International Black Copper Marans Thread - Breeding to the SOP

[kcrandall]

That's what we've always figured, but I wanted to be sure.  We normally clean hens out for two weeks but I think I will go ahead and start collecting some LA eggs for the incubator.  It's been nearly two weeks.  They took a short break while we had snow, but have started back up again.  One of my splash hens with Mud (FRF BCM cockerel) is laying also so I'm going to start saving those eggs as well.  

Also, we had a pretty windy day yesterday and I noticed something on Cooper (LA BCM cockerel) that concerned me.  When the wind blew his hackle I noticed he has some white fluff under his hackle feathers.  He is going on 8 months old.  Maybe it's still possible it will molt out?  How difficult is it to breed parasitic white feathers out of a line?

He has also suffered frost bite to all of the points on his comb.  I really don't want to trim him like a Gamecock.  I may just trim the necrotic areas and leave the rest.  Or let the frost bitten points fall of naturally as long as it doesn't start making him sick.  I only need him for this year anyway.  Hopefully he will produce some decent looking progeny with no white.  I will choose a couple of his best sons to replace him.  

My 3 BCM Cockerels suffered frostbite on their points too - in North Texas we had temps below 20 F (-6.7 C) for over 48 hours. I had an inch of ice on my tank (which is what Texans call a pond) which rarely happens here. I coated their combs with Vaseline but it didn't help the points. My knuckleheads prefer to camp outside their coop no matter the weather - the pullets sleep inside the coop so they got all the smarts. My plan is to watch them closely but let nature take its course unless they become sick as a result. I wish you well with your Chooks!

Thanks,
Keith

 

[Chooks man]

they are all healthy and happy .the house is almost full .

start building them a new shad outside tomorrow ( around 40 DC ) far from the old chooks .
I don t want them to come in contact with them .
I m trying to breed from scratch new healthy flock

chooks man

 

[kcrandall]

they are all healthy and happy .the house is almost full . start building them a new shad outside tomorrow ( around 40 DC ) far from the old chooks . I don t want them to come in contact with them . I m trying to breed from scratch new healthy flock chooks man

You have some nice looking chicks Chooks Man! I am well excited for you, congrats! Keith

 

[Red Banks]

Quote:
I haven't heard anyone call a pond a "tank" in a long time! We had two days in the high twenties and now we have the most beautiful weather. Hope y'all's weather eases soon. Both of you are too cold, Chooks Man is too hot and I am just right.

@kfelton0002 - the LP rooster has a lot of white in his tail. Amanda said he got the white sometime after he turned two. I also read that in the beginning of BCM in this country they were breeding for over melanized birds to cover the white. So what do we do with the white?

I don't have frostbite but do have some bad looking combs from all the fighting.

 

[Chooks man]

You have some nice looking chicks Chooks Man! I am well excited for you, congrats!

Keith

I m well happy about them some chicks are exceptional .

here more photos







the older one are 6 week old . outdoor some time this week .
they are special to me .

chooks man

 

[KF0002]

Quote: Our feed is a mix. It has black oil sunflower seeds, corn, milo, wheat, calf manna, and breeder pellets. They also get boiled eggs, bread, scraps, etc pretty regularly. He must not sleep with his head under his wing like most of the others. The other cockerels look fine so far.

I just hate to cut off his comb to the scalp. His comb makes him look handsome. Or.. it did. lol. We will work on him this weekend if I feel the frost bite will cause issues. Sometimes if it's just the points, they will just fall off with no intervention.

I'm looking forward to spring... lucky you with your warm weather! I'm jealous!

 

[Chooks man]

I haven't heard anyone call a pond a "tank" in a long time! We had two days in the high twenties and now we have the most beautiful weather. Hope y'all's weather eases soon. Both of you are too cold, Chooks Man is too hot and I am just right.

@kfelton0002 - the LP rooster has a lot of white in his tail. Amanda said he got the white sometime after he turned two. I also read that in the beginning of BCM in this country they were breeding for over melanized birds to cover the white. So what do we do with the white?

I don't have frostbite but do have some bad looking combs from all the fighting.

Yeah RedBank we know you guys down in Florida never see the cold .

Ah the white on the feather ?
there is 3 type of parasitic white on the Black /blue strain =

1- complete white feather manly in the wings area or the tail . nasty thing to have .,hard to bred out need a great numbre of progeny from at lease one correct parent
2- white color on the black feathers , wings .tail ,and body too . fixable but recessive genes.
3- white under fluff - moderate to deal with . need at lease one super dark parent .

true color of the rooster is after the second molt 18/24 month .
so what you see now is his true genetic make up .no just a youth vigor

chooks man

 

[Chooks man]

Our feed is a mix. It has black oil sunflower seeds, corn, milo, wheat, calf manna, and breeder pellets. They also get boiled eggs, bread, scraps, etc pretty regularly. He must not sleep with his head under his wing like most of the others. The other cockerels look fine so far.

I just hate to cut off his comb to the scalp. His comb makes him look handsome. Or.. it did. lol. We will work on him this weekend if I feel the frost bite will cause issues. Sometimes if it's just the points, they will just fall off with no intervention.

I'm looking forward to spring... lucky you with your warm weather! I'm jealous!

both extreme are nasty

I m not lucky at all .with temperature above the 38/40 D C and a dry wind .it is a cool place to be to be honest to you .

chooks man

 

[KF0002]

I haven't heard anyone call a pond a "tank" in a long time! We had two days in the high twenties and now we have the most beautiful weather. Hope y'all's weather eases soon. Both of you are too cold, Chooks Man is too hot and I am just right.

@kfelton0002 - the LP rooster has a lot of white in his tail. Amanda said he got the white sometime after he turned two. I also read that in the beginning of BCM in this country they were breeding for over melanized birds to cover the white. So what do we do with the white?

I don't have frostbite but do have some bad looking combs from all the fighting.

With the white all you can do is cull hard. We can breed the birds we have and select the best progeny to breed forward. The issue with that is, you have to grow out the darn things until they are 18 months to two years old before some even show the white. Debbie from Heaven Sent Ranch received a LP cockerel from Brenda Little that started showing white as he matured. It isn't uncommon.

Frostbite is an every year thing here in my climate. With our games we try to trim them by November of their first year so their combs are long gone before the temps get cold enough to cause damage. With the others, their combs always end up looking like crap after they get frost bitten.

 

[kcrandall]

I haven't heard anyone call a pond a "tank" in a long time!  We had two days in the high twenties and now we have the most beautiful weather.  Hope y'all's weather eases soon.  Both of you are too cold, Chooks Man is too hot and I am just right.

@kfelton0002
 - the LP rooster has a lot of white in his tail.  Amanda said he got the white sometime after he turned two.  I also read that in the beginning of BCM in this country they were breeding for over melanized birds to cover the white.  So what do we do with the white?

I don't have frostbite but do have some bad looking combs from all the fighting.

Haa, you're alright @RedBanks!!! We're back in the high 70s today. As you know, we in Texas can experience temp changes of 50-60 degrees in a single day - sound crazy but it does happen on occasion. Unlike adding feathered feet it may take several generations to breed out the white. I remember reading that if the base of the feather gets infected it can cause the feather to take on a whitish appearance. I don't know this to be true but sounds logical. It will be interesting to see if the white persists after his next molt.

Keith