Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[Mountain Mel 22]

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[Debbi]

There's the Mel man!

Walt ~ You of course are correct. Problem is now, this problem has crossed all kinds of line barriers. I do beleive this carnation comb debaucle will take many years to slow the spread, and may very well NEVER be erradicated from the breed. Single matings and closing flocks to only clean birds from within is a start. JMO

 

[SD_Paulo]

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I agree with Pink, but would like to offer a bit more detail. The hens are exhibiting shafting (where the shaft of the feather is lighter). This is a defect. Their combs all appear to be flopped over - some say this is due to Penedesenca (they say "Penne" for short) blood in the birds. Their lobes appear to be white - this would be a disqualification. The one to the far right - appears her eyes are too dark, but could be the picture. I do not see any feathering on the shanks of the females - this is a disqualification. Cock bird - appears he has white in his tail (this is something most of us have bred out by now). His shank feathering is far too sparse. Too many points on his comb (but that is minor), and appears to have the white underfeathering in his hackles, which would go along with the white in his tail. So.....these birds should most definitely not be used for breeding. Sorry to be so blunt!

I forgot to mention that this picture was taken a while back when they were recovering from a molt. Their lobes arent white, it must be the pic. The one on the far right does have dark eyes and the pic makes them look darker. The two females in the front have some shank feathering with the one on the front far right having the most.

I guess if I cant get the kinks worked out of this quad I will never have good birds, I cant afford the price the good birds go for. Would anyone be interested in sending me a complimentary dozen of eggs from their good quality birds lol. Im very disappointed now, I knew they had flaws but I didnt realize they had that many.

Look, they are pretty birds! I think all birds are "pirdy" even the mutts or those that dont make the SOP cut. Many of us have Mutts, EE, or Project Mutts and alot of those birds are beautiful. Matter of fact, if you travel outside of the US most true farmers and ranchers prefer mutt chickens because they tend to be more hardy and less delicate than purebreds.

So unless you are going to try and sell them as "Marans" because that is what some uniformed or unethical individual did to you, there is no reason to be to disappointed. You have options: 1) take them back to the individual that you bought them from, 2)You can sell them as hybrid dark layers.

Best of luck.

 

[Chickenpoor]

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The items I mentioned would have nothing to do with molting, sorry. You state: "I guess if I cant get the kinks worked out of this quad I will never have good birds, I cant afford the price the good birds go for." Think on this a moment - you can't get great birds from inferior stock. You just can't. Sorry. I'm sorry if I've offended or hurt your feelings...that was not my intention. I DO hope you are able to find something that you can work with - keep looking, and keep researching...the more you know, the more quickly you'll be able to pick out a good prospect from a sales pen!

You didn't offend me or hurt my feelings, I'm just disappointed in the fact that my birds are no where near as good as I thought they were.

 

[fowlman01]

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You don't have to go too far on BYC to run into people that are crossing all kinds of things with Marans to change/improve/alter the color of the eggs. This would be fine if the people doing this didn't sell any of the offspring, but we know that is not going to happen . I see the Marans "problem" as the same as the Ameraucana "problem". Once the hybrids are out there in the hands of propagators ....and some a very good at hatching...it will take extra effort to clean up the breed.

It is not a lost cause by any means, it will just take some education and effort.

Walt

 

[Wynette]

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I respectfully disagree; look how far we've come with white underfeathers/tail feathers! You don't see those NEARLY as often as you used to! For sure, we're making progress!

 

[stoopid]

True, it just saddens me when all these newbies come onto the thread, and get so disappointed finding out about how their birds really stand up to SOP. And some paid dearly for them...

 

[Wynette]

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I'm with you, there. I've said it many, many times & I'll say it again. You MUST do your research. KNOW what to look for and be able to recognize flaws. Know what you're willing to work with, and what you're unwilling to work with. Knowledge = power.

 

[BarnGoddess01]

Walt! Good to see you back!

Pink, yes, I DID get what your boy was saying in that last shot about 10 pages back!! (It's hard to keep up with this thread!!)

Debbi, Don, etc. - It's GREAT to see that folks can disagree and grumble on this thread and still manage to be friends. I'm sure that's how it has to be if we are to move the breed forward. Thick skins WILL be required. I'm LOVING all the learnin' going on here.

And I'm known as BarnGoddess here AND there!

Also glad to here that rudimentary toes aren't the end of the world because ALL my new BCMs have 'em. Think I may have a split wing too although I don't know how early one judges that sort of thing. And I've got some SERIOUSLY feathered legs - on the BCMs and the Cuckoos. They are giving my Silkie a run for its money!!!!! :

My 7 month old BCM pullets are BOTH laying now. Bobbi finally spit out a BIG spotted beauty today. Much fuss and fanfare. Eggs are looking pretty respectable so far. Just waiting for my Blue Coppper ....

EE, extreme lower left, Red Sex Link (light brown), Bobbi's first has the spots, Ruth's first and second on the right

 

[stoopid]

This guy scares me, his legs are crazy feathered....also named Rudy, as in rudimentary.