Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[NicoleRM]

Lurker here, jumping in! I'm picking up a trio of black coppers this weekend from a local breeder. They are from Bev's line. Is there anything in particular I should be looking for/absolutely avoiding when getting young 2-3 month old birds or is it going to be too early to see how they will turn out? I'd like to work with them toward the proposed standard.

 

[math ace]

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And the marans are starting to take the lead ! !

 

[chics in the sun]

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And the marans are starting to take the lead ! !

That's so exciting!! Pics pics pics!!!

 

[pinkchick]

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First of all Congratulations!

If it were me and I were looking to purchase some 2-3 month old birds these are a few of the things that I would look for:

Size of the bird, Marans should have a nice beefy size to them. Nice wide chest, broad shoulders and back, and a nice deep keel.
Feathered shanks, I would look for nice evenly feathered shanks that are not too overly feathered or feathers on middle or other toes other than the outer toe. Also they should have nice long toes not short and stubby.
Eye color, at this age it may be very hard to determine future eye color, but at this age you should be able to see who has and may keep the very dark eyes, I watch the birds that have the greenish/gray eye color and in my experience it has been these birds that mature with the most correct eye. (however, I have birds with dark eyes and if they have other nice qualities to lend they may be useful and I have used them. I know others may disagree with this and that is ok, this is just my opinion and what I do.)

I would avoid birds that are overly red in the chest and that have shafting in the breast feathers, again this is just me. I tend to like them a little on the darker side. I would rather work with too dark vs. too red.
Ask to see egg color of the parent birds if they have them or if they saved any shells from hatch for the birds that are for sale. Do they have the parent stock and if so ask to see them, this will help you try and determine how their kiddos may mature and also hopefully show you a glimpse of the possible dispositions of the birds.
Ask as many questions as you can about the history of the birds being sure to include health questions of the parent birds and birds for sale. I would want to know if they have had any issues.

I know I am missing tons and tons here and I know that the great group of folks here will chime in to help out with their insights as well.

Take photos of the parent stock if you can for future reference and of course to share with us.

Edited to say: WELCOME and thanks for jumping in! Glad you are here!

 

[pinkchick]

Question about wry tail.

If a bird has wry tail will it be carried over to the side all of the time or can they carry it straight from time to time as well?

 

[math ace]

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I think you should watch for high tails on the roo. At three months old, that tail should be showing whether it is going to tend to be too high. The new standard is setting the roos tail low - - much lower than previously breed for. . .

AM I CORRECT on this folks? ? Three months should not be too early to be looking at the tail.
Ask to see the darkness of eggs the currents hens are laying. . .That should give you some idea of the potential of the youth!

 

[NicoleRM]

Thanks guys! That's exactly the kind of stuff I was looking for. I'm so stinkin' excited about getting these birds

 

[pinkchick]

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I think you should watch for high tails on the roo. At three months old, that tail should be showing whether it is going to tend to be too high. The new standard is setting the roos tail low - - much lower than previously breed for. . .

AM I CORRECT on this folks? ? Three months should not be too early to be looking at the tail.
Ask to see the darkness of eggs the currents hens are laying. . .That should give you some idea of the potential of the youth!

Yep, IMO, by this age you should be able to determine the tail set with pretty good accuracy.

 

[chasehope]

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I have a mille fleur cochin rooster who has a wry tail. When he is down walking around it is crooked, and when he is sleeping or standing still it is straight. Its a bummer, because he is so beautiful!

 

[pinkchick]

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Of course as you know, I am totally biased here

but I love him! Can't wait to see him all filled out and grown up!