Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[BevDavis]

Quote:
Hi

Yes, the blue birchen is the same as the black birchen but blue. What they mean by it not having been accepted yet is that the French haven't had it accepted yet by their APA. We can get various colors accepted here that the French haven't had accepted, we are a different country.

Bev

Thank you Bev, yeah i knew it was a French site, but the problem is, it's all still greek to me!

edidted to add the quote, sorry

Hi

Well, you could always ask us what you don't understand and we can try and explain it in a different way. Or, we could all end up just as confused.

Bev

 

[BevDavis]

Quote:
Hi

Congratulations! I recently got an egg that was the shade of a store bought egg and now it's one of the darkest eggs I am getting. I think they like to fool us sometimes.

Bev

 

[pinkchick]

poularde~

Thank goodness you are okay! Sorry to hear that this happened.

 

[poularde]

Thank you pinkchick. I do have to say that black-copper cockerel is very brave. He definitely will protect his flock.

I had no idea a rooster would go up against something so big.

 

[Newyorkrita]

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Wynette I didn't mean to imply that there are any genetic issues in your flock. I sure hope I didn't come accross like that! I just think more like the way it was with the cats and dogs I used to raise in my younger days. There might be runt of the litter type of things that were genetic in that a particular puppy got less room and nutrition during gestation type of thing. Not really a "bad genes" issue, its what I think of as genetic. I don't really know much about what happens inside an egg and don't need to overthink it either. Chicks hatch.

I was giving Flopsey some elecrolytes and it was walking around up on its legs doing much better. But this morning was flipped over compleatly on its back dead. It wasn't ment to be.

 

[chicmom]

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THANK YOU PINK!

 

[chicmom]

Quote:
Hi

Congratulations! I recently got an egg that was the shade of a store bought egg and now it's one of the darkest eggs I am getting. I think they like to fool us sometimes.

Bev

Thank you, Bev!

 

[fdnick]

oh my heck poularde..
you certainly did not want to be in the middle of that fight!!! thanks goodness no one was injured.. we have mastifffs and that has always been a fear of mine is the chickens get out and my dogs nab lunch

When we decided to raise chickens we fenced in an acre with 8' tall fence (little overboard) but so far no accidents.. main thing is you did not get hurt. what a brave rooster

Denna

 

[Ivywoods]

This is almost overwhelming. BYC is a HUGE site, and this Marans thread alone is giagantic! I've got so much to read and learn.

My marans pullets are starting to lay. I think a total of about 6 eggs so far, and not every day. They can't all be laying yet.

All of my marans have nicely feathered legs, and I think my hens have an acceptable coloring. No white feathers in any of them. Eye color is good in all of them. I'm going to have to check closer on the "pinched tail" thing. I really haven't observed them for that.

I'm not totally satisfied with any of my roosters, however. There is a lot of variation in them. The one that has the best conformation and comb also has too much copper in his breast. Another one that I really like his conformation, comb and feather color has too much lighter coloring in his hackle feathers.

I was going to post pictures of all of them so we could have a good "Rooster nit picking." (Plucking?) but right now they all look like crap. The roos are running around with a couple of other roosters (BJG and BO) and that big black jersey giant has been picking on all the other roosters and has plucked out all their tail feathers.

(The BJG is my husbands rooster, so what can I say?

)

Anyway, when I get closer to needing to cull, I will post pictures of all the candidates and glean what info I can from all of you. If none of the boys meet a high standard, then I will probably end up buying a good roo to put in with whichever girls I decide to keep in the breeding pen.

In the meantime, I am still getting ready for my new coop, and just recently started looking at plans for building an incubator. We had a great "Sportsman" incubator and had great hatches with it, but when we moved I sold it to my sister who has used it alot. She has done a lot in her county to promote chickens, kids, 4-H and good animal/chicken husbandry, even started a poultry club, :yiipchickso I feel like the incubator has gone to good use.

Oops.....getting kinda long winded here.

 

[math ace]

I am jumping in here with a QUICK QUESTION / COMMENT.

You guys have been conversing like crazy lately. I printed everything out that I missed and it is an 1" thick. I am still working my way through it all.

I am planning to start my first incubation tomorrow. Thanks for all the advice on what to set the temps and humidity at.


I HAVE MADE A DISCOVERY over the last week of collecting eggs.
I am making trips to the coop every 30 - 60 minutes. It starts EARLY and I continue until I release everyone to the free range area.
I have been collecting my marans eggs, but I have wanted to catch who was laying what so that I could write it on the eggs.
I have one Black and three Blue copper marans. Over the past week, MOST of my eggs have come from ONE of the Blue copper marans and the black copper marans. I have TWO BLUE COPPER marans that are laying ALMOST nothing a week.

SO, I am thinking that I should NOT INCUBATE ANY of their eggs. I am thinking that I don't want to reproduce birds that don't lay well. THIS COULD EXPLAIN . . . WHY my marans production rate has been so awful !

WHAT DO YOU THINK ? ? ?