't take 9 of them. At any rate, with us keepers of the dark birds, next year may be mossy as we try to compensate, or over compensate, but the year after, we may all have a bunch of WOWS!!!!!

Let's hope!

 

[FOGELLY]

Wynette,
Thanks for the explanation, I will have to keep an eye on that.

 

[Wynette]

Fog - when the weather is a bit nicer - try getting a pic at ground level; I bet it was just the camera angle!

Debbie - yeah, 2012 will be our year! Then....BCMs will drop in popularity.

I actually wouldn't care....I'll still keep them. My eating egg customers just love the "chocolate orbes" (one of my customers actually call them that)!

 

[FOGELLY]

I have a question for you guys that have raised Marans for awhile. My nine BCM's are in their own run and have their own coop seperate from the rest of my birds. They over eighteen weeks old and still will not roost, they sleep on the coop floor. I don't remember any of my other chickens in the big pen being this late learning to roost. They were however moved in with the older ones at fourteen to fifteen weeks. What do y'all think? Should I put one or two of my gentler Wyandottes or BR's in there with them? I have not had picking order issues with them in the past.