Black Copper Marans discussion thread

[starlingdaly]

Haha I don't know what that is?
I am very new to roosters.
I know for SOP his coloring is way off, but I think the copper will come in some more as he matures.
I don't sell or show or anything like that.

I think he could make some pretty Olive Eggers for me as long as his crow collar works!

Side sprig is when the comb doesn't have all straight points. Usually a point near the back will look like it's growing out at an angle instead of straight up.

How is the crow collar working? I ordered one for my louder rooster but it hasn't arrived yet.

 

[GaryDean26]

Wow... $10 or $15 is a great price for an excess rooster, i am lucky to get $5! It would be better for me to process them but i just don't like doing it. I have done it and i just didn't want to do it more, so my guys will probably go for free to someone local who does like to process them.

It seems such a shame really because once you grow them out they are such majestic birds (well most of them) even if they don't make the cut for breeding, and unless you grow them out you never see how cool they are as adults. I always think roos are like ugly ducklings and one day you wake up and you see a swan.. but then it's a different story when they hit that 9-12 month phase and their hormones go nuts... that's when i take my rake out to the yard with me, and the roos are and I friends no longer LOL!!!

There is a Marans breeder near me that has a "rooster man" that will come and take all of her unwanted cockerels from her. She has 500 mature birds on her property so I am sure the number of cockerels he takes is in the hundreds. Setting up a deal like that with someone that you know would be a lot better, in my opinion, than giving a free rooster away to someone that you don't know.

If you give a free rooster to someone you don't know you have no control over what they do with it. Most people hope that the new owner have a small free range flock that they will put their rooster with to serve as a lawn ornament and to help protect their hens from predators, but there are probably only one non-breeding free range flock searching for a rooster for every 10 free roosters being offered. Further the free range flocks are NOT looking for lines that produce cockerels that require you to take a rake with you every time you are in the chicken yard. The fact is small free range flock owners would gladly pay $15 to get a docile rooster so these free roosters may end up with questionable new owner that may breed them with no regard to culling or quality or they may end up in as bate in cockfighting rings (yes this unfortunately does happen and they seem to be the first people that want free cockerel and the last people to care that you require a rake to be carried with you to the coop). Ideal would be for people to process them for meat, but if you don't know who you are selling them to that is just a wishful thought. If people that are breeding chickens and deal with them every day don't want to process them people that don't own chickens are less likely to have that skill or to want to process them. If you keep your price at $15 you eliminate a lot of people that don't appreciate the breed from taking your cockerels. I won't let any rooster that isn't fair quality leave my property and then only in a breeding trio or to someone that already is breeding Black Copper Marans. Yes, I grew up in the city and butchering my pet chickens is my least favorite chicken chore, but I do look at is as a chore. I may not like to scoop poop out of the chicken pens but if I can't keep the pens clean then I shouldn't own chickens. I may not like to remove roosters spurs but if they are long enough to pierce a hen and I don't remove spurs I shouldn't own any roosters. I may no like to go out on a rainy day in the mud to feed chickens but again it is a chore. I feel that their are certain responsibilities that come with owning chickens. Having a plan for retired hens and surplus cockerels is part of that.

Another option that a breeder I work with has is to take her culls to an Amish family that processes them for her for $2 each. She said that she takes 30 culls at a time and they are processed in 2 hours and on ice ready to go home.

There are also a few people out there that run rooster rescues. They take unwanted roosters and let them free range their "rooster ranches" for as long as they live. I haven't figured out the draw to becoming a rooster rescuer personally but have seen photos of 10 acre field were rooster can spread out enough that they don't fight and live quite well together. I think the draw has something to do with simply the fact that many areas have rooster problems created by people that don't know what to do with unwanted roosters and they feel they can made a difference. These rooster problems are that some keep aggressive cockerel because they don't know how to process them and then a child or chicken sitter gets flogged. Or it could be that others live in areas were rooster aren't permitted and again keep them because they can't stand the though of them being culled (even though they eat chicken 3 times a week). Neighbors complain and it creates needless problems.

Plan A might be to sell good quality birds for $15 but if that falls through I always have the plan B (a rooster man that I know will process them, a Amish family or other place that will process them for a price, processing them my self, a rooster rescue that won't breed them, etc.). I personally don't feel the free to a good home is a good option unless you know for sure what type of home they are going to.

 

[desertmarcy]

Wow... $10 or $15 is a great price for an excess rooster, i am lucky to get $5! It would be better for me to process them but i just don't like doing it. I have done it and i just didn't want to do it more, so my guys will probably go for free to someone local who does like to process them.

It seems such a shame really because once you grow them out they are such majestic birds (well most of them) even if they don't make the cut for breeding, and unless you grow them out you never see how cool they are as adults. I always think roos are like ugly ducklings and one day you wake up and you see a swan.. but then it's a different story when they hit that 9-12 month phase and their hormones go nuts... that's when i take my rake out to the yard with me, and the roos are and I friends no longer LOL!!!

Well notice I said "maybe". A lot of people give away roosters here also. I don't know anybody who actually likes to process....it sure is not my favorite chore, butchering chickens. But we are not vegetarians and I feel a whole lot better eating my own birds, that I know were fed a healthy diet and treated kindly, than any meat from the grocery store.

 

[Runawaylobster]

There is a Marans breeder near me that has a "rooster man" that will come and take all of her unwanted cockerels from her. She has 500 mature birds on her property so I am sure the number of cockerels he takes is in the hundreds. Setting up a deal like that with someone that you know would be a lot better, in my opinion, than giving a free rooster away to someone that you don't know.

If you give a free rooster to someone you don't know you have no control over what they do with it. Most people hope that the new owner have a small free range flock that they will put their rooster with to serve as a lawn ornament and to help protect their hens from predators, but there are probably only one non-breeding free range flock searching for a rooster for every 10 free roosters being offered. Further the free range flocks are NOT looking for lines that produce cockerels that require you to take a rake with you every time you are in the chicken yard. The fact is small free range flock owners would gladly pay $15 to get a docile rooster so these free roosters may end up with questionable new owner that may breed them with no regard to culling or quality or they may end up in as bate in cockfighting rings (yes this unfortunately does happen and they seem to be the first people that want free cockerel and the last people to care that you require a rake to be carried with you to the coop). Ideal would be for people to process them for meat, but if you don't know who you are selling them to that is just a wishful thought. If people that are breeding chickens and deal with them every day don't want to process them people that don't own chickens are less likely to have that skill or to want to process them. If you keep your price at $15 you eliminate a lot of people that don't appreciate the breed from taking your cockerels. I won't let any rooster that isn't fair quality leave my property and then only in a breeding trio or to someone that already is breeding Black Copper Marans. Yes, I grew up in the city and butchering my pet chickens is my least favorite chicken chore, but I do look at is as a chore. I may not like to scoop poop out of the chicken pens but if I can't keep the pens clean then I shouldn't own chickens. I may not like to remove roosters spurs but if they are long enough to pierce a hen and I don't remove spurs I shouldn't own any roosters. I may no like to go out on a rainy day in the mud to feed chickens but again it is a chore. I feel that their are certain responsibilities that come with owning chickens. Having a plan for retired hens and surplus cockerels is part of that.

Another option that a breeder I work with has is to take her culls to an Amish family that processes them for her for $2 each. She said that she takes 30 culls at a time and they are processed in 2 hours and on ice ready to go home.

There are also a few people out there that run rooster rescues. They take unwanted roosters and let them free range their "rooster ranches" for as long as they live. I haven't figured out the draw to becoming a rooster rescuer personally but have seen photos of 10 acre field were rooster can spread out enough that they don't fight and live quite well together. I think the draw has something to do with simply the fact that many areas have rooster problems created by people that don't know what to do with unwanted roosters and they feel they can made a difference. These rooster problems are that some keep aggressive cockerel because they don't know how to process them and then a child or chicken sitter gets flogged. Or it could be that others live in areas were rooster aren't permitted and again keep them because they can't stand the though of them being culled (even though they eat chicken 3 times a week). Neighbors complain and it creates needless problems.

Plan A might be to sell good quality birds for $15 but if that falls through I always have the plan B (a rooster man that I know will process them, a Amish family or other place that will process them for a price, processing them my self, a rooster rescue that won't breed them, etc.). I personally don't feel the free to a good home is a good option unless you know for sure what type of home they are going to.

Wow. that is a long reply , I hope you are not lecturing me, i will make the assumption that you are not.

So.. I live in South South Florida (almost key largo) and I do have a rooster man who will take them, but i don't know what he does with them. He has a farm with lots of
animals on it. Where the roosters go i don't know, but he is not breeding them i am pretty sure. So that leaves two options, either meat or the other, or
even for religeous reasons, you didn't mention that one.
He seems to really like the birds but i don't know for sure and like 95% of the people in my area his cultural background is prone to this sport (if you can call
it that). Let me tell you that if someone is cockfighting they are not going to divulge that information even if you ask them, so how are you going to know!!
He does pay me for them by the way but just because he pays for them doesn't mean that i know what happens to them. Actually i would bet there are plenty of
people locally who buy them from him for meat (another cultural thing).

The other thing about my area is that there are "almost" zero people who know what a marans is. Heck they don't even know what a leghorn or an orpington
is either.. All they see is a chicken. It gets very frustrating sometimes, but you can't change the whole world. If you go 100 miles north you get an
entirely different type of chicken owner and most of the people to whom i sell nice birds, drive down from at least as far as Ft. Lauderdale. One thing you can be sure of
is that if someone around me breeds them they don't even know they are a Marans.. because they don't know what one is, and they and their family are happy
with the results because he is a good chicken and makes nice hens.

Most of my guys are not aggressive and the ones that are mean do get given to people who are going to eat them, yes there are always one or two troublemakers.
In fact i just did that with my last black tailed buff rooster because he was this way, even though he was the last one i have and i will have to dissolve
my breeding program for them. I didn't want to breed him because of his attitude.

I have tried to find someone who would process them for a fee, but nothing has turned up yet. If you know someone in Miami or Homestead who does that i am all ears..

I understand that the topic of what to do with excess roosters is always a contentious one, I don't disagree with your comments. But I also understand that
most people with excess roosters have the best intentions and do the best they can to dispose of them responsibly but have to combine that with reality to come
up with the best outcome for everyone.

L

 

[Runawaylobster]

Well notice I said "maybe". A lot of people give away roosters here also. I don't know anybody who actually likes to process....it sure is not my favorite chore, butchering chickens. But we are not vegetarians and I feel a whole lot better eating my own birds, that I know were fed a healthy diet and treated kindly, than any meat from the grocery store.

I processed about 6 once and i just had a really hard time with it, it's not about the work involved. They say that once you get over it and start, it does get better but
in my case i didn't find that. Now if i had someone who could do the deed for me i would be happy to do the rest of the work. Unfortunately i don't have anyone to do
that ...

 

[ochochicas]

Lots of great ideas Garydean. I wish there were someone in my area that would process my chickens for $2 a piece and then give them back to me. I've actually been looking for such a deal but none exist. I just sold my two cockerels to a lady that said she would raise them to adulthood in her coop. When they are old enough, she'll keep one and process the other. I was totally fine with that. I don't want to process them myself. Purchasing/renting equipment is not in the cards either.

Running a rooster rescue actually sounds like a great idea. We have a very expensive piece of property that is nearly 5 acres that we just take care of but barely use. Our current chickens are free to do whatever they want on the property, but they only use a small portion of it. Someone must figure if they are paying the property tax then the roosters can run free as they will. I've never had a problem with my roosters or cockerels fighting with each other outside since they have enough room to roam.

Unfortunately in my area most people take their roosters to the auction to sell them. I'm sure whoever buys them is processing them, but we don't really know what happens to them. I won't take my birds to the auction. Personally I feel it is traumatizing for them to be stuffed in a box and then sold to the highest bidder. (My thoughts on shipping live birds I the mail are along the same lines).

In the end, I believe my little cockerels have a great life socializing with their buddies and running around the farm before they move on to be processed. That is a lot more than the hatchery chicks get to do. It is a good thing marans are such nice dual purpose birds and can be raised to the point of processing.

 

[Runawaylobster]

I've never had a problem with my roosters or cockerels fighting with each other outside since they have enough room to roam.

ditto outside in the yard they seem to do very well, i have about 2 acres. They only want to get to me because of the feed bucket mostly...

 

[Ihilani Coffee]

Lucky to have a processor less than 20 miles away at about $2/bird (whole, neck on, unbagged) or about $3 if bagged with giblets.

 

[justoldbobo2]

What y'all think of my 9 month fbcm roo

The rest of my fbcm are only 3 months

 

[happyfrenchman]

Without knowing for sure, I would hazard a guess that the "rooster man" is probably processing them and selling them for meat. What else could one do with a bunch of roosters? They are not (despite some stories I have heard) suitable for fighting. That is a specialized bird... one where the roosters are actually valued at least as much as the hens. That is not the case with Marans generally. .

I did hear a story once of a guy that was giving advice on rooster behavior. He was apparently homeless and claimed to be running a rooster rescue... People could not believe he might be eating them but he would have to be. Actually, god forbid I am ever homeless, that sounds like a pretty good gig.

I agree with those that say the value of a rooster is relative. depends on what your potential buyer needs.... Right now, I would take that bird. He seems as good as any I have and he would be an outcross. But at that age, you cannot really say what he will develop into, nor can you predict what effect he would have on the eggs of his sired hens. I give away birds if I think someone wants them. If they are going to eat them, I can (and do) do that myself. It is true most people don't enjoy that end of chicken husbandry, but, it is all part of it and being able to do it yourself relieves you of alot of the stresses involved in finding a "home" for them with some rooster rescue guy who I can only hope is actually eating them because otherwise that would be a little crazy.

I could sell them cheap to someone that is going to process them, but I like to know that they are going to be killed quickly, mercifully and not see it coming, although I think usually they do know when the jig is up.