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

[ruth]

Well more and more of my BC Marans girls are laying - almost always on coop floor - but here are some of their first eggs. I took this in a sunny window and used a flash so they are well lit and don't appear as dark in pic as they really are. They are getting darker each day and you can see the difference in the pics. I'm still only getting one, sometimes two eggs a day so I'm not sure if they are all laying or just one or two or the others lay off in the woods somewhere where they spend most of their day.

Notice someone laid a huge double yolker.

I'm going to put all eggs in bator to see if they are fertile and if so, what hatches. DH and I are going to try and finish the breeder pen in next couple of days and the Marans will be moved there. More than likely, the eggs, if fertile, are also pure BC Marans because one Marans Roo, James, takes all 8 females away from the coop every morning and keeps them way off in side pasture till evening. He's really taking his chances with the predators but he's keeping them away from the other 15 or so mature roos that freerange around here. So, they are all going in the breeder pen for their own protection and for pure BC Marans chicks.

My other roo, Jesse, spends the day in the coop trying to court all the other adult hens. He seems more interested in the other breeds than he is in his own.

Edited to add: For comparison - I just took a pic of the latest egg next to one of my green eggs and regular brown eggs.

 

[Birch Run Farm]

Great results on your eggs!

 

[amazondoc]

Quote:
What you say is *basically* true -- but the situation is a little different in poultry than in dogs.

The way I see it, there are two major differences to be factored in:

1. In poultry, there are no pedigrees. A bird must LOOK like its breed and PRODUCE like its breed -- you can't "prove" it's breed with papers. Therefore, poultry breeders can be quite sensitive about consistency and "sports" and such.

And different colors are often treated as different breeds. In fact, in many breeds the different colors were CREATED from different breeds -- so consistency in color is more important in poultry than in dogs.

2. Poultry color genetics -- and effects -- are more complicated in birds than in dogs. In birds, recessive genes often causes muddying or bleeding through of colors. For instance, imagine that your red/white basenji had black hairs scattered around his face, or on his white chest, or some such. You wouldn't much appreciate it. Similarly, the wheaten trait is SAID to (I don't know if it's true) cause minor changes in colors on a black copper bird.

In addition, because of these added complications, wheaten birds popping out of a black copper flock would not be birds that had been *selected* for wheaten. They could easily have various genetic modifiers that have already been bred out of "real" wheatens, so they would e likely to not be very GOOD wheatens.

All that said -- wheatens originally APPEARED in black coppers, and were bred out of the black coppers. So there's nothing really terrible about it -- it just adds complications!

 

[Solsken Farm]

Onthespot! That is great that you have a way to move along your culls. Good for you. I would do just as you say if I were Duckett.

Tina, Yes! I try to raise my critters as naturally as possible. I do think they are more hardy than we give them credit for. We had such cold weather and my dh had not been willing to help me build a place in the barn for them. His mother was here for a week, and after a few days of the "dust:, miraculously he decided to help me build a great spot for them. Heh heh heh. TG she came to visit. They would have been in the house all winter.

Gosh, my wheaten/Blue wheaten Ameraucanas are doing great. I hatched 16 of them. There is such a variety in their colors. I am certain I have a couple of splashes in the mix. They are neat looking.

Ruth, your Roo is a pretty boy. I honestly adore roosters. I hope none of ours never turn mean.....

 

[KellyHM]

I have 4 new black and blue Copper babies! I think I have 3 black and 1 blue, but I can't tell for sure since they're not dry yet.

I'll post some pics after I get them out of the bator!

 

[onthespot]

woot! can't wait for pics!

 

[Solsken Farm]

Hey Kelly, that's great! I only got 3 chicks from my blue/black copper eggs and got 2 CBs and a splash. Hoping the splash is a hen, as she has a leg problems and won't be good for anything other than a table egg layer. But a special needs roo would be tough to have around.....

Pics! Pics! Please.

edited because I can't type....

 

[gretchenhau]

Can anyone tell me why my 5 week old and 3 week old Cuckoo Marans are so mean. They are not friendly, don't want to be held, and bite. I got them off of e-bay, before I knew I could get eggs here.

Not like raising my Goldne Comets.

How do I get them to be nice and friendly, and wanting to be held etc.

 

[Solsken Farm]

Poor Gretchen! I am sorry that is happening. Alot of my birds don't like to be held. I pet our birds that are more skittish at night when they are roosting and calmer. You could try luring them with food to your hand.

 

[klf73]

I am not sure what it's worth, but I got good line cuckoos(cratty line) and they are the craziest bunch. They attack me and are very flighty, but they sure are pretty. I think the striped feather legs are awesome!