Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[math ace]

DOES any one want to explain to me what is wrong with marans cockerels???

WHY do they have to attack the top of my feet ? ? ? ?

The speckled sussex and delaware cockerels NEVER attack my feet, but I will be dippity do da. .. . If the dang
marans cockerels can not help themselves but to run over and take a BITE out of the top of my feet!

The only thing that STOPS them is if they LOOK up and realize that the feet are attached to my body.... LOL
then they will turn around and leave my feet alone!

I am so over these cockerels attacking my feet!

 

[DMRippy]

Quote:
I use Velcro with pipe cleaners The boys get black Velcro and the girls get white. Then i wrap the pipe cleaner in colors by relationship then another for each individual within that family. You can adjust the bands very easy as the grow. No one has lost a band yet and I make sure the pipe cleaners are very secure and the rough wire part is to the out side so no one can get hurt and I smooth the wire too. Works great very cheap, endless color coding and everything is a Walmart!

 

[Keara]

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my marans cockerals love to go for the feet when I am wearing my rubber boots. drives me crazy!

 

[gilavina]

Tonight once it started cooling off I went out and took some pics of some of this year's hatches. I didn't get very far at all before I lost my light, but its a start. These first two are my favorite oldest chicks hatched valentine's day. The first one is my BCM cockerel that just turned 5 months old...his name is Gigantor. He is massive, stands at 24 inches tall and dwarfs even some of my adult birds. He is losing the over coloring on his breast and does have pumpkin colored eyes...just can't tell because of the angle I took the pic at. I am totally enamoured with the quality of his copper coloring. I could stare at that color all day. The second bird is one of my solid blue marans pullets born the same day. She is built like a tank and I call her Nyima. Her eyes are also lighter than the pic shows...one of the downfalls of taking pics in the evening...don't get enough light for my camera to pick up the eyes. I am completely in love with her shade of blue and the crisp lacing.

I will keep posting photos as I get them taken over the next week I'm on vacation. I have lots to take.

 

[geebs]

Galivina.... I am anamoured as well... I would use him on the good blue hen that looks like she has some copper already.. You will really end up with something nice in the hen department... If you do please show us the picture... (especially if you keep any males from the crossing)

 

[gilavina]

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Thanks Geebs! I think maybe what you are seeing on that pullet is the sunset reflecting on her neck. She is as solid blue as she comes. I don't have any blue coppers on the place. I have three different breeder's BCMs, cuckoos, blue and black birchens, a silver salmon project going and my BBS pen for the Marans. I have been toying around with the idea of going for some blue coppers as I love the blues. Do you think if I were to cross him onto some of my solid blue girls I'd get a decent proportion of coppered birds in the first generation or would it take several crossings to get the good coloring to come through?

 

[txmel]

well my little hatch of bcm is done i got 1 chick ( out of the 4 eggs that made it to lockdown, 10 eggs shipped) and i am not sure if its going to make it. its still recovering in the incubator

the eggs my serama was sitting on either stopped early or didn't develop and the other chicks that made it to lock down never hatched. upon egtopsy 2 were crossed beaked and of those 2, 1 had no eyes

. so i guess it was a bad batch of eggs and will most definitely not be purchasing from that ebay seller again. from what i read cross beak is hereditary. so i will be keeping a close eye on the 1 survivor of the hatch and if does ok will place with my broody tomorrow night. hopefully she will be a good mommy to the little chick. will post pics if and when the little one is in the clear. lets all hope its a hen since i live in town and most definitely cant have roos and wouldn't sell it for a breeder because apparently its not from good stock.

might try again this winter and see how that goes

Melanie

 

[gilavina]

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Depending upon what they were using for breeding stock, it is possible to get splash cuckoos....seems odd to me that someone would be selling them at four times the price and not make sure they had dark chicks with the spots on the head. Or at least give a heads up about the splash mixed in there. Maybe that's just me

It's very likely, and I'm willing to almost say, that it's all completely my own fault... It's all just a big blur now...

lol

Thanks all for the help, I guess it will just be a bonus surprise now and will wait and see as she grows!

One more Q: Do ALL Marans lay brown eggs?

Just now saw your questions about the eggs. Yes, all Marans should lay brown eggs. Those from hatchery stock will more than likely not be as dark as the required 4 or greater on the Marans eggs chart however.

 

[Spitman]

Hey guys been busy on the old fashion broody hen thread

, had a hen go broody for first time Mine and hers. and I was taking some pictures today , She did awesome and the the chicks are so much fun to watch in there natural state. So much better they when I brood them. Anyways I posted some Blue Copper Marans chicks about 8 weeks ago and while I was out taking pictures today , managed to get a Quick shot of this hen , Don't no if you can tell by the bad picture but is she mossy she had a spot on her neck as chick. I'm going to get more Pictures tom. Also I will get a shot of my Blue copper Roo i got from same hatch. Though you all might like to see my hen with her chicks sorry they are unrelated to marans

But still cute.

.

.

 

[math ace]

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Girlfriend, this is FLORIDA. I wear flip flops 10 months a year! The cockerel bites hurt the BARE skin, espeacially if they don't let go quickly!