Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[Runawaylobster]

Would like some opinions about this 8-10 week old BCM pullet. I'm wondering about her back and tail angles. She is fairly relaxed; standing natural in this shot but wasn't cooperative for more ;=) She is too dark, she does have feathering all the way down the outside toe, some have been picked at. thanks!

I didn't initially respond because i don't have as much experience as others, but your pic did catch my eye. I always fight having birds with a topline that doesn't have enough angle, so for me she is a keeper. It may be the photo but her head seems a tad small. Of course she will change alot very soon but i like her !!! . As long as I have the ability to cross my nice birds with one that has good leg feathering I don't worry too much about that if everything else is good, because I always get enough chicks from them that get the feathers and then cull the remainder.

 

[OneMountainAcres]

ok, I asked this a few weeks ago and do I'm checking back in now. I'm still confused lol. Luna is now 11.5 weeks old (I'll try to get an updated picture up later if my signal cooperates). Still, not a crow out of her (hopefully) while her two brothers are crowing away.Her comb has grown more along with good sized wattles. Still absolutely no sign of copper coloring in the hackles at all and she still doesn't take part in battles the two obvious boys have. I did pull apart her feathers this morning on her back to check the pin feathers coming in and there were a few copper ones coming in but very little. Can a hen have coppering on her back? Still no copper coloring at all in the pin feathers on the hackles. The boys are already stand offish and no longer like to be touched or held but Luna will gladly come over to be loved on and will roost on my arm. Like I said, I'm try to get some pictures up in a little bit but my signal is horrible so it may not work.

Ok updated pictures of Luna for opinions

Then these last two are of Blue for comparison. His comb is HUGE. Sorry bad quality, using my phone and he wouldn't come close.

they're 11.5 weeks old. Luna just has me stumped lol. So Boy or girl?

 

[lawatt]

It's just very strange that I've been setting every egg I've gotten from that trio for several months and no white chick has shown up before now.

i had the same thing happen this spring, set eggs from two birchen marans and got a silver wheaten pullet chick:

she's on the left...

 

[lawatt]

Ok updated pictures of Luna for opinions



they're 11.5 weeks old. Luna just has me stumped lol. So Boy or girl?

I have marans pullets at 4 months that still don't have combs/wattles anywhere near that large -- given the young age, i would say definitely boy.

not all males grow their combs/wattles at the same rate -- this one may just be slower than the blue one -- but NONE of my female chicks have ever looked anything like this at 12 weeks.

 

[DMRippy]

Ok updated pictures of Luna for opinions







Then these last two are of Blue for comparison. His comb is HUGE. Sorry bad quality, using my phone and he wouldn't come close.




they're 11.5 weeks old. Luna just has me stumped lol. So Boy or girl?

You need to find a new name... He is a HE 100% sure.

 

[ladycat]

i had the same thing happen this spring, set eggs from two birchen marans and got a silver wheaten pullet chick:

she's on the left...

How many eggs did you hatch to get that one?

I've hatched a few dozen from those 3 hens and this is the only white one.

 

[Zanna]

How many eggs did you hatch to get that one?

I've hatched a few dozen from those 3 hens and this is the only white one.

did you open up all of your unhatched eggs? You may have had a few more if you didn't and not known it. I can't remember what the odds are of the recessive white in the BCM but it is I think 25% chicks should hatch white and I believe it goes by number of matings, not number of eggs laid as one mating can create fertile eggs for up to 21 days. If your hen that has the recessive white gene (if she does.....) is not the cocks favorite, he may not mate her very often and that would help explain the low percentage.

 

[lawatt]

How many eggs did you hatch to get that one?

I've hatched a few dozen from those 3 hens and this is the only white one.

I've only hatched about 10 or so, but with recessive genes its just the luck of the draw, yes? I'd love to hatch a few more! as this one is beautiful.

 

[DMRippy]

Quote: No not really. You have to find the 2 that carry the recessive genes and mate them. You would get 25% that express the recessive gene. So out of 100 chicks 25 would express.

 

[lawatt]

No not really. You have to find the 2 that carry the recessive genes and mate them. You would get 25% that express the recessive gene. So out of 100 chicks 25 would express.

sorry, i wasn't clear -- yes, there's a 25% probability of getting the right recessive combination, but with a small number hatched (like i've done), it's rare to get that proportion on the nose -- it's only a probability, not a guarantee (ah, statistics...) -- so in that sense, it's luck of the draw.