Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[SBRUSH88]

Hi Roberta - (and this is a bit Twilight Zone-ish since my late sister-in-law was named Roberta...and wait, it gets better...)

Yes, I imagine that the Joe Brush you mention is indeed family. My dad's name was Joseph M. Brush, and my oldest brother (now deceased) was Joseph M. Brush II (my dad didn't like that "Junior" stuff, hence my brother was Joseph M. Brush the Second. This oldest brother was the one who married Roberta.

Anyway, back around 1959 I actually made a trek out to Riverhead with my dad to visit the Brush family there, and it was a big deal because we have a photo of "Three Joe Brushes" - my dad, his second cousin, and his second cousin's son, also named Joe Brush. Perhaps the son is the Joe Brush you are referring to. My oldest brother was a fourth Joe Brush, so they were EVERYWHERE. We never kept up well with that branch of the family.

Just to keep the chicken thread going here, all this was long before there were Marans common on the landscape, but there is a story about my dad's uncles "appropriating" some Silkies from one of the Rockefeller estates where they worked for my dad. My grandmother made them return them! Ah, Brush chicken thieves in my past....the shame of it all!

Small world.

Sam

 

[Christie Rhae]

Quote:
So sorry, trying to wrap my brain around this. I don't understand exactly how the feather leg genes work. In fact I think I read that there are several factors as well as inhibitors...

So what would be two ideals birds to use in regards to feather legs? When both have nice and heavy feathering it is easy for offspring to show up with too much feathering? So better to breed two birds that have "just enough" feathering? Would an over feathered roo compensate for an under feathered hen? Does it work like that?

 

[stoopid]

Well, thanks for checking up on us, I am sure it must hurt your head reading thru all of this!
And, I do have some Silkies, too.
Have a good night, Mr. President.

 

[gilavina]

I AM 9 ROOSTERS LIGHTER!!!!!!

It is sooooooo quiet out here I can hardly stand it! All Carnations and Sprigs are gone!!! Even one snotpuss Silkie roo is gone!!! And the best of all...Big, Mean, Blue Butt is going to be soup and is GONE!!!!! Everyone left is a tad still freaked out. They don't know what to think of all the room and quiet. This has made my day, now I feel I can get down to business...finally!! The only boys left are Clyde, Roy, and Pekker in the run, and of course the unique Mr. Pip, aka, the Feral roo who does not breed! Time to start building pens........

Debbi, that's just fantastic news!!

 

[stoopid]

Christie, try not to let it make you crazy with the leg feathers.
It has just been noted that there are some overly hairy legs out there, just try to breed those to lightly or no feathered legs, and to not breed them to heavily feathered legs.

How are all the babies?

 

[math ace]

While I was at Newnan (judged the SCCL class, including some 95 Seramas), I unfortunately didn't set foot ONCE in the large fowl tent, so I didn't get to see any of the big birds, Marans included. I did find myself faced with the dilemma of having to judge a pair of "Silver Cuckoo Marans Bantams" as part of the SCCL class. They had clean legs! In deference to the ABA Standard, which lists the Marans bantams as clean legged, I judged the pair. Placed the hen 1st, despite her very smudgy color, and I DQ'd the cock due to numerous red/orange feathers throughout his hackle and saddle. I think it was reported elsewhere that both placed, but that is not the case. Perhaps I should have made my "D" more prominent.

Sam

Sam, there was a man, early Saturday morning, judging the seramas with very long hair. Who was he?

Oh, the sacrilege of never stepping foot in the Large Fowl tent....

 

[math ace]

Sam, there was a man, early Saturday morning, judging the seramas with very long hair. Who was he?

Oh, the sacrilege of never stepping foot in the Large Fowl tent....

OBTW, the Judging of the Seramas was one of the coolest things that I saw at Newnan.
The folks would come up, hand the clerk their card, toss their bird on the table, pose them, and the judge would rattle points for each catergory of scoring. IT was so TOTALLY COOL!

The large fowl are just place - - 1st, 2nd, 3rd, whatever, BUT the with the seramas... you could see where the judge thought they were weak or strong. LOVED IT!

 

[Christie Rhae]

Christie, try not to let it make you crazy with the leg feathers.
It has just been noted that there are some overly hairy legs out there, just try to breed those to lightly or no feathered legs, and to not breed them to heavily feathered legs.

How are all the babies?

ok ok startin to get my brain all scrambled..lol

Basically it is common sense? Too much of a good thing aint a good thing? lol

Babies are doing great! I did lose one more 2 days after they arrived. It just was not growing, don't think it was eating. I kept dipping its beak in water with electrolytes and it seemed like it would swallow. But I still have 18 babies! woohoo!

 

[SBRUSH88]

Actually, it's kind of fun to pick up a thread and follow it...

And Silkies are a good thing.... I had Plain (Non-Bearded) Whites when I was young, and in fact my older brother Joe showed Plain White Silkies at the Madison Square Garden show in 1948 and 1949.

Enjoy the evening,

 

[SBRUSH88]

I'm not sure - I think I saw that same fellow in the Serama tent at the end of the day when I was judging them, but I didn't know who he was.