Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[pinkchick]

I want to swap roosters around during the breeding season, I have read all kinds of time between roosters from 3 days to 30 days.

Anyone know of university sites to validate which time frame is correct????

Hi Arielle! I don't follow the question sorry.....are you talking about how much time between roosters to clear out rooster juice from the hens before putting in a new one?
If talking about the time frame in which hens will be clear of stuff from one rooster so that you can swap boys out for breeding........I personally wait 6 weeks before setting any eggs after switching out roosters, those girls can hang on to the roosters stuff for a looooooong time.

 

[pinkchick]

Kathy, Math has one of my Wheaties....she has gone broody...imagine that!

Running a broody factory here. Broodies-R-Us

My Blue Laced Red Wy from you was an EXCELLENT broody!!!!!!!!!!! She and her sister the Splash are also EGG-CELLENT layers!!!!!!! I love them!

 

[pinkchick]

Barngoddess~

Tons of hugs coming to you my friend.

Math Ace~ Hope your broody has an great hatch!

 

[cpartist]

My Blue Laced Red Wy from you was an EXCELLENT broody!!!!!!!!!!! She and her sister the Splash are also EGG-CELLENT layers!!!!!!! I love them!

I do broodies best

 

[Debbi]

Bad news here this morning - all 12 of my Silkie eggs are clear.

Totally bums me out. And then just to add insult to injury, Ella, my avatar, crowed for the first time this morning - just a day shy of 11 weeks.

Guess he's Elliot afterall.

Oh well. Back to the drawing board ...

Barb ~ So sorry to hear that

Silkie eggs can be tough to hatch. As for Elliot, now you see what I mean? It's very hard to sex these guys at that age. I would've bet he was a she! I could pretty much tell the sexes of mine at 3.5-4 months. I had one of my roos attack me the other day. Hmm, maybe the word "attack" is a bit too strong, it was pitiful!

I was entering their run, and felt a bump on the back of my leg. No problem, none of them see very well, so I'm used to it. Then he hits me again, and again, and again! By this time I had turned around to see who it was, and he bounces off my shin again! I about wet myself at his teeny flogging attempts! It dawned on me later, that I was wearing a different pair of Crocs than I usually wear into the run. He saw the pink liner on the top of them, and that set him off. Later the same day, and this morning, back to the old Crocs of plain brown, and no problems. It was kind of like being attacked by a Chihuahua, when you are used to being chased by a German Shepherd!

Bless his little heart, he was trying to protect his girls from the strange Pinkness entering the pen!

 

[BarnGoddess01]

Quote:

I know exactly what you're talking about. My little Frizzle guy is hard to take seriously as well!!! They guy isn't any bigger than a grapefruit.

I was stunned with I heard that song coming out of "Ella" this morning. Truly. I really had started to convince myself Ella was a girl. Oh well. He's still a pretty little duffer! (I'm surprised to hear him crowing so early since everyone suggests it really can take forever to know with Silkies but I think the Marans must be inspiring him. They LOVE to practice their crowing in the morning.)

 

[BarnGoddess01]

I want to swap roosters around during the breeding season, I have read all kinds of time between roosters from 3 days to 30 days.

Anyone know of university sites to validate which time frame is correct????

APA Judge and prolific breeder, Troy Laroche is in the 3 day camp. That's what he told us at the seminar. Several folks questioned him on that one including a woman whose rooster was killed. She claimed to be getting fertile eggs 12 days later. But Troy stuck by his "3 or 4 days".

 

[Debbi]

I know exactly what you're talking about. My little Frizzle guy is hard to take seriously as well!!! They guy isn't any bigger than a grapefruit.

I was stunned with I heard that song coming out of "Ella" this morning. Truly. I really had started to convince myself Ella was a girl. Oh well. He's still a pretty little duffer! (I'm surprised to hear him crowing so early since everyone suggests it really can take forever to know with Silkies but I think the Marans must be inspiring him. They LOVE to practice their crowing in the morning.)

Mine matured very quickly. I was told by the Silkie groups, that they didn't sexually mature until around 7 months, and eggs didn't get laid until 7-8 months. Hmm, I had one cockerel start crowing at 9 weeks here, and by 4 months old, he was already chasing the girls. At 23 weeks, I got my first eggs! I do think you are right about learning from the other roos. All my young cockerels will start crowing while still in the brooder...in the house! Quite the morning chorus around here! Just had a big plate of scrambled Silkie eggs for breakfast! These girls are laying fools!!

 

[Debbi]

APA Judge and prolific breeder, Troy Laroche is in the 3 day camp. That's what he told us at the seminar. Several folks questioned him on that one including a woman whose rooster was killed. She claimed to be getting fertile eggs 12 days later. But Troy stuck by his "3 or 4 days".

I'd really have to debate him on that one! I had given my first girls 2 weeks to be cleared which is what I had been told was good enough, and they still produced chicks from the original roo (it was quite obvious!). I'm with Pink on this one, I will wait 6 weeks in between changing roos, at the very least, 5 weeks.

 

[pinkchick]

So do ya'll remember the chicks from my New Years Day hatch? I was very excited to get those eggs as they were suppose to be from my Bill Sr's original blood lines, but come to find out, the lady I got Bill from called me a short time ago to let me know that they were indeed not from that stock but from a second batch of birds that she says are pure Jeane birds............me don't thinks that the case, LOL!
Check a couple of them out.

Chick 1- Hatched with a cinnamon head and green legs.......


That same chick yesterday.........................................................


This little chick had a very dark cinnamon colored head (it was barely noticeable unless you had the chick in hand) and greenish legs.


As this chick has grown he also sprouted a couple stubs (aside from the one tiny one on the toe that you can barely see in the above photo) on the shank that is showing, I have never seen that before. Weird!
**

Sorry...but I will have to come back and finish this post later.....having issues with site.