Black Copper Marans discussion thread

[bwalden]

5 BCM chicks, along with 4 Welsummer chicks my broody Wellie hatched out last week.

 

[maryhysong]

I agree with everyone else... but I wanted to point out his leg color is ALL wrong..... not worth breeding. Too many issues comb, leg color, leg feathering.

that was exactly my thinking too. He and a similar fellow are cooling their heels in the crate; they go to freezer camp tomorrow morning. Then I shall sit and watch and look for the next couple that need to go.

 

[Runawaylobster]

that was exactly my thinking too. He and a similar fellow are cooling their heels in the crate; they go to freezer camp tomorrow morning. Then I shall sit and watch and look for the next couple that need to go.

I went out last night to see if my wheatens have brown wing feathers yet, and some of them do not so i am kinda thinking you have a wheaten there or maybe BCM x wheaten .. did you see him as a chick?? wheaten chicks are yellow..

 

[RedBugPoultry]

Question for the thread....I have a very nice BC Marans hen that early in the season gave me several very nice chicks out of nice dark eggs. Actually she lays the darkest egg in my flock. After the first set of eggs I hatch of hers the rest have not been fertile. This has been going on for several months. I changed my rooster in the pen because there was a issue with a couple of hens but this girl's eggs are still not fertile. I have now put her in a breeding pen with just her and a rooster to see if that helps the situation. Has anyone dealt with this before?

 

[lonnyandrinda]

I have two comments but I have not had any personal experience.

Sometimes a hen and a rooster just don't get along. Have you seen him actually attempt to mount her? You said this happened with two roosters so I'm guessing that's not the problem.

Another thing I have heard recommended is to go out at night and trim up the feathers around the vent, so there is better room for contact.

 

[amberflea]

I bought some hatching eggs from a breeder, stating they had French and Clean legged English BCM's. The copper colored chick and 4 typical black/white ones hatched. The copper colored chick turned into a rooster, and the b/w into hens, 2 feather legged all black, 2 clean legged with copper necks.
I bred them and hatched some eggs this spring, I hatched 2 more copper colored ones like the rooster was when it was hatched,. 4 wheatens and 8 regular b/w some with feather legs, some clean.
ANYWAY, I have posted pictures of the copper colored chick and of him as an adult
(that turned into a rooster) and please note 2 more chicks hatched from him are that color.
So, why the all copper color as chicks, and did I get 3 wheaten chicks because of the wheaten recessive gene in them? IS THE COPPER colored chick a typical BCM?
Thanks

 

[lonnyandrinda]

My understanding is that if it didn't hatch with the black and white penguin look, it's not good for breeding. It's genes are muddled somehow. Looks like you need a new rooster to go with your original hens if you want to keep clean lines!

 

[maryhysong]

I went out last night to see if my wheatens have brown wing feathers yet, and some of them do not so i am kinda thinking you have a wheaten there or maybe BCM x wheaten .. did you see him as a chick?? wheaten chicks are yellow..

I got all these as chicks. All were black and white, but some had a lot less white, especially around the face, than others.

 

[maryhysong]

OK another cull, I promise to start showing off the better looking ones soon!
This is the biggest of the last three I know are culls for sure at this point. I don't think his color is too bad on the back, but there is some shading in the hackles, his legs are almost white and sparsely feathered.



And of course he has way too much color on the breast.


I didn't get pics of them, but there are two more about like this. Also this one and one of the others has some white fluff sprouting in front of the tail. So they are all going to go to freezer camp this coming weekend. That will still leave me 5 boys to pick from and probably from here on out it will get a bit harder to narrow it down.

 

[imamamato3]

Hi
I haven't posted much so I hope I'm doing this right..
I have a question about BCM's ...

How would a breeder end up hatching a blue cuckoo Marans when it was definitely supposed to be a BCM?
There are no cuckoo Marans in the flock whatsoever.
Any help?
Thank you