I have never had good luck using birds with feathers on the middle toe, it has always passed on. Heck, I don't even have to use one to get the occasional middle toe feather.
Shank Feathering-
I find that it is easier to deal with the shank feathering issues verses some of the other issues concerning Marans. Talk about chosing our battles.... this is one of those things that I have chosen as a battle and I am willing to deal with when breeding.
I have had good experiences while monkeying with the shank feathering. Now to get the outer toe feathered more regularly. I am getting good results these last couple hatches from Lil' Bill with several chicks showing a couple stubs on the outer toes. I am also getting clean legged chicks because I am using 1 clean legged hen (Bill's 1st daughter) and a sparsely feather legged hen (also Bill's daughter) to rebuild my birds due to the comb problems that came to visit last year, which called for heavy culling. Hopefully I have culled correctly for this.
With all this hatching and test mating I've been doing since this comb issue started....it has been since late last fall that I have had any comb issues and those chicks were from the Florida stock and Gnarles, of which both, Gnarles and those females are gone.
My gut tells me I have made good decisions, with one exception because the jury is still out....the black copper pullet that is giving me those lovely eggs. Her first test babies are still too young to tell. She is the only blood here that would be carrying those comb genetics, but does not show it.
Give me a clean legged bird with a white feather in the hackle, too dark of eyes, showing no copper and has a crappy tail set.....but please, O please, O please spare me the carnation combs.
I am officially a comb snob.
I will always be a blue snob.
Shank Feathering-
I find that it is easier to deal with the shank feathering issues verses some of the other issues concerning Marans. Talk about chosing our battles.... this is one of those things that I have chosen as a battle and I am willing to deal with when breeding.
I have had good experiences while monkeying with the shank feathering. Now to get the outer toe feathered more regularly. I am getting good results these last couple hatches from Lil' Bill with several chicks showing a couple stubs on the outer toes. I am also getting clean legged chicks because I am using 1 clean legged hen (Bill's 1st daughter) and a sparsely feather legged hen (also Bill's daughter) to rebuild my birds due to the comb problems that came to visit last year, which called for heavy culling. Hopefully I have culled correctly for this.
With all this hatching and test mating I've been doing since this comb issue started....it has been since late last fall that I have had any comb issues and those chicks were from the Florida stock and Gnarles, of which both, Gnarles and those females are gone.
My gut tells me I have made good decisions, with one exception because the jury is still out....the black copper pullet that is giving me those lovely eggs. Her first test babies are still too young to tell. She is the only blood here that would be carrying those comb genetics, but does not show it.
Give me a clean legged bird with a white feather in the hackle, too dark of eyes, showing no copper and has a crappy tail set.....but please, O please, O please spare me the carnation combs.
