Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[1876 Farm]

I am SO excited.... I hatched some project black tailed buffs from a friend and got only one BTB roo that was decent but he had a sprig so he went to freezer camp with the other roos. Then i realized that some of what i thought were wheaten roos were in fact bad versions of btb (sports i guess)... I could only tell them apart because their leg feathers were black AND caramel not just the black of the wheaten roos.

I had just ONE left so i quickly put him with the three BTB hens i had and started hatching like crazy.. then disaster.. My Roo dies (he got into some feed that i didn't realize was wet/moldy

.. because it looked normal)

so i had about 15 of his chicks left and i have been watching them like crazy.. as the boys began to differentiate themselves they were all feathering in looking like wheatens.. so i gave them to the roo guy because hey, i wasn't going to breed them forward anyway and i was getting ready to give up on the project ...

Last night i looked again and I spotted A REAL BTB LOOKING roo in the bunch!!! can't wait until he grows out and i can put him in with his moms.... fingers crossed i am finally back on the BTB path.
he might not be the best specimen, we will have to see but at least he is a proper BTB...

WOOHOO!!!!

What are your BTBs crosses of? I'm curious since I have a beautiful BCM roo x Buff Orpington. Do you have pictures?

 

[Wynette]

I am SO excited.... I hatched some project black tailed buffs from a friend and got only one BTB roo that was decent but he had a sprig so he went to freezer camp with the other roos. Then i realized that some of what i thought were wheaten roos were in fact bad versions of btb (sports i guess)... I could only tell them apart because their leg feathers were black AND caramel not just the black of the wheaten roos.

I had just ONE left so i quickly put him with the three BTB hens i had and started hatching like crazy.. then disaster.. My Roo dies (he got into some feed that i didn't realize was wet/moldy

.. because it looked normal)

so i had about 15 of his chicks left and i have been watching them like crazy.. as the boys began to differentiate themselves they were all feathering in looking like wheatens.. so i gave them to the roo guy because hey, i wasn't going to breed them forward anyway and i was getting ready to give up on the project ...

Last night i looked again and I spotted A REAL BTB LOOKING roo in the bunch!!! can't wait until he grows out and i can put him in with his moms.... fingers crossed i am finally back on the BTB path.
he might not be the best specimen, we will have to see but at least he is a proper BTB...

WOOHOO!!!!

WOOHOO to be sure! We definitely need more folks to work on this beautiful variety. Watch for my PM!!

 

[Runawaylobster]

What are your BTBs crosses of? I'm curious since I have a beautiful BCM roo x Buff Orpington. Do you have pictures?

They aren't crosses, I got them from a south Florida breeder who developed them. My goal is to get these guys to breed true and there are a few things i'd like to improve on, but they are already ready made BTBs they just hatch lots of odd looking ones along with the good ones..

I will post pictures later when i get home.. it is an interesting project

btw: they came from www.thefancychicken.com so Mark is the real genius who developed them.

 

[8isenuff]

What are your BTBs crosses of? I'm curious since I have a beautiful BCM roo x Buff Orpington. Do you have pictures?

I just hatched a BCM roo x Buff Orpington....looks just like a Buff Orpington...very cute Can't tell much now, but i can post a pic and more as it grows. Also hatched crosses with RIR and Barred Rocks... The RIR mixes are pretty...nice red around their face. I've got one that is a HUGE chick!!

 

[Runawaylobster]

I just hatched a BCM roo x Buff Orpington....looks just like a Buff Orpington...very cute Can't tell much now, but i can post a pic and more as it grows. Also hatched crosses with RIR and Barred Rocks... The RIR mixes are pretty...nice red around their face. I've got one that is a HUGE chick!!

I was thinking of trying to get lavender marans by crossing them in with my lav orps but then another mad scientist crazy project came along.....

 

[1876 Farm]

I just hatched a BCM roo x Buff Orpington....looks just like a Buff Orpington...very cute Can't tell much now, but i can post a pic and more as it grows. Also hatched crosses with RIR and Barred Rocks... The RIR mixes are pretty...nice red around their face. I've got one that is a HUGE chick!!

8isenuff - Here's pictures of one of my (BCM roos x Buff Orpintgon) rooster

Day 3 Day 8

Week 6 Week 9

Week 12 Week 17


Week 23 (Patches in the back I believe is also BCM roo x Buff (only other choice is BCM roo x Red Star).

I took one just last weekend when he was 30 weeks old that I will have to post later, my camera with the SD card is in my DH car.

 

[BCMaraniac]

I was thinking of trying to get lavender marans by crossing them in with my lav orps but then another mad scientist crazy project came along.....

Last year I had a broody hen, so I put some eggs under her that I knew were BCM/LO cross. I got several roos, 2 with feathered legs and others without. All of them ended up being black, one solid black and others with copper/gold on their hackles. I caponized them, so that may have affected the degree of coloring because one of them ended up being a slip, so as his comb enlarged he did get some copper coloring on his saddle before I processed him. My avatar is one of the capon crosses and is over 10 pounds now.......Easter dinner.

 

[Runawaylobster]

Here are pics of the Moms and the one at the bottom is the little guy but it's a terrible picture..
he still has some black feathers but he is not feathering like the wheaten looking ones at all..


.

 

[BCMaraniac]

@Runawaylobster

Pretty birds!

 

[omas biddies]

Good luck.
Watch him grow
Enjoy it