Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[DMRippy]

By the way lady, you were close, this was Big Boy's son heehee

Sounds like a good day. I felt like a chicken with its head cut off

Cleaning some pens, collecting some birds to sell. I need to clear out some roos so I can have more pens to use for the CORRECT breeds all in one pen for a change. My pullet are starting to lay and they are with the wrong roos

not biggie yet but soon will be. I just need to do some general house cleaning and CULLING. I need more time in the day.

I need to get pics of that chick.... and order those leg bands... maybe I will do that now

 

[Runawaylobster]

There's nothing quite like finding your first dark Marans egg. Congratulations! It looks very pretty. I still get flutters everyday to see what my girls left me.

I love collecting the eggs its the last thing i do out of all the chores i save it until last it's the most fun.....

 

[desertmarcy]

I had them too my "lines" are Wade and Davis and the ones that have more Wade tend to have the spot and the hens are too dark and lots of the Wade/Jeanne stuff has wheaten I'm always culling for too much red in the breast so I never noticed if that was one of the culls later or not just kept the hen she lays dark eggs and now 2 years old has a nice necklace the other one stayed dark so she's gone she did lay a nice egg.

Too much red in the breast indicates Wheaten influence, is that correct? I just went through all my youngsters that are big enough to see what is going on and pulled about 12 of the males that are like that, the oldest are about 2-1/2 months now and already can see that. Butcher/processing day tomorrow! I also see quite a few pullets that don't show any copper at this age, would they be showing some by now if they are going to get it? I'd like to sell off the overmelanized pullets earlier than I did last year, if that is the case. I just wonder how many generations it will take to get rid of the extra breast color, I already culled heavily for that last year.

 

[Lotsapaints]

I think too much red in the breast is maybe wheaten really I go by the wings and it doesn't seem to show until 18 months or more so I've learned to wait that long on a cock bird besides the white doesn't seem to show up until then either....look at the ear tufts too much copper not good too much black not good it's the balance hard to discribe not easy to show either but balance is the key.

 

[gilavina]

Well, just did my last candling on the current batch of eggs and 95 are set to go into the hatcher on Saturday night. Some weren't fertile mostly because some of the girls hadn't been in with the males I put them with for very long at all. I'm not unpleased with what I have. 36 of those birchen eggs from Kansas are looking really good, so am very curious to see what I end up with. Now lets just hope they pop like popcorn!

 

[Hens and Roos]

Well, just did my last candling on the current batch of eggs and 95 are set to go into the hatcher on Saturday night. Some weren't fertile mostly because some of the girls hadn't been in with the males I put them with for very long at all. I'm not unpleased with what I have. 36 of those birchen eggs from Kansas are looking really good, so am very curious to see what I end up with. Now lets just hope they pop like popcorn!

Good Luck with your hatch! We ended up with 19 eggs due tomorrow out of 67 eggs set- not the greatest but we'll take what we can get

 

[gilavina]

Good Luck with your hatch! We ended up with 19 eggs due tomorrow out of 67 eggs set- not the greatest but we'll take what we can get

I hear ya, I got to thinking that some of it may have been the extreme temps we had as well and the starting collecting three weeks out from when I set the eggs. Besides having just moved the girls in with the males, I think it still is a decent start. The hatching may be another deal, who knows. I did see where it looked like some of the chicks were developing slower than others, so may be a drawn out hatch, not sure.

 

[ellymayRans]

Too much red in the breast indicates Wheaten influence, is that correct? I just went through all my youngsters that are big enough to see what is going on and pulled about 12 of the males that are like that, the oldest are about 2-1/2 months now and already can see that. Butcher/processing day tomorrow! I also see quite a few pullets that don't show any copper at this age, would they be showing some by now if they are going to get it? I'd like to sell off the overmelanized pullets earlier than I did last year, if that is the case. I just wonder how many generations it will take to get rid of the extra breast color, I already culled heavily for that last year.

Yeah, 2 1/2 mos seems really early to me. I've had a couple of pullets that didn't show the copper til about that mark though..and also had a couple that had mossyness and cock's with more in the breast but it did molt out. This is my first time having them though, with all of the reading I've done I do plan to wait out the males til about 18 mos just because I've read sooo many folks opinions/experience has proven to benefit them for waiting. Not to mention though I can't imagine getting much meat off a 2-3 mos old... JMO

I have my 3rd batch of BCM's coming! They were set yesterday, getting from Pawheadpoultry. I had seen a recommendation to someone else on these threads, I'll be interested to see how they grow out! Since my first 2 are Cottage Hill lineage I couldn't help but get more.

 

[Raven1]

I NEED solid Black Marans!! Please if anyone knows of anyone who is selling point me to them. Thanks

 

[Raven1]

I NEED solid Black Marans!! Please if anyone knows of anyone who is selling point me to them. Thanks