Marans Thread for Posting Pics of Your Eggs, Chicks and Chickens

[amazondoc]

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Cripes. I'll have a go at just the standard. I get by well enough but I'm not fluent.

Thanks Krys! I know, it looks like a lot of work. But I don't see how we can be expected to breed to a standard when even the French club itself seems to present different versions of it. I will really appreciate any time you could put into it!

 

[AHappychick]

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Congrats on your purchase, good dark eggs are always a good start.

What does the "F" mean?

French- should have feathered legs

 

[drom]

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Hello Hennypen,
Here are some breeders of Blue Copper Marans that I can think of just off hand. There are lot of others as well. But this is a start:

http://www.whitmorefarm.com/maran.html

http://www.gabbardhatchingeggs.com/

http://www.bevsmarans.com/

 

[drom]

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Very cute BC babies. Be sure to post some more pics as they grow

 

[drom]

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Thanks Cynthia and Terri too. It was meant to be a picture thread and that's all it is. For people who love the breed and love their birds and take great pleasure in the beautiful eggs they lay. I have really enjoyed seeing the pictures people have posted over the last year and have had great fun sharing my pictures as well.

 

[amazondoc]

Speaking of pics --

I spent part of this afternoon taking pics of two BC cockerels that I bought last week. I think they've got nice color, good combs (ignore the scabs -- they've been fence fighting), and good builds. OTOH they both have at least two obvious flaws (same flaws on each), as well as tails in very bad condition! They're about 8 months old, so they also still have some filling out to do.

Take a look, see if you notice the flaws, and tell me whatcha think --

http://eggheadhill.smugmug.com/Chickens/Marans/new-BC-roos/10066935_Res6R

 

[kathyinmo]

Oh, don't quiz me.... I'm still learning.

What I see wrong is that they are at the other end of your camera, instead of mine! LOL

I enjoyed the pictures, even though I don't know what the heck to look for!

 

[drom]

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Well, one of them is just pleading with you to pluck out his white sickle feather. Then he will be right and ready.

Actually, the other one looks in the picture like he has 4 points on his comb, but you said the combs were good so I probably can't see it that clearly in the pic.
One them has a few breast feathers which seem to have a light colored rachis.

They both look lovely. I actually like the confirmation on your boy who looks like he has fewer comb points. His back is a wee little less sloping and he looks a bit more square and balanced to my eye. But pictures are very deceiving with roosters.

What do you like about your new birds?-woops, you said you liked their color and their combs. well, do you have any BC hens to go with them?

 

[amazondoc]

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Very good! You got em both. Both of the cockerels have one main sickle feather (that's the main curvy tail feathers for you who don't know yet) that is mostly (not entirely) white. Both cockerels also have shafting (light-colored feather shafts) in their breast feathers.

These guys are young, so I'm hoping both problems will disappear with maturity. Crossing my fingers!

Conformation -- one of the boys was standing up on his tippy-toes, so that's why he looks so sloped. One of them has 5 points on the comb and the other has 6 -- but with the dark scabbing from the sparring they've been doing, it's hard to tell that. I like their combs, love their copper coloring, and have good hopes for their mass once they fill out. I'm still pondering whether their tail angles will be too high. They have good eye color. Nice round chests. Light-colored legs.

Oddly enough, their color is nearly exactly the same as my Welsummer roos. In the pic below, the bird on the left is one of the BCs -- the bird on the right is one of my Wellies:

 

[drom]

The tails on my roosters changed all the way up through their first year. My big boy, who had an almost perfect tail angle at about 7 months, grew some pretty flamboyant, curvy sickle feathers later which really make his tail look more upright.

I'd assume with the show birds in France, they pluck those little suckers out before the shows.

I can't imagine they wouldn't.