Silver Cuckoo Maran vs. Welsummer. Darkest eggs? help pleaseee!!

[oliviad51]

I just ordered some Silver Cuckoo Maran chicks. I heard and read that they don't lay the chocolate eggs that I thought they would. I really wanted the kind that laid the darker color. I can change my order to Welsummers if I wanted to. I just want to know if they lay darker eggs then the Silver Cuckoo Marans.

I guess a better way to put it is which lays the darker egg? Welsummer OR Silver Cuckoo Marans?

 

[BeardedLadyFarm]

It purely depends on where you are getting them.

Welsummer eggs CAN be darker than Cuckoos, but if you are ordering from a major hatchery, I wouldn't count on particularly dark eggs from either.

 

[EweSheep]

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I agree with this statement!

 

[oliviad51]

Im ordering from mypetchicken.com. Is it even worth getting the chickens if they are not going to lay dark brown eggs? Should I replace the order with some different hens, or ...well what do yall suggest?

 

[Tylt33]

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I felt disillusioned when I learned this... decided to order based on personality and appearance versus egg color, although those aren't really guaranteed from a hatchery either.

 

[BeardedLadyFarm]

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If your only goal is truly dark eggs, then don't order from MPC, at least don't order Marans or Welsummers from them. Their birds are shipped from Meyer Hatchery, which are quality birds, but are hatchery birds bred for productivity. By all means, get Barred Rocks, or Easter Eggers, or Leghorns , or sexlinks from them. They will be your work horses and will lay the best year round.

I believe MPC sells eggs too, and judging from the price and selection they are from private breeders, not from Meyer's.

It's worth looking around for true dark egg layers. LOTS of us have them. I'm not sure where you are but you can likely find someone not far from you with chicks or eggs that you can integrate with the rest of your hatchery birds. A good breeder will gladly show you the eggs their chicks come from so you can verify that the color is to your liking.

It's better to be disappointed now than to raise a bird for 25+ weeks and find out they don't lay the color advertised.

 

[oliviad51]

you're right. I need to stop worrying about the egg color and look forward to my happy, playful chicks.

 

[sourland]

As others have said, it depends upon the strain and source. Get your chickens and enjoy them. At some time in the future if you so desire get some more from a proven source of dark brown egg layers.

 

[newTexan2chickens]

I drove about 2 1/2 hrs to get some FBCM because I wanted darker eggs. My DH thought I was nuts of course.... he refused to go along because he said he didn't need to spend that much time in a car with some chickens! Anyway I would like to get some Welsummers as well.... Ideal has them but they are not available until September or so. I will probably try and find a local breeder so I can see the eggs as well. Our local feed store hatched out some cuckoos that were brought to him and he saw my FBCM eggs and said they were a lot darker. Wish I could have seen the eggs as I might have gotten a few of his chicks.

 

[oliviad51]

Thanks. I hope they lay darker eggs. I got my chicks from mypetchicken.com. I would have gotten some Black Copper Marans, but they were sold out for 2010. I had achoice between Welsummer or Silver cuckoo, so I just got the Cuckoo.