Black Copper Marans discussion thread

[Huggerlady]

Thank you chickengr, I think so too!

 

[Sylvester017]

Chickengr, thanks for your reply. They were born last Sept so about 6 months. No signs of eggs yet. In looking closer at Bright Eyes ear lobes, I believe she is just really pale. They all had a yellowish look to their faces and combs which is turning pink now. I am not sure if they are rapidly coming of age or if they've improved in just 3 days. Regardless, they are much happier and learning to perch, scratch and hunt.

I love your rescue story. Yes, sometimes rescue chickens need time to recuperate and get their feathers and color back to normal and you may be right that they just need time to get better. They look nice to me and the proof will be in the eggs they eventually lay. So glad to see them have a good home with you!

 

[doubleleft]

 
Man, Im seeing "black copper" breeders come out of the wood work here lately..First let me explain. I breed for egg  color and I try to keep the standard but I don't show birds..Still I try to cull and keep it true..I don't care how other folks raise or breed their chickens, that being said........Im seeing a ton of Marans eggs popping up for sale on the various local facebook pages,craigslsist etc that cant be any darker than what my RIR's lay..I don't mean borderline  4's, I mean 2's and maybe 3's...

That's just sad. I hope more people will do their research and stay away from the sellers. 

some catch on fast and some never do .

 

[Pipe Dreaming]

There's a lady on a local fb page selling Marans chicks for $12 each, but couldn't provide pictures of parents or eggs and she literally couldn't provide enough for the swarms of people buying.
I kept insisting for pictures and she finally threw a picture up from Whitmore Farms website which I instantly recognized. I asked her if that's where she's getting the chicks from since it's from their website and she went off on me. She never did provide actual pictures of eggs or parent stock, and she has a waiting list. I don't get it.

 

[scflock]

There's a lady on a local fb page selling Marans chicks for $12 each, but couldn't provide pictures of parents or eggs and she literally couldn't provide enough for the swarms of people buying.
I kept insisting for pictures and she finally threw a picture up from Whitmore Farms website which I instantly recognized. I asked her if that's where she's getting the chicks from since it's from their website and she went off on me. She never did provide actual pictures of eggs or parent stock, and she has a waiting list. I don't get it.

So many people don't know the difference in standard bred birds and mixed birds, I didn't. I learned here that the first flock I bought was junk. I could have easily kept breeding them and selling those offspring as BCM, but I wanted to do better than that. They sold out the first day I advertised them as "dark egg layers", and chances are the people that bought those birds will turn around and sell them as BCM. People that do the research will find out the mistake, but in the meantime the unscrupulous breeders will continue to dilute the gene pool

 

[Wynette]

There's a lady on a local fb page selling Marans chicks for $12 each, but couldn't provide pictures of parents or eggs and she literally couldn't provide enough for the swarms of people buying.
I kept insisting for pictures and she finally threw a picture up from Whitmore Farms website which I instantly recognized. I asked her if that's where she's getting the chicks from since it's from their website and she went off on me. She never did provide actual pictures of eggs or parent stock, and she has a waiting list. I don't get it.

So much of this going around.

I tell ALL my contact to please, please do your homework. I offer egg shell samples if someone asks - any good breeder will do so. Ask lots of questions - what are they working on in their flock? Do they exhibit their birds and, if so, how have they placed? How many birds do they breed a year? How long have they been breeding? Where did their original stock come from? All good questions to ask.

 

[snowbird]

Wynette, These are all good suggestions. In todays world in most breeds you will find most do not sell eggs or chicks. Mostly adult fowl. When buying eggs or chicks it is really a crap shoot as we never know what we will get. When I bought the first Marans eggs and later were from one person, Around 20 dozen eggs. Some were decent and also had a lot of culls. The person no longer has Marans. The main thing I would look for is actual picture of fowl the eggs were coming from.

 

[Wynette]

I wholeheartedly agree, Don; and your example of someone who sold hatching eggs & then got out of Marans within a few years is also a sing. Look for folks who have been working with them for many years. I have had them consistently for 10+ years now. Is my flock perfect? Absolutely not! But, I know my way around conformation and breeding, and I do move my line forward each year. Some years, tiny steps, but still forward. The other thing is that some folks just can't spend the amount needed for long juveniles or adults. I get that. Some feel they have a better chance at having more birds to choose from if they hatch. It's not for everyone, I would personally rather SEE what I will be getting by purchasing a long juvenile or older pair; however, again, some don't see it that way, and that's fine. The goal should be to get good birds out to the public - and we who have been working with them for so long should always welcome requests for assistance. I tell anyone who purchases from me (and I don't sell a ton) that when they are ready to choose their breeders, get back with me if they'd like assistance. I know you help a whole lot of folks in that way too, Don, and it's a great way to share your knowledge.

 

[snowbird]

Wynette, Are you going to Lima this weekend ? Kevin and myself are going down Sat. morning.

 

[chickengr]

my bcm pullet got some white on her earlobe. any idea where that come from? for the rest she looks like bcm and her eggs are about #6.