Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[BarnGoddess01]

Hi,
I neeed some help. I was told thta Calf Manna was real good for poultry. So I went out and bought some.
It's a 10 lb. bag of Calf Manna by Manna Pro. Poultry is listed on the front as one species for which it is useful.
Did I buy the right thing? Or was I supposed to get Manna Pro Poultry Conditioner in the 5 lb. bag?
If Calf Manna is right, how do I use it? How much per bird? Will they choke on it? Do I need to feed grit if they
are also getting commercial layer ration from Southern States? It says 1 tablespoon a day. How do I make
sure each bird gets 1 tablespoon. I don't usually use commerical supplements except Poultry Nutri-Drops
( not using them now). It's been a long winter and the girls started to lay in Jan. So thinking this extra will
help them sail thru the breeding season.
Thanks for the help!
Best,
karen

I have been supplementing with Calf Manna as well. 24 birds consume about 2 cups per day. Clearly, some more than others. I do see a distinct improvement in the condition of my flock this winter, however, the weather has also been mild and not a lot of snow so they are still getting outside nearly every day. That probably contributes as well. I find that a couple of the girls aren't keen on the Calf Manna so I've just purchased a bag of Gamebird Startena from Purina (meat based protein - 30%, fat 2.5%) to try instead - at half the price. I've also just switched all my feeds over to meat based protein rather than vegetable (soy) which I had been using. (Purina in Canada offers both. Same numbers on the tag, just different ingredients.) The birds prefer the meat based products. That much I can tell already.

 

[gilavina]

Mornin...slow start to the day....I hate the kind of cold that makes your head feels like its 40 pounds and is too heavy to lug around all day.

The incubator is cookin along just fine....I'm tryin to be patient, but its hard bein the first hatch and all for the season.

 

[Hens and Roos]

Thats one of the projects I'm working on heehee

hens and roos is working on them as well

I now have 2 cuckoo pullets laying eggs and they are looking pretty good- color seems to be getting a bit darker each time- have had 5 eggs in the last 5 days!!

 

[SD_Paulo]

Hey someone beat me to the punch! I am planning to work on this (Blue Cucko) project from a few dark egg laying hens and a Cuckoo Cockerel.
Would of like to see them under batural sunlight...

Yup, a cuckoo roo or go olive eggers until then.

Love the olive eggs.

Unless you can find or hatch, a solid black or a blue . . .

 

[gilavina]

I now have 2 cuckoo pullets laying eggs and they are looking pretty good- color seems to be getting a bit darker each time- have had 5 eggs in the last 5 days!!

are those blue cuckoos or silver cuckoos you are talking about? You have both, right? Tonight I'll be merging my youngest cuckoos in with the older flocks of birds from the first hatch of last year. That group of birds are really good about absorbing in new members of all ages with not a whole lot of drama. I just need more space for these cuckoos to finish off. There are some just beautiful cuckoo girls in this group I can't wait to see how they finish out.

 

[gilavina]

Hey someone beat me to the punch! I am planning to work on this (Blue Cucko) project from a few dark egg laying hens and a Cuckoo Cockerel.
Would of like to see them under batural sunlight...

I think there are several of us on here working on them....It will be fun to see others progress with them. This year will be my second year with them...so we'll see how it goes!

 

[Arielle]

Hey someone beat me to the punch! I am planning to work on this (Blue Cucko) project from a few dark egg laying hens and a Cuckoo Cockerel.
Would of like to see them under batural sunlight...

Donna has neat projects!

 

[County Boy]

are marans a good laying chicken. also, how much do they sell for.

 

[kathyinmo]

Regarding higher protein diets...... This is written by Dr. Richard Miles..... A friend shared this with me, and I think it is worthy of being passed on.


Yes, you can quote me if you wish as the University poultry nutrition professor near you. If anyone calls you can give them my name and I will be glad to talk with them.


In regards to your question about the extra protein you are feeding to your birds by feeding them the Game Bird Breeder (GBB) feed. Your mature birds, roosters and hens, do not require the extra protein that is being furnished to them as they consume the GBB feed. As you probably know the protein is made up of individual building blocks known as amino acids and your birds really have a requirement for certain of these amino acids and not protein per se. The protein is used to only furnish the amino acids into the bird just as the feed ingredients are the furnishing the protein to the diet. So, once the requirement for specific amino acids is met the birds liver will have to dismantle the extra amino acids and dispose of the nitrogen from the amino acids as waste. The waste nitrogen that is being excreted by your birds (and all birds and reptiles) is the white material in their droppings. Whenever the bird’s liver has to dispose of lots of nitrogen from the extra amino acids being furnished from the extra protein in the GBB feed it has to work overtime and in hot weather, as we are having now and for many months to come, this will be a stress on the birds because of the extra heat that is being produced in the body as the nitrogen is excreted. The layer feed will furnish the protein level which is closer to your bird’s requirement for protein and in hot weather this will make your birds more comfortable. Your birds will more than likely do very well and have good condition and performance on the commercial layer feed once you switch to the layer if you decide to do so. Your mature rooster does not need to consume a FRM medicated chick starter. The medication is a coccidiostat and mature birds are somewhat resistant to coccidiosis since they have developed some immunity to the protozoa that causes the coccidiosis. A broiler grower diet (unmedicated and with a lower percent of protein) will do fine for the rooster if you decide to switch. The big Buffs are consuming the oyster shells because they need the calcium for egg shell formation. It is a good idea for you to leave it out “free choice” for them to eat it whenever they need it. Chickens have an appetite for calcium and this means when they need it they will consume it as oyster shells. Again, there is no need for you to mix feed for them. All you have to do is to give them the commercial layer feed and they will do fine since the commercial layer feed has all of the energy and nutrients that the birds require to do well as egg layers. Keep supplementing the greens and anything else from the yard and garden and table and the birds should do well. I hope that this information has been helpful.

One further comment about protein and feathers: I am not surprised that the GBB feed is promoting good feather growth and condition since it is higher in crude protein. When considering the many factors that are required for feather formation, overall nutritional adequacy of the diet is of utmost importance during feather growth and development. Feathers consist almost completely of protein (~90%+) and when the bird is synthesizing new feathers a source of high quality protein in the diet becomes very important. High quality protein contains the amino acids in the proper quantity that will be required for feather synthesis. This is especially true at the time the bird is molting and after which will grow new feathers. However, mature feathers are not living tissue like other tissues in the bird’s body. Feathers are made up of the same type of protein as is found in finger and toe nails, claws, hoofs, horns, hair, beaks, etc. This protein is called keratin and contains a lot of sulfur in special bonds referred to in nutritional chemistry as “di-sulfide” bonds. So, there are two sulfur containing amino acids that are very important during feather formation. These amino acids are methionine and cystine. Cystine is the one that is found mostly in feathers and is made from methionine. So, methionine is really the important one and must be adequate in the diet during feather formation. Feeding the higher protein feed (i.e., GBB), which would provide more of these and other amino acids to the bird, would be very beneficial at the time the bird needs them for lots of new feather formation, however after the feathers are mature the extra protein is of no use for feather formation and is a burden on the bird’s liver as has already been discussed. If a feather is lost now and then from the bird, as we know happens at times in the barnyard, it should be able to grow back with no problem as long as the diet the bird is eating is of high quality.

 

[Hens and Roos]

are those blue cuckoos or silver cuckoos you are talking about? You have both, right? Tonight I'll be merging my youngest cuckoos in with the older flocks of birds from the first hatch of last year. That group of birds are really good about absorbing in new members of all ages with not a whole lot of drama. I just need more space for these cuckoos to finish off. There are some just beautiful cuckoo girls in this group I can't wait to see how they finish out.

well I thought that they are blue cuckoos but maybe they are both- I will have to try and get a good picture and post it and see what you think. I know that the 2 are regular cuckoos in appereance but might be carrying hidden genes for color