Welsummer or Maran ?

[redoak]

In the spring we are ordering more chicks. My wife only wants to get 2 breeds total. She wants more EE's and some Welsummers or Marans. The Welsummers and Marans she mostly wants for dark eggs. What breed does everyone prefer and why? Thanks for any input/advice.

 

[greathorse]

What is the end goal and do you intend to breed and sell hatching eggs. If you are going to purchase either of these two from a commercial hatchery you will have nice darker colored eggs, but nothing remarkable, I have two Cuckoo Marans hens and the eggs are only slightly darker than my RIR. Wellsummer are nice chickens and the eggs and chicks not quite as difficult to find from good breeders.

If you want Black Copper or Wheaten Marans from high quality stock you will need to get in line. The demand is huge. I had a couple of Wellsummer and got rid of them. I did not like my rooster, kind of an ugly little bugger, but I think it was an individual thing. He did have great color.

I do like my Cuckoo Marans hens and roosters very attractive, but since they were from comercial stock it would take a lot of breeding to get decent color in the eggs.

 

[zchickens]

I guess it come down to what other traits you value the most. I own both Welsumers and Marans. Welsumers are less expensive (typically) and it is a bit easier to find quality stock versus Marans. Also, with the birds I have had experience with, Welsumers seem to have far better temperment on average. My young kids can be around my welsumer roo (supervised, of course) can pick him up and he is perfectly fine with it. Maran roos temperment, however tend to very more greatly. I have had to relocate or more or less permanently confine to a run my roos because attempted to flog my kids or me. Obviously if are looking to make money, Marans would be the way to go. If not, I think the Welsumers (on average) tend to offer more (better temperment, less broody, higher laying rate ... in my experience, at least).

Z

 

[gamebirdsonly]

I like Welsummers, love their dark speckeled eggs.

 

[hcammack]

I like my Marans but I have never had Wellsummers. I have two hatchery cuckoo marans pullets and their eggs are alright I am growing out some Blue and Black copper Pullets for Darker eggs. I may be getting wellsummers soon though to

 

[redoak]

Thanks for the input, great posts. Another question......which eggs seem to be darker coming from hatchery stock? Greathorse mentioned his hatchery Maran eggs were only slightly darker then RIR eggs. Our goal is to have friendly chickens that lay well and lay a variety of egg colors.

 

[vicki2x2]

I like my Welsummers, but don't have any Marans. I don't like the cuckoo color personally so if I got Marans, it would be a different color. My Welsummers are hardy girls and good free rangers when I let them out. I also think they are pretty and the roosters look like the Kelloggs Rooster.

 

[klf73]

Quote:
I personally haven't heard anyone getting decent dark eggs from hatchery stock, you would really need to get some from a breeder. I also read on here multiple times that the personality of hatchery stock is nothing in comparison to birds from a breeder. Majority of my birds come from breeders and have awesome personalities. My first hatch are mutts that came from someone with hatchery stock (black australorpXblue andalusian), I can't even get near them, and handled them LOTS when they were little. Could be coincidence (could be the breed)

. You could post in the BUY SELL TRADE CHICKS & CHICKENS section and say that you are looking for non-hatchery stock chicks, you may find someone in your area that has what you are looking for.......
Good luck!

 

[CountryMom]

We have had two dark egg laying hens from Ideal. One was a Welsummer and we still have a Cuckoo Marans. Both had personalities that were and are wonderful. I say that because we lost our Wellie in a coon attack. We still have the Cuckoo Marans hen. Of the two the Wellie laid the darker egg, but like another poster said nothing markablly darker. Just a few shades from the BR and RIR we have. Loosing Wellie broke my young son's heart and he said he wanted more Wellies. So we were going to wait and reorder in the spring. Well, I happen upon a breeder selling eggs here on hatching eggs site and went ahead and ordered. It included Cuckoo Marans also. I was quite shocked at how dark the eggs really are as the hatchery ones are nothing in comparison. The Welsummer's eggs are especially dark. I still have them in the bator and hoping for a good hatch for my son. I would highly recommend the Welsummers for dark eggs. Don't get me wrong, I like both breeds but my son's experience with the Wellie proved they are so much more personable.