Black Copper Marans discussion thread

[math ace]

Dreamcatcher, you seem to be a well read person when it comes to marans. So, you are aware that your male has squirrel tail which is a disqualifier in the show world.
He also has a very short back. It does look like your male is having some color issues on his chest too. These are the 3 big issues that pop out immediately when I look at him.

I hope I did not offend. I only posted because you said he was your breeder roo and you made a few post that indicated you were keeping an eye open for the SOP in birds ....

 

[DreamCatcherNC]

nice eggs

 

[xlboergoats]

I do not post often so there is no reason for anyone to check the number of posts that I have made. I have found that after years of breeding livestock and poultry, there is no way to add "tone" to a written post. Many times people get defensive because they feel that someone is posting in a negative way. I never post to upset anyone, but do try to add information that I feel may help a fellow breeder when I can.

The Standards are also listed on www.Marans.org. The Black Coppers and Wheatens are both accepted by the APA. We are showing all of the other varieties under Proposed Standards at this time.

All Marans have to have red ear lobes, not red ear tuffs. It has been our experience that males with red ear tuffs bred to over-melanized Black Copper females can help to improve the hackle color on the females of next generation. If we have a set of Black Copper females that seem to be correct in "type" but over melanized, we use the red ear tuffed males over them when breeding. Please don't throw out a nice Black Copper male because he has dark ear tuffs.

We have, breed, and show Black Copper males with dark and red ear tuffs. Our cockerel that was Best of Breed, Best Continental, and Reserve Champion Large Fowl at the State Fair of Texas has dark ear tuffs. Our cockerel that was Reserve Best of Breed (behind one of our Black Copper pullets) at the Pelican State Show in Louisiana has red ear tuffs. Both have red combs, wattles, faces, and ear lobes.

I cannot go into all of the genetics of breeding using the I's and E's. I get bogged down in all of that when I do drag out the Genetic Books and start reading. I will share what works for us here. I am not here to correct or call anyone out on their birds or breeding program. I am thankful that we are all able to do what we enjoy doing and able to share from our experiences.

Kind Regards,
Ernie Haire
Arp, Texas
www.Marans2XL.com

 

[xlboergoats]

The Black Copper cockerel was Reserve Best of Variety at The Pelican State Show behind onr of out pullets. She did win Best of Breed and Reserve Best Continental behind a Polish.

Sorry,
Ernie Haire
Arp, Texas
www.Marans2XL.com

 

[math ace]

hey and thank you. We have been breeding birds for about 1 1/2 years. I just saw some marans and fell in love with them. I was able to get some good stack and cull down to my breeders last year. was able to hatch out several hundred birds. sold some and culled to improve my flock and am now breeding my rooster's daughters back to him. A friend of mine recomended this site and at first it seemed a little overwhealming, but I am getting used to it and enjoy the access to so many people and information. Hope to talk with you again. have a great day

Your welcome... It is ALWAYS nice to see new faces on this thread. WOW.... you hatched several hundred birds in 1 1/2 years. That is AWESOME to have so many to choose from in such a short time. I hope you enjoy the site and let us know if you need any help trying to figure out how to do something on BYC....

 

[math ace]

I do not post often so there is no reason for anyone to check the number of posts that I have made. I have found that after years of breeding livestock and poultry, there is no way to add "tone" to a written post. Many times people get defensive because they feel that someone is posting in a negative way. I never post to upset anyone, but do try to add information that I feel may help a fellow breeder when I can.

Kind Regards,
Ernie Haire
Arp, Texas
www.Marans2XL.com

You are so right Ernie. TONE is so hard to judge in the written word. I find the only way to judge TONE is to see enough of a person's postings to know where their intent is. Some people just write in a clipped short manner while others are more flowery in speech. Some folks are too quick to get offended and just need to be reassured that no harm is meant.

Welcome aboard BYC marans thread. We welcome ANY information you are willing to share. We love to see what others have discovered in the show ring, in the breeding pens, or on other threads...

 

[math ace]

Quote:
Very interesting observation. Has anyone else on BYC seen this?
Ernie, do you have a pic of a roo with the red ear tuffs that you would use to improve a hens hackle color?


Lisa

 

[pinkchick]

when you talk about Bev Davis and Wade Jeanne lines, these are lines that these individuals have developed through their breeding progem over the years.  Bev Davis line seems to have the best pure copper color in the roos hackle.  Wade seems to have a little more yellow in it.  You could develope your own line after carefully breeding and culling.  It takes a certain number of generations to be able to say you have your own line. I do not know how many, maybe someone else could answer that. when looking for egg color, you must realize that the color will change through the hens laying cycle.  The flock has to demonstrate that they can lay at least a #4 color egg sometime in their cycle.  Bev Davis gives a great explanation on her web site.  She is one of if not the top expert on Marans in this country.  hope this helps

 

I've not heard of a certain number of generations, but I have heard many times that to consider it a persons personal line of birds, the person should have been breeding them for 5 years or more.

 

[pinkchick]

Lisa~ I think Ernie is referring to copper colored ear tufts and just called them red. I could be mistaken but that is how I read it.

 

[math ace]

I cannot go into all of the genetics of breeding using the I's and E's. I get bogged down in all of that when I do drag out the Genetic Books and start reading. I will share what works for us here. I am not here to correct or call anyone out on their birds or breeding program. I am thankful that we are all able to do what we enjoy doing and able to share from our experiences.

Kind Regards,
Ernie Haire
Arp, Texas
www.Marans2XL.com

LOL....ROFLMAO.... My eyes just roll back in my head when they start talking about the I's and E's of it all. I wish I had better handle on the genetic aspect of breeding. Thank you for sharing what is working for you. I think "Sharing" is the best sign that a breeder is really concerned about the breed.