Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[Arielle]

Quote:

Each rooster could have 1-2 hens!!!! My 5 girls cope with 2 roosters now.




Looks like a nice day--cooler weather has come in behind the rains. Coops to build for the day.

 

[Hens and Roos]

If you mean 2-3 roosters at a time with 5 hens, the poor dears won't have any feathers left. I assume you mean in seperate pens and rotating the roos? I don't know if it's just my birds or what, but the cross of Davis/Jeane lines has popped up all kinds of problems for me. If you have a pure Wade Jeane line, I would keep it that way, and work from there with them. Same with the Davis.

As for the toe punch method, I had thought about it too, but with my poor eye sight, I don't think it would work for me. When I first started, I used those spiral rings, NEVER AGAIN! Then I went on to the Bandettes, they all either cracked and fell off, or the chooks took them off, I found them all over the run! Right now, I have so few birds left, I know them all by sight, so no biggy. When I do start banding again, it will either be with metal bands or wing tags. Like Vicki said, the toe punch method can grow back, just like with pierced ears, unless you make a big enough hole or slit. I like to be able to look and right away tell who is who by tags or bands. I wish they sold the tags and wing bands in smaller quantities and in different colors. That would be ideal for me, and I'm quite sure for others as well.

We used different colored zip ties to keep each group of chicks separate based on the rooster- have to keep everything marked down of course. As the chicks grow we have to change the band and make it bigger- this is more labor but it gives us a chance to interact with the chicks and look them over carefully. Once we decide who is staying to be used for breeding we band them with a metal band and record the number. We have had only 1 bird get his leg band off but since there were only 2 roosters of that breed it was easy to know who it was. We also bought several colors of the metal numbered leg bands and each year we switch to a different color. First year we used orange, last year we used green and this year we will use white so depending on how many orange banded birds that will be left next year we will either use orange or add a 4th color. We only run at most 50 birds so it works well for us.

 

[Arielle]

I've been using zip ties. I guess each method has ist upside and it down side. THere was an article I read , written by Matt John , if I remember on each of the methods. My marans rooster received forecent orange so I could see thru the heavy feathering. No bands left on any legs. Bad boys! LOL

 

[Hillary Morgan]

Thanks Buckhunter.

DMRippy,
their feet have no feathers and are a brownish color. They may have a tint of green to them but its not as much as other Ameraucana chicks I've seen. And from what the people at the store told me, they are not EE's because the feet are not green enough and they did not have distinct enough lines on their backs. But now, taking a closer look at the lighter one, it does have some pretty poofy cheecks. The darker one doesn't seem to have that. Any ideas on what the darker one could be if it is not an EE? The feet are the same brownish color. She just looks darker and with a bit of a skinnier face. Also, what are the most common Marans? Cuckoos? What do they usually look like as chicks?

Thanks so much!!

 

[BarnGoddess01]

Thanks Buckhunter.

DMRippy,
their feet have no feathers and are a brownish color. They may have a tint of green to them but its not as much as other Ameraucana chicks I've seen. And from what the people at the store told me, they are not EE's because the feet are not green enough and they did not have distinct enough lines on their backs. But now, taking a closer look at the lighter one, it does have some pretty poofy cheecks. The darker one doesn't seem to have that. Any ideas on what the darker one could be if it is not an EE? The feet are the same brownish color. She just looks darker and with a bit of a skinnier face. Also, what are the most common Marans? Cuckoos? What do they usually look like as chicks?

Thanks so much!!

Ameraucana police, rearing their ugly head: Pet peeve of mine -- Ameraucanas don't have green legs - only slate/bluish or black. If they have green legs, they are Easter Eggers.

Easter Eggers can come in ALL colours. Easter Eggers are a grab bag for sure. With those muffs, I'm betting Easter Egger.

Most common Marans right now, guessing, Black Coppers which your chicks definitely aren't. There are also Blue Coppers, Splash Copper, Cuckoo, Birchen, Wheaten, White, Black .... your chicks are none of those either. Marans should also have feathered legs (don't always, but they should.) Since yours are "store-bought" birds they probably aren't any of the new funky designer colours some Marans folks are working on. I'm thinking somebody got the wrong chicks in the bin!

 

[DMRippy]

Thanks Buckhunter.

DMRippy,
their feet have no feathers and are a brownish color. They may have a tint of green to them but its not as much as other Ameraucana chicks I've seen. And from what the people at the store told me, they are not EE's because the feet are not green enough and they did not have distinct enough lines on their backs. But now, taking a closer look at the lighter one, it does have some pretty poofy cheecks. The darker one doesn't seem to have that. Any ideas on what the darker one could be if it is not an EE? The feet are the same brownish color. She just looks darker and with a bit of a skinnier face. Also, what are the most common Marans? Cuckoos? What do they usually look like as chicks?

Thanks so much!!

Marans skin is white. The color of the legs tells me they are EE. They have all color legs as they are crosses. BCM are the most common Marans. They are not Black or blue copper marans or cuckoo or birchen, or Blue or Black..... I still feel like they are EE. I have EE with blue/White legs and that dark ugly green and yellow even. Since EE are mixes the legs will come in all colors and is no indicator of egg color. Sorry.

 

[Arielle]

Quote: Morgan-- I have all sorts of chickens and enjoy them all. THe EE are cherished for muffs and puffs. AND the egg colors. I have both AMericanas and EE. What ever you have, enjoy them, play with them, and give them treats to know you as a friend. THat's really why most of us chickens anyway.

 

[snowbird]

Don if you are still around. I have a splash Cuckoo roo and wanted to know how could I test mate him to find out if he is hiding gold under all his hunky looks? I was think maybe a solid pullet, but really all I have are Black Ameraucanas and Blue Rocks..... any suggestions?

Donna, About the only thing you can do is test mate and keep records. I would try a pure white Marans female. You could also go out of breed and try him with any of the old pure bred white poultry , like white rock, white wyandotte.

 

[Debbi]

Donna, About the only thing you can do is test mate and keep records. I would try a pure white Marans female. You could also go out of breed and try him with any of the old pure bred white poultry , like white rock, white wyandotte.

Would a White Leghorn do? I believe she has some of those? Would the gold still show through if the bird were a dominant white?

 

[Debbi]

Each rooster could have 1-2 hens!!!! My 5 girls cope with 2 roosters now.

Make sure to give your roos a copy of that memo!

That third roo always seems to stir the pot; ask me how I know!