International Black Copper Marans Thread - Breeding to the SOP

[Red Banks]

cockerel #1

cockerel #2

@dvoice & @RedBanks

cockerel #1 is superior than cockerel #2 in this points =
- better comb
- better tail .thin and pointed ( what you guys need to produce pullet with a thin pointed tail as the SOP French require .
- better tail angle
- Elegance show quality ( carriage of the body very important )

Cockerel #2 is superior than cockerel #1 in this point =
- better body color ,rich uniform copper .
- thickness of the body

love to know exactly who much they weight .really ,not from the photos ?

#1 IS A SHOW QUALITY COCKEREL and a BREEDERS OF PULLETS WITH A STUNNING TAIL AND COMB .
#2 IS A BREEDER OF A WELL COLORED PULLETS BUT NOT A GREAT TAIL ( except if mated a hen/hens with a stunning tail - thin and pointed ) ,.He will lose point if shown for his comb and the Angle of his tail . EXcept if RedBank is a judge Hahahaaaaaaaaa!

for me if I had them I ll keep them both ,because in the breeding pen they will complete each other .they progeny will be a great start of show quality line when blended . Cockerel #1 progeny X cockerel #2 progeny = great BCM line
in this case cockerel #1 & #2 should be mated to the same hens , so they progeny will be related .half sibling ,great to work with .

chooks man

@Chooks man - you only get to pick one.

 

[Red Banks]

Marans eggs can be difficult to hatch anyway. I have never gotten good hatch rates on shipped eggs though. I get good hatch rates from my own eggs, around 85% or so. Shipping just does so much damage to the eggs. Chicks that do develop can be malpositioned in the egg and die because they cant reach the air cell to hatch. The cells and structures within the egg get shaken up during shipping.

Thats why I couldnt bring myself to pay so much for a dozen LP eggs because I just dont seem to have much luck with shipped eggs.

I will be satisfied with 5 chicks though if thats all that hatch.

We will just do it again.

 

[dvoice]

@Chooks man - you only get to pick one.

Actually I was planning on keeping 2. But since the one in earlier pic was deemed no good(the one outside) I can keep theses 2. I only have 2 pens to work with, with access to runs.

 

[Red Banks]

Actually I was planning on keeping 2. But since the one in earlier pic was deemed no good(the one outside) I can keep theses 2. I only have 2 pens to work with, with access to runs.

I love it. Now I will get to see them both down the road. It helps me so much every time I see them from youth to maturity. Very selfish of me but also very good for you to have two good cockerels!

 

[KF0002]

We will just do it again.

Sounds great!!

I checked on the chicks this morning and the last pipped egg had just hatched because the chick was still wet. There are 5 and no more has pipped. I will leave them in the incubator until I wake up (just got off work) so the last chick can dry. I will band them and take pics ASAP. Both of the big dark hackled hen's eggs hatched that were in lockdown. Two chicks were from the darkest eggs, and one was from the speckled eggs.

 

[KF0002]

The good news is, I finally got to open the incubator to photograph the chicks. The bad news is, one of them isn't going to make it. The chick that hatched this morning has a leg deformity causing it to not be able to stand. When it tries to stand, it just flops onto it's back. It is from one of the darkest eggs and I am so bummed out. It is still in the incubator, but it looks like we will probably have to put it down.

 

[KF0002]

Here are the 4 others.. they are very active and vigorous. Ignore the little Cream Legbar cockerel in some of the pictures. He was the only Legbar egg I had at the time when I set the Marans eggs so I threw it in with them. Of course it hatched to be a cockerel, such is my luck. He cried his head off when I took the Marans for their photo shoot and left him by himself so I let him tag along. I used a dish towel as a back drop.


They have minimal white on their faces and their hatch down looks good to me. The one with the red band was from the group of darkest eggs and has barely any white at all on its face. The chicks with the blue bands are from the big hen with the dark hackle @RedBanks. The chick with no band was from the 3rd group of eggs. I will take pics of the eggshells also and I will wing band these shortly, but put the zip ties on them to mark which eggs they came from. They are a cute little bunch and I am very happy with them.

 

[KF0002]

Here are pics of the finished pen my hubby built. I will move Maximus and the LA pullet (I named her Queen) to the new pen tonight. I may put my best blue copper pullet in with them as it won't be hard to tell their eggs apart. I will make final culls through the FRF x LA pullets and pick the best 1 or 2 and they will go in the next pen my husband is building. My plan is to move Maximus back and forth between the pens every other day so he can keep the pullets from both pens fertilized.

 

[KF0002]

Another egg from Maximus's pen.

 

[Red Banks]

Here are pics of the finished pen my hubby built. I will move Maximus and the LA pullet (I named her Queen) to the new pen tonight. I may put my best blue copper pullet in with them as it won't be hard to tell their eggs apart. I will make final culls through the FRF x LA pullets and pick the best 1 or 2 and they will go in the next pen my husband is building. My plan is to move Maximus back and forth between the pens every other day so he can keep the pullets from both pens fertilized.

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The pen is wonderful! You are so organized!