A couple of years ago I saw a picture on the Internet of a dark, dark brown egg. I thought it was a chocolate egg actually, ready and waiting to be dragged through a jar of peanut butter.
But it wasn't. It was from a particular breed of chicken called a Marans.
I have been obsessing over having one of those chickens ever since. For me, half the fun of owning backyard chickens is having eggs that are colours people have never seen before. That and being able to wear a live chicken as a corsage at a moment's notice if need be.
But with a a smallish coop and 4 hens already I couldn't even think of adding another chicken. Well I could think about it but I couldn't do anything about it.
And then Norma died.
I know. I'm sorry to shock you. But it's true. And that's one of the horrors of owning chickens. They up and die on you, oftentimes without warning. It was sad and awful and I cried. She had a prolapsed vent, which is something chickens who lay big eggs (and Norma's were HUGE) can be prone to. I know a lot of people just throw their chickens in the garbage or burn them when they die but I just couldn't do that so I built her a little crate, (O.K., it was a coffin, but saying I built a coffin for my poultry makes me sound like a nutjob) put her in it and buried her in a safe place.
After an appropriate period of mourning, I started looking for a replacement for Norma. And what I started looking for ... was a Marans.
(Quick note ... when you buy chickens you either buy hatching eggs to hatch them in an incubator yourself, day old chicks, or pullets. Pullets are 5 month (or so) old hens that have just started laying. Getting a pullet is great because you don't have to go through the bother or raising chicks which can be time consuming, but not a lot of people sell pullets. Chicks are much easier to come by, especially for the rarer breeds.)
Marans are a rare (in North America) French heritage breed. They come in a variety of recognized colours with the Black Copper Marans being the most popular.
Now a bit about those dark eggs. People take them very seriously. There's even a colour chart.
The egg colour produced by the Marans hen has to be a #4 on the chart or darker to even be recognized as a Marans.
Anything in the 8 or 9 range is very rare and more of a mistake than anything. Hens are most likely to lay this colour of egg in the beginning of their laying cycle and right after a moult. Then the eggs will consistently get lighter, but they can't get any lighter than a #4.
People breed Marans with the goal of getting the darkest eggs possible. Which make sense, because even though they're supposed to be very nice, gentle birds, it's the eggs we're all after.
If you Google Marans eggs you see egg cartons filled with dark, DARK eggs, but that isn't the norm and if that's what you're hoping for you'll likely be disappointed. It really bugs me actually that people post those pictures but don't put the disclaimer that these eggs are rare and won't always look like that. Kind of like when people post only the the *really* good pictures of themselves having great times on Twitter. Really? Where's the picture of you where your lazy eye is noticeable and your kid has thrown up on your hair?
Anyhow.
I strapped on my typing fingers, headed over to Kijiji and started my search. I just realized I'm already lieing to you.
Kijiji WASN'T where my search began. It began at a local farm that I discovered had Marans. So I sent them an email. Apparently they aren't email people because they never responded. So I drove past the farm. Apparently they aren't real farmers because they weren't outside. A real farmer is outside from morning until night. They wear overalls, checked shirts and chew straw. Sometimes they have their hands in their pockets and stare quizzically at big broken pieces of machinery.
I saw none of this as I sped past the farm.
So from there I went to a farmer friend who knew someone else who had Marans. This also led nowhere. I'm now starting to think that the Marans breed is the unicorn of chicken breeds. But I knew they were real. I'd seen pictures of them. Mind you I've also seen pictures of unicorns.
O.K., so it was at THIS point that I headed over to Kijiji. I found several people selling them, but they seemed sketchy to me for some reason. I was basing my judgement on how they wrote their post, what they had to say about their hens and whether or not they spelled Marans correctly. If they called their chicken a "Maran", they were scratched off my list of potentials. There's supposed to be an "S" on the end of Marans.
My list quickly got whittled down to one breeder. A woman who was fairly close, just a few towns over from me. She was VERY into chicken breeding and had just listed a first spring hatching of Black Copper Marans. I was at the point in my search where I was just kind of browsing around and suddenly I was in a position where I had to make a decision. It was like browsing on the MLS and finding your dream home even though you had no real intentions of moving.
I emailed her, she emailed me, I emailed her back, I himmed and hawed. Then the chickens were gone. Sold. Shit.
You might be wondering why I didn't just snap em up like a pair of half price shoes. Well, the truth is buying a chick isn't quite that easy. For one thing you can't buy just one chick. You have to buy at least two and 3 or 4 are better. That's because chicks are flock creatures by nature and could die of loneliness if there's only one of them. They need each other for protection, warmth and companionship.
The other problem was, Black Copper Marans are very difficult to sex. So if you get one chick it could very well be a rooster, which aren't known for their fantastic egg laying ability. Plus if you get a rooster, you have to figure out a way to get RID of the rooster. If you get 3 or 4 chicks the chances of you getting a hen are greater and if one happens to die, you still have a few left.
Since I only needed one hen, the prospect of suddenly having to raise several of them kind of made my head explode and I just couldn't commit.
A month or so went by and I couldn't stop thinking about those chicks. So on a whim I emailed the woman back and asked if she happened to hatch anymore unicorn birds.
She said "As a matter of fact, yes". She had some in her incubator right now that would be ready in a few days. I said I'd take all the Marans she had. I now had a plan.
I have a couple of friends who have chickens. I contacted both of them to see if they'd be interested in a hen once I raised them. They both said yes. So if I have too many hens in my group of chicks, I know they have good homes to go to. As far as the roosters go, if I get any of those ,they are a rare and in demand enough breed that I'll have no trouble selling them on Kijiji.
In terms of how they look the Black Copper Marans is well ... black. They're distinguished as Black "Copper" Marans by the copper ring around their necks of the hen, which you can only barely see in this picture.
The below pictures, which is a rooster, shows how beautifully colourful they are.
The Marans fit my climate ... they were bred originally in a cold damp climate, so they're good in the cold winters of Ontario.
The other distinguishing feature in the Marans is their feathered legs. Which I love. Which is ironic, because when things begin sprouting out of my own legs I hate it. Their temperament is nice and not aggressive like a Rhode Island Red can be and they lay fairly regularly but not nearly as much as the more common breeds that are bred specifically for laying a lot of eggs.
There's one of me, and 4 chickens laying eggs. I can only eat so many pavlovas, so I'm O.K. with this particular breed only laying 3 or 4 eggs a week as opposed to 5 or 6.
The one thing no one tells you when you are looking to buy a Marans is this ... while most breeds start to lay eggs between 4 and 6 months of age, Marans have been known to wait until they're 8 or 9 months old. Of course there are exceptions.
So now that you know what chicken I chose you can go on with your day.
Tomorrow, I will have 20 photos of the chicks looking impossibly cute. This cute phase only lasts a couple of weeks before they hit the gawky teenage phase. At which point, I will have 20 more photos for you. Perhaps one of them will have a unicorn horn strapped to her head.
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Marion
So sorry to hear about Norma. The Marans sound amazing, and they definitely are beautiful! I hope if you do end up with a rooster he goes to a good home where you can go visit him (and post pictures of his handsome tail feathers!)
Kim from Milwaukee
Karen, Marans's sure are beautiful! I feel like a hobbit saying that, though. I'm assuming that you won't keep a rooster for fertilized eggs or for food?
I've been reading up on raising chickens since, thanks to you, that's something I'd like to do someday...and I saw a Mother Earth article from the 70's about the egg shape predicting the sex of the chick. Maybe you can eyeball those hatching eggs to see if they are 'pointed' (indicating male) or 'oval' (female).....and just have the pointy ones for breakfast? Just a thought. Not sure how accurate that theory is, but it sure changed how I look at eggs...it's quite obvious now which is which once you know this little old farmer's wife trick.
Thank you for sharing your chickens, by the way. I'm glad I'll have some one day, and I'll have you to ask for advise!! You're the best!
Karen
Thanks Kim! I'm no chicken expert but I'm happy to help when the time comes. :) ~ karen!
Grammy
Thanks for all the fascinating info on chickens. I don't raise them, but my next-door-neighbor does. She is such a lovely neighbor that periodically I answer my door to find her standing there with fresh eggs for me to enjoy with none of the work. And now I know which of her girls produces the lovely dark brown egg that often shows up in any batch. I always find it exciting when we get one or two of those beauties.
Sorry to hear about Norma. Add me to the list of those who don't find it odd at all that you buried her. Norma deserved it, and you needed to do it. Now good luck with your beautiful new babies!
Karen
Thank you Grammy! And you'll have to ask your neighbour of one of her chickens is a Marans! ~ karen
Laura Bee
So sad to hear about Norma, hope she is beside Lucky.
One of your best posts so far! And always interesting reading the comments.
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Shauna
So, when I had a chicken pass and I had to get a new chicken, every place told me I would need to get two because the new one(s) will get pecked on. So, I think that's what you're doing, but not entirely sure based on your post. You do plan on keeping two right? If not, that one will get pecked and pecked and pecked.
Sorry to hear about Norma. I still am not sure why two of my girls died. I started with 3, then one died, so I bought 2 more pullets, then another one (the leader of the pack actually) quite suddenly got sick and died, so then I bought 2 Easter Eggers from a different farm and they're doing quite well, although one of them is still getting pecked a fair amount, but thankfully she has her other Easter Egger sister or I don't think she would have made it.
Nancy Blue Moon
So so sorry about sweet Norma..No you are not crazy..I would have been shocked if hadn't buried her..Good luck with the chicks..Are you going to keep the first good egg and put it on the shelf with the other one??
Amie
Do it! I would love to see a unicorn horn on a chicken! Don't forget some kind of sparkles or rainbow mane.
jeannie B
Have you named your new chicks yet? I feel rather sad for the beautiful roosters though. Beautiful but noisy I guess. And I know they can be quite aggressive. I've never heard of a "hen fight" but I have heard about "cock fights". Off with their heads!
Karen
Not yet! I'll wait until they develop personalities. And features that distinguish their sex, lol. ~ karen
Jackie
I love your new chicks. I sometimes wish we had chickens but we have 2 dogs & they are enough to take care of. Thanks for sharing them with us & I'm looking forward to more pictures of them as they grow - and more stories about them. Sorry to hear about Norma. It's always painful to lose a beloved pet, no matter what they are. Good luck with your new babies.
Karen
Thank you Jackie. I'll be posting LOTS of pictures over the next few months. :) ~ karen
Kathy
Karen, you make me smile every day and I learn something new when I'm smiling.
TucsonPatty
YES! Love this comment!
Karen
:) Thanks for letting me know Kathy. ~ karen!
Leslie
Oh, yay!!!!! Congratulations. You're right, getting "real" birds is tough! Marans are for sure on my list of "get real birds, not hatchery birds." I want the most colorful basket of eggs possible.
Jodi T.
NOT NORMA!!!! She was my favorite. I'm so sorry to hear about her going to chicken heaven...
Good luck with the new babies. I can't wait to watch them grow, and hopefully the girls will welcome them with open wings. :)
Ruth
"...they were bred originally in a cold damp climate" I wouldn't have guessed it because I'm having to chase those exact birds out of my corn patch on a daily basis. I probably have a photo of one of the cocky roosters somewhere on my hard drive.
We call them 'common fowls' and they just 'free range' all over the place. I can never figure out where they lay eggs if they do. Baby chick kinda just appear out of the blue. You never discover they have owners until you kill one of them; and then the 'colourful' language just springs forth from the absentee owners. JA expletives are lengthy 3 and 4 syllable things...
To be clear, I have never killed a fowl that didn't belong to me (and I have none now), so I'm not guilty of this, but there are JA folk who will curry your chicken in no time if they stray. There are also those who will run over a male goat who attempts to cross a rural road without his owner... for the sole purpose of making 'mannish water' and curried goat meat (Ask Google about mannish water.... you know you want to know....)
I digress, but my point was supposed to have been this: I wonder how they survive the tropics. Hmmm.... or are these tropical cousins by another name.
Ruth
Oh - forgot to say - the common fowl eggs I have seen fall in the 4 through 6 range of colour.
(Blame my hormones for today's ramblings.....)
Karen
LOL. Maybe the ones you have wandering around are mutts that happen to lay dark eggs. Feel free to shove one in a box and mail one to me. ~ karen!
Ruth
Hehehe... I'm pretty sure it's illegal to mail chickens from JA (especially when you're not the owner), but if I ever find the photo I took I'll send it via email.
That just reminded me that you totally passed over my last email to you (it was probably hormone-based too), but it's all good. Missing your newsletters....
Karen
!! Last email? Uch. I'm sorry. I get SO many emails and I mark them all with a flag to remind me to go back and answer them when I have more time. You must be in a batch that I haven't responded to yet. ~ karen!
Ruth
Okay.... it was dated Dec. 26, 2013 and entitled 'Cubits'... related to the last newsletter for that year. :-D
Laura Bee
When I was in cooking school, a student brought his mom's curry blend from home - we were making Indian curry though - not Jamaican. The teacher said it was excellent, but couldn't give full marks because it was the wrong curry! I still think he should have got bonus points - it was that good! My point is - I'd let you curry my chicken if I had one :)
Ruth
I love a good curry... Indian, Jamaican, Thai, every other variety there is...... :-D
If there's turmeric in there, I love it. These days my dishes are meatless, but I still love me some curry. :-D
Tracey
Hi Karen,
I'm very sorry for your loss of Norma. It's hard to lose our pets who are important members of the family.
I don't comment everyday but I want you to know I'm here reading everyday. I'm so excited about your new babies and look forward to seeig the chick cam. I watched the video yesterday a whole bunch of times!!
Your posts brighten my day, you're such a funny and clever writer.
Thank you!!
Melissa in North Carolina
Thank you for a very informative post. I didn't know. I was thinking about getting Silver Wyandottes. I think they are a pretty bird and I like their brown egg. Until now, I didn't know you could have a chocolate egg! I'll have to do some thinkin' on this subject. Your chics are so darn cute and look like they will grow into real beauties! The forever leg warmers got me, this is all so very exciting. Can't wait for the pics. Thanks for another great post. Sorry about Norma.
Debbie from Illinois
I love what I learn here! Sorry about Norma.
Corinna
Sorry for your hen loss. :( I'm not looking forward to that at all.
I guess you didn't question if they can just go in the organic recycling bin, eh?
Toni
No meat protein in compost, if that's what you were wondering.
Amber
Hi Karen, so sorry to hear about Norma. I know they are all so special to you.
I had wondered if you would choose Aust-os or marans. I went with the A's thinking of course who doesn't want a non violent dominant hen who likes to cuddle and turns blue in the sunlight? Eggs shmeggs! Of course, it is always about the eggs.
Have you watched the BBC The Private Lives of Chickens? Wonderful stuff!
Karen
Thank you Amber. And I think I have watched that, but I'm going to have to Google it to make sure. I'm almost positive. ~ karen!
Ev Wilcox
Sorry about Norma. I would have thought it odd if you didn't bury her. We have cement building block markers where three of our dog friends rest. How exciting to see the pic of the black hen-what a beauty! I so hope you get two hens and that your girls go easy on them. You can use a Dremel on the eggs (sounds like they will be hard to crack!) to make the holes on them for blowing them out. What pretty egg basket decorations you will have! A new white white white kitchen and new black chickens! Yea!