Have you noticed

[rooster-red]

If I bought eggs for $130 they had beter be fabrege!

 

[speckledhen]

I guess none of you ever buy proven SQ cocks or hens at auction. Have seen a single bird in the $100's of dollars

Nope. Can't afford it-too rich for my blood and wallet.

The price isn't steep if the stock is exceptional

.

Possibly not, especially if the breed is rare to boot. Still, too rich for my wallet. I'm not a breeder, just a hobbyist.

But there is no way I would trust it to the postal system.

ABSOLUTELY in agreement! If I was going to spend that kind of money on eggs, I want to pick them up and bring them home myself.​

 

[Wildsky]

Anyone have a pic of a black copper maran?

I'd be interested to see one of those!

 

[Katy]

I have a 3 month old roo. I don't have a recent picture of him, but maybe tomorrow I can get one.

 

[MaransGuy]

Here is a picture of my cockerel at 6 months old:

The reason for their popularity is not just the appearance of the bird, but mostly due to the dark eggs they can lay.

Here is a pic of one of my eggs pipping:

A flash was used so the egg appears a bit washed out but you can at least get the idea. There is a color chart that corresponds to egg color with the darkest being the most coveted. The absolute best eggs are nearly as dark as chocolate but even the best hens do not produce that color egg after egg. Egg color fades and intensifies within each bird over the course of the season. Unfortunately, many of the marans out there lay eggs not much darker than a typical brown egg layer. The best lines command the highest prices.

Richard

 

[Katy]

I hope my guy looks like yours someday

. He's a very mellow guy right now, and I'm hoping he stays that way.

 

[MaransGuy]

Hi Katy,

When he was about 4 months old he went through a real "jerk" stage. That was when he was just starting to figure out what to do with the hens. He would fall off of them more often than he would be "successful". That was when he started challenging me when I walked into the yard. A few dominance reminders and he eventually figured out I was boss. By the time he was 5-6 months old he had calmed down a lot. Of course, he is not apt to be too randy when it is 3 degrees outside and there is 18" of snow on the ground. They pretty much concentrate on staying warm these days. He has always been very good with his hens though. He has NEVER chased a hen, even once. He is really gentle with all of the birds. Yesterday was a perfect example. Like I said, snow is covering everything right now, so no one likes to come out and walk in the stuff. I noticed my little sebright hen fly up onto something so she could get out of the coop without walking in the snow. I then realized it was onto his back! There was Cooper, walking around the pen with this little sebright sitting on his back getting a free ride. He never once tried to shake her off. By the time I grabbed my camera she had flown off and was back in the coop. I would love to get a pic of that!

Richard

 

[Katy]

Mine is still penned with just his barred rock sister. They share a common fence with the others so hopefully he won't get too beat up when I put them together. The one older roo comes and checks them out at the fence every morning when I turn them out, but the other roo just ignores them both.

 

[earthnut]

Quote:
McMurray Marans are not high quality, so I would hope they wouldn't be that expensive. Also, they don't have Black Coppers, the most coveted color.

I hope at that price, they're high quality! I agree with others here, I wouldn't trust them to the postal system.

I really want a Black Copper hen or two, but I'm such a cheapskate, and they're expensive.

 

[tazcat70]

Richard- Gorgeous roo!!!! If I were to get Marans, I would want one like yours!

I have read/heard that their color is usually darker as a pullet and then will lighten some.

So far I am a hobbyist, until that changes (if it changes) in a major way I am in it for enjoyment only.

Tonya