Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[snowbird]

With me it has always been type and SOP type breedings . I never worry about trying to get the real Dark eggs as I will never show eggs. There may be a few Marans that will get close to doing both at the same time. Most BC Marans are no where close to being SOP type, They have so many culls involved that it almost impossible.

One of the larger problems is people will go out and buy two or more dozen of eggs and start advertising SOP Marans for sale and make a fool out of themselves.

We will know what we are doing with the Marans after 3-4 more weeks. We have really good size on our Marans but without single mating it is very hard to get correct color.

There is a possibility we will go forward with mainly the Brahmas large and Bantam.

 

[scflock]

With me it has always been type and SOP type breedings . I never worry about trying to get the real Dark eggs as I will never show eggs. There may be a few Marans that will get close to doing both at the same time. Most BC Marans are no where close to being SOP type, They have so many culls involved that it almost impossible.

One of the larger problems is people will go out and buy two or more dozen of eggs and start advertising SOP Marans for sale and make a fool out of themselves.

We will know what we are doing with the Marans after 3-4 more weeks. We have really good size on our Marans but without single mating it is very hard to get correct color.

There is a possibility we will go forward with mainly the Brahmas large and Bantam.

There's no doubt that I learned my lesson buying based on egg color, but at the same time that's what my customers want. I'd like to be able to maintain a dark color while at the same time have birds that are reasonably bred to SOP

 

[KF0002]

For you Marans Gurus: As you grow out BCM chicks/juveniles, what are some little red flags to watch out for? The good, the bad, the ugly. Lol. Pics are appreciated.

 

[scflock]

For you Marans Gurus: As you grow out BCM chicks/juveniles, what are some little red flags to watch out for? The good, the bad, the ugly. Lol. Pics are appreciated.

I'm not a guru, but I definitely have had bad BCM. Here are some red flags


Too much color/straw color, mossiness




Mossy chick



So much wrong with this rooster. Comb way too large, bad halo in the hackles, legs too close together, etc..



The chicks were too dark. Some people disagree, but Don told me they wouldn't grow correctly, and they didn't



Hips too narrow. Too much taper from front to back



Any more experienced breeders feel free to tear these birds apart. I culled the entire flock, and knowing what's wrong with them may help others from making the same mistake I did

 

[KF0002]

I'm not a guru, but I definitely have had bad BCM. Here are some red flags Too much color/straw color, mossiness Mossy chick So much wrong with this rooster. Comb way too large, bad halo in the hackles, legs too close together, etc.. The chicks were too dark. Some people disagree, but Don told me they wouldn't grow correctly, and they didn't Hips too narrow. Too much taper from front to back Any more experienced breeders feel free to tear these birds apart. I culled the entire flock, and knowing what's wrong with them may help others from making the same mistake I did

I have read not to cull as chicks/juveniles, but I am in the process of doing just that. My first group of BCM were a complete flop. There is so much wrong I can see already as 2 month olds that I am scrapping them and starting over. First of all, half of them have yellow toes or blackish/green legs (yellow skinned). One was born clean legged, and one with poor leg feathering. And I am seeing very little copper in them at 2 months. They are mostly solid black amd a few have small flecks of copper in their hackles but mostly black. The fact that they have yellow soles/toes is enough to cull the group I guess. Ive been told it is impossible to breed out, even if you cull heavily yellow footed birds it will still crop up in offspring from birds with proper leg color because the genes are recessive. Is that accurate? There were a few mossy chicks in the bunch as well, both were pullets. I am currently growing out my second group but most of them already have poor leg feathering. I have already asked for Little Peddler eggs for my birthday and I know my hubby thinks Im crazy because they are over $200 per dozen but my mind is made up. Lol I will most definitely keep them pure.

 

[scflock]

I have read not to cull as chicks/juveniles, but I am in the process of doing just that. My first group of BCM were a complete flop. There is so much wrong I can see already as 2 month olds that I am scrapping them and starting over. First of all, half of them have yellow toes or blackish/green legs (yellow skinned). One was born clean legged, and one with poor leg feathering. And I am seeing very little copper in them at 2 months. They are mostly solid black amd a few have small flecks of copper in their hackles but mostly black. The fact that they have yellow soles/toes is enough to cull the group I guess. Ive been told it is impossible to breed out, even if you cull heavily yellow footed birds it will still crop up in offspring from birds with proper leg color because the genes are recessive. Is that accurate?

There were a few mossy chicks in the bunch as well, both were pullets.

I am currently growing out my second group but most of them already have poor leg feathering. I have already asked for Little Peddler eggs for my birthday and I know my hubby thinks Im crazy because they are over $200 per dozen but my mind is made up. Lol I will most definitely keep them pure.

Yellow shanks was what made me finally decide to cull the entire flock. Only two of my 8 hens had them, but 75% of the offspring did. That is just a very bad sign that they are mixed with something totally different, and not something I wanted to continue with

 

[they'reHISchickens]

ANy suggestions to help the coating on my marans eggs. I suspect dietary deficiency but they are fed good layer food plus a variety of whole grains,alfalfa, and BOSS. The coating on many eggs is non-existent along with thin shells. Do the marans require a higher protein level than normal ( leghorn) chickens.
They look good and healthy. Molting is over and they are laying like crazy. mostly 1 -2 yrs old.

 

[gander007]

ANy suggestions to help the coating on my marans eggs. I suspect dietary deficiency but they are fed good layer food plus a variety of whole grains,alfalfa, and BOSS. The coating on many eggs is non-existent along with thin shells. Do the marans require a higher protein level than normal ( leghorn) chickens.
They look good and healthy. Molting is over and they are laying like crazy. mostly 1 -2 yrs old.

I have noticed my Marans do have a heavy coating on their eggs but my girls are producing eggs with heave shells and I do get complaints from many of my customers who buy my eggs as I put out a multi colored eggs carton with Marans, Easter Eggers, Russian Orloff's and Road Island Reds .

I feed my girls fairly well but I do not spend a lot of money on it either just Scratch, Laying mash, way, cook beans and rice plus table scraps .

 

[KF0002]

Yellow shanks was what made me finally decide to cull the entire flock. Only two of my 8 hens had them, but 75% of the offspring did. That is just a very bad sign that they are mixed with something totally different, and not something I wanted to continue with

Yeah I dont blame you. Im selling the pullets as layer quality and giving the cockerels to a friend as meat birds. They are meaty boys thats for sure.

How are your Bev Davis chicks feathering out?

 

[scflock]

Yeah I dont blame you. Im selling the pullets as layer quality and giving the cockerels to a friend as meat birds. They are meaty boys thats for sure.

How are your Bev Davis chicks feathering out?

Looking good so far. One of 13 is mossy, but all others look nice. I need to get some updated pictures. They are almost fully feathered, and just starting to show a few copper feathers in the hackles