Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[gilavina]

I'll work on pics this week (or weekend...depending on weather!)

I need to show you guys not only that blue band boy, but those 3 young boys, as well as, the free ranger boy, too!

4 pullets, and the blue laced red x marans, girl, too!


Yes, Vicki!
I can FINALLY see!
I'm finding more and more what body type I like and am enjoying seeing the groups look more homogeneous!!


that darned enamel white popping up on my 2 favorite girls really stinks....does anyone know how the gene for that works??
I LOVE their body types, but I put them in with the layers...


What about the crowing hen??
She's one of those huge bodied, dark blue girls - I have 2 of them in the breeding sets, both going to the blue band boy with the smaller comb.

Should she go to the layers??

Good! Now just to keep refining your skills with selecting birds and culling and you will be well on your way.

I'm not exactly sure how the white earlobe gene works, I just cull and move on. It hurts when its on a really nice bird, but its not worth the risk of breeding with them unless you have absolutely no choice and are prepared for an incredible amount of culling for several generations and still no guarantee it won't pop up out of nowhere even when you think its all taken care of.

On that crowing hen, it mostly comes down to what you are willing to work with. If you feel concern, then I'd cull her, but if you are feeling like it might be worth a round of test mating, then I say go that route, doesn't mean you won't eventually cull her if you get better from offspring, but its all about picking your battles

 

[Cadeau]

Thanks!
I did cull out the enamel earlobe girl...she's in with the layers and laying a gorgeous egg

If my SO ever pics up that 6 hole breeder pen - the crowing girl can be my first victim (ahem.....resident!)


I also got 3 eggs from my pink & flourescent yellow band girl x Bryant roo before moving her

He came from a dark egg and his daughters lay dark - she also lays a gorgeous egg - so can't wait to see what they produce together!
We'll see if they hatch!!


what I need to do is get better organized, so that I can take pics of the chicks as they grow...
.I'm sure THAT would help me figure out what qualities in chick = a quality hen/roo

 

[gilavina]

Thanks!
I did cull out the enamel earlobe girl...she's in with the layers and laying a gorgeous egg

If my SO ever pics up that 6 hole breeder pen - the crowing girl can be my first victim (ahem.....resident!)


I also got 3 eggs from my pink & flourescent yellow band girl x Bryant roo before moving her

He came from a dark egg and his daughters lay dark - she also lays a gorgeous egg - so can't wait to see what they produce together!
We'll see if they hatch!!


what I need to do is get better organized, so that I can take pics of the chicks as they grow...
.I'm sure THAT would help me figure out what qualities in chick = a quality hen/roo

I totally agree on the photos. I use them all the time to reference back to for soooo many aspects of my breeding program. Even in the winter during the non breeding season, I will pull them up so often to see what I can improve on and will get my listing going early with who I'm gonna breed to who for the following season and etc.

 

[heath_elisha]

Good morning everyone- I have a question that I am sure has been answered A MILLION times on this thread, but want to ask anyways lol. I have 7, 2.5 week old chicks and I am trying to figure out who is who in the bunch. I know that you can not feather sex marans- but have noticed before (in a group of 10- my very first marans) that the roos feather in slower- like really obviously different. I know these ones are still really young, but I am starting to notice combs on these young ones and of course a couple that I thought were pullets (because they feathered in nicely) are now getting larger combs. These are different bloodlines then the previous batch and was curious if it can be that much different between the two groups. I have noticed the feather/fluff quality to be different as well...... I want to "train" myself on how to sex these young ones (for future breeding purposes) and wondered if you all had any input- beside the "wait and see if it crows or lays an egg" lol. Thank you

 

[Hens and Roos]

Good morning everyone- I have a question that I am sure has been answered A MILLION times on this thread, but want to ask anyways lol. I have 7, 2.5 week old chicks and I am trying to figure out who is who in the bunch. I know that you can not feather sex marans- but have noticed before (in a group of 10- my very first marans) that the roos feather in slower- like really obviously different. I know these ones are still really young, but I am starting to notice combs on these young ones and of course a couple that I thought were pullets (because they feathered in nicely) are now getting larger combs. These are different bloodlines then the previous batch and was curious if it can be that much different between the two groups. I have noticed the feather/fluff quality to be different as well...... I want to "train" myself on how to sex these young ones (for future breeding purposes) and wondered if you all had any input- beside the "wait and see if it crows or lays an egg" lol. Thank you 

I have had two different hatches do the same thing. My cuckoo's seem to have the boys feathering in slower than the girls. I hatched another group of Marans(non-cuckoo) and thought I had almost all girls but by 4-5 weeks old we started to see the difference and most were boys! I would give them a couple more weeks. Also if you post some pictures everyone will help you out

 

[Arielle]

THe last sick chick is drink on her own!!!! Leg is still a little funky, but as the others made full recovery , I'm optimistic this last one will also get there!! SHe will stay in the sick box for a little longer before returning to the main group!

I can't beleive how stressful this situation has been. Was it mereks? THiamine deficiency? Since the mortality is pretty high for mereks I can safely rule that one out now. I've dodged a bullet here. ANd now it is time to vaccinate. It is worth the peace of mind.

Thank you everyone for your input and support!!

 

[gilavina]

THe last sick chick is drink on her own!!!! Leg is still a little funky, but as the others made full recovery , I'm optimistic this last one will also get there!! SHe will stay in the sick box for a little longer before returning to the main group!

I can't beleive how stressful this situation has been. Was it mereks? THiamine deficiency? Since the mortality is pretty high for mereks I can safely rule that one out now. I've dodged a bullet here. ANd now it is time to vaccinate. It is worth the peace of mind.

Thank you everyone for your input and support!!

Hey Arielle,

marek's is actually a herpes virus. I pasted a link below for you, it explains the different manifestations it can take. Its certainly nasty stuff. My uncle had it in some chicks he bought from another breeder and it was hard watching them dying, even after we thought they were coming out of it. He now vaccinates for marek's in all hatches just in case as it can be tough to get rid of. I still don't let him into any of my breeder pens with shoes or clothes he's done chores in at his place just as a precaution.

http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/90/mareks-disease

 

[Debbi]

Arielle,

You may want to read the discussion on Marek's on the Legbar thread, I found it quite interesting. Read the part where someone listed the indications for the vaccine that come with it.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/459044/the-legbar-thread/1230

 

[Debbi]

Ok, I guess I experienced the "dark side" of the broody world yesterday. My Splash hen went psycho, and started killing chicks! She started off with the two that I had hatched in the bator and had put in with them that morning. Looked like a mob killing, one good peck to the side of the head, right behind the left eye in both chicks! Ok, so I thought maybe she realized that these chicks came from the other pen, and maybe she saw them as intruders?? She was taking care of them in the morning, but by 1pm, the two were dead. Then the hen started going after the other hens and their babies!

She is normally the mellowist hen in that pen, so what's up here? The roo alerted me to the fact something was terribly wrong. So now I'm thinking, first time broody, and now all of these babies (16), she just couldn't handle the pressure? So, out I go with a bucket lined with shavings to bring in some chicks. What a fiasco that was! Babies running, this Splash hen attacking me now, trying to fend me away from the babies, and all the other adults running and screaming. NOT the peaceful scene it had been that morning, for sure! I managed to get 7 chicks inside with me hoping that would lessen the stressfulness for her and the others. I guess I'll find out when I get out there this morning if it worked or not. I guess if push comes to shove, I will remove the hen from that pen, but really have no place to put her right now. Anyone ever have this happen? Is it something they "grow" out of with more experience, or will this behavior recur?

 

[gilavina]

Ok, I guess I experienced the "dark side" of the broody world yesterday. My Splash hen went psycho, and started killing chicks! She started off with the two that I had hatched in the bator and had put in with them that morning. Looked like a mob killing, one good peck to the side of the head, right behind the left eye in both chicks! Ok, so I thought maybe she realized that these chicks came from the other pen, and maybe she saw them as intruders?? She was taking care of them in the morning, but by 1pm, the two were dead. Then the hen started going after the other hens and their babies!

She is normally the mellowist hen in that pen, so what's up here? The roo alerted me to the fact something was terribly wrong. So now I'm thinking, first time broody, and now all of these babies (16), she just couldn't handle the pressure? So, out I go with a bucket lined with shavings to bring in some chicks. What a fiasco that was! Babies running, this Splash hen attacking me now, trying to fend me away from the babies, and all the other adults running and screaming. NOT the peaceful scene it had been that morning, for sure! I managed to get 7 chicks inside with me hoping that would lessen the stressfulness for her and the others. I guess I'll find out when I get out there this morning if it worked or not. I guess if push comes to shove, I will remove the hen from that pen, but really have no place to put her right now. Anyone ever have this happen? Is it something they "grow" out of with more experience, or will this behavior recur?

yeah, I've seen that psycosis and there seems to be no rhyme or reason to it. All is well, then mayhem. I've never thought about whether its a pattern that reoccurs with the broodies or not...its not happened here more than a couple of times....it sure is crazy tho.