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Yikes. I'm sorry to say, that boy looks half Cochin to me.
Don and I disagree on this point, though; I feel that the buyer has EQUAL if not MORE responsibility to ask questions & do their research before buying. If you're looking for a specimen that's bred to the SOP, this boy is probably as far from it as you can get - again, I'm very sorry to say that, but it is what it is. The GOOD thing is that you've come to the right place to learn, if that's what you're after! There are many folks on this thread who can give you helpful feedback and advice - just ask!
Wynette, Yes, I believe the buyer has some responsibility also. Look at the people asking how their fowl look and we can see they had no idea what a Marans should look like. I have always thought the seller had a responsibilty to explain what they were selling good or bad. If the Marans people keep selling this mixed junk you will see people paying these big prices for eating eggs getting out of the Marans. I fail to see how a new chicken person is supposed to know what questions they should be asking. Honesty is always the best policy.
How many times do we all say " we have to breed 100's of chicks to get 1 or 2 decent birds"?
No one gets perfect birds every time. When someone buys a dozen eggs, what are the odds they are going to get "very good or SQ birds" out of them?
We all know, that in any breeding program, some "uglies" pop up...but most of the time, we don't talk about them. (except for that ugli comb thread a while back)
Marans were made from many different breeds, and probably cochins are in there way back, and who knows if Penes weren't also added when the breed was "brought back from the brink of extinction"?
I don't think that because vulture hocks & side sprigs come up occasionally, that necessarily means that someone in the US mixed them in.The more that a breeder breeds, line breeds, the more things like that will appear.
If they do come up, don't use that bird and look at who it might have come from & try to eliiminate it. Thats what breeders do. All I'm trying to say here, is that we all at times get things we don't like & that aren't up to standard. I think a lot of us do try to educate people and thats good. I try not to have a "knee-jerk" reaction when I see problems, but try to see how they can be worked out.
I have had a lot of people that are new to chickens, come to me for Marans. They are more known that I think we realize. With todays computers & internet, almost anytime I google anything about chickens, the Marans breed come up.
