I lost one of my best Copper Marans roosters last night

I had two of these but had uses for both come spring. One was to go with my blacks and one with my blues. They were perfect. Heavy, good shape, great coloring, everything.

I am pretty frustrated (angry) right now. These are very hard birds to find good specimens of, especially now with stupid covid interference. They were my top choice. Grrr. I know I can't change anything now, but I believe that this could have potentially been avoided, even without extra heating. That makes it worse.

Out of this particular length of deep cold, we have lost one black female runner duck (black is not easy to find) & now this rooster. It's not that bad of a loss number wise, but when the winter takes some of your best, it is hard to accept.

This is supposedly the longest stretch of deep cold on record here. It's time it ends before it does more damage. I believe that this rooster would have made it through otherwise.

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Comments

  • Torey
    Torey Posts: 5,679 admin

    Sorry for your loss @LaurieLovesLearning. Its always hard but to lose a valuable animal (bird) that you had plans for. I completely relate to and understand your additional frustration that he will be hard to replace with all our restrictions at present.

    Looks like it is a very gradual warm-up in your area. We have already started to warm up. Its only -15C this morning. Supposed to be -2 and snowing on Tuesday. I hope it goes quicker than predicted for you.

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning Copper Marans are one of my favorite and yes, they are hard to find. The roosters are really great. I am sorry for your loss and sorry about your Indian Runner too. Its never easy to lose an animal

    I hope your weather breaks soon

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,576 admin

    Thanks all.

    Actually, I could find coppers here, but if they are good and of known lines, they are off my birds. Otherwise, they either lay way too light or are crossed. To get a good rooster here, I would have to buy eggs (if possible) from another province and have them shipped by mail. Unless prices have risen lately, the cost of the eggs would be $75+/doz, and shipping is about $60 if I remember correctly. Then, you can only expect 50% viability of good eggs at best from shipped eggs if they arrive in good time. Then there are the incubator losses & chick losses. It gets expensive quickly and you may be lucky or may end up with nothing.

    It used to be that you could have a grown bird ($50-$60+ for one) and sometimes chicks shipped by air, but again, it is the cost of eggs or chicks (@$12-$15/purebred chick) and (used to be) $200 for the flight and maybe that includes he carrier/crate, but usually that's extra. We would also have to drive 3 hours to the nearest airport that would do cargo, so that's a huge cost as well. To get it by courier from that city to a closer one, it is $300 or more & we'd still have to drive one hour to pick it up in the city.

    To get good birds, I either have to travel for a few days to southern BC (I might get away with Alberta) or southern Ontario (at least 4 days there). Provincial travel is highly discouraged right now and it's not like that is do-able by us anytime soon either.

    Yes, it's a hard loss.

  • JennyT Upstate South Carolina
    JennyT Upstate South Carolina Posts: 1,273 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning I so sorry about you losing your animals. I'm worried about that for my animals too but you have much harsher winters up there.

    I understand your frustration too. I hope you can find a way to resolve this with out to much inconvenience or cost.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,576 admin

    @JennyT Thanks. I hope that I can too. I am not too worried about the runner, because what I have are cheaper hatchery birds, but the marans is a big loss. I just hope my other makes it through.

    As @torey stated, somewhat warmer air is coming in a gradual trend. I will breathe easier once we hit Friday or Saturday. There is still residual/fallout from stress that could happen between now & then.

    I had been contemplating selling my beautiful blue & black jersey giants. I have the best in Manitoba, so said a poultry club friend of mine, so that makes it harder. I have worked hard at that. I do love having them. That, and blues are still considered rare & are sought after. I keep blacks too only to put better lacing into the blues.

    I considered keeping the marans. I love the eggs and the gorgeous roosters.

    I have a lot of birds of the two types in particular, which is important for breeding, but my husband has wanted me to downsize for a few years. Selling them this spring could potentially bring me good prices if people are still hungering after birds (but I'm not sure if they still are). If I would ship across provinces, it would be better yet, but it is not a hassle that I wish to pursue since I am so far from an airport and that drives up the cost so it's not feasible anyway.

    So...I am not sure what direction I will take. Only time will tell. I could use any money I get to start small with something else unique (it would be non-chicken specialty, maybe peafowl, fancy pheasants, indies or mandarin ducks, or maybe narragansett turkeys), or just get top chicken stock from elsewhere & just keep a few for me. Maybe I would combine my large birds for my own large mixed meat bird. Maybe do more with the Bielefelder if I could find more elsewhere.

    So very many things to consider...and for me, it would be heartbreaking to sell most of them. I'm sure I'd get over it, but it still would be hard.

  • JennyT Upstate South Carolina
    JennyT Upstate South Carolina Posts: 1,273 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning Glad you were able to find some that could possibly work. I hope it's not to costly to purchase them.🤞😊

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Beautiful! I wish you luck

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,576 admin

    Well, we lost a female call duck last night. I am waiting on Friday to arrive...and hopefully no more deaths.

  • COWLOVINGIRL
    COWLOVINGIRL Posts: 954 ✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning I am so sorry for your chicken losses! I know what that feels like.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,576 admin
    edited February 2021

    @COWLOVINGIRL We have had a very unusually warm winter for the most part. Then we got the sudden long stretch of deep cold. We certainly paid for the warmer stuff!

    But, that cold is very hard on all animals. If a deep cold period happens or we have greatly fluctuating extremes, I am always expecting losses. Losses of extras that are not crucial or are visibly weaker in some way, are not nice, but are easier to accept. When it goes after your best, its rough, and it sets plans back. It also isn't a nice thing either when they've almost made it through to spring. But, it's all part of keeping livestock.

    How are yours doing?

  • COWLOVINGIRL
    COWLOVINGIRL Posts: 954 ✭✭✭✭

    They are great! Still laying and looking healthy. My main rooster got frostbite this last cold snap that we got but that is healing really well!

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,576 admin

    And the tally continues. I lost my other best rooster. He had hidden himself where he couldn't keep warm and was hard to find. We caught him fairly stiff already & taking his last breaths, so...my black copper marans won't be hatching chicks this year. It's so discouraging.

    I still have a blue copper roo, and as long as he stays well, I will have to put him into action with some of my black hens. I guess I will be focusing on improving them instead this year.

    My birds are sure taking a beating in this last round of cold. In only a few days, we are supposed to be up around the melting point and that should be the end of any intense cold.

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭
  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,576 admin

    Thanks, @Denise Grant.

    I was talking to another friend of mine. She is also being hit, as I am sure are many others. It is so sad.

    It is a part of winter, and you do expect losses going in, but that doesn't take away the disappointment when it does hit. You just always hope your favorites pull through.

    I've been wondering about all of the winter calving & lambing. I can't imagine having wet little ones coming into the world right now in this.

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning Yes, there will be calves, lambs and kids lost in this. It,s so sad

    My one duck is moving slow. I gave it a ton of hay but I may bring it in. Thankfully I have a big basement.

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,576 admin

    @Denise Grant That is a good plan. I hope you can help it. ❤

    You do what you can. Let me know how it goes.

  • JennyT Upstate South Carolina
    JennyT Upstate South Carolina Posts: 1,273 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I'm so sorry you lost the other one too @LaurieLovesLearning. 😔

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,576 admin

    Here was one of my boys. He lost his tips to frostbite last winter. He was my second choice (back up). Sorry he's sideways...

    My best pics of both were on another SD card that got misplaced. This is just what I can find.

  • Torey
    Torey Posts: 5,679 admin

    That's really too bad, Laurie. He was a gorgeous bird!

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,576 admin

    @torey Thanks.

    I found a couple pics that I liked. Too bad the wire was in the way.

  • JennyT Upstate South Carolina
    JennyT Upstate South Carolina Posts: 1,273 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning Yes, they were quite beautiful indeed. So sorry.

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning Beautiful! I love copper marons.

  • Monek Marie
    Monek Marie Posts: 3,539 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning My duck looked so much better. I really thought I might lose her. She was back to being perky and looked happy. Maybe I will give her peas as a treat tomorrow.

    Thankfully we are going in to a warming trend and I hope that was out last cold snap. I wish the same for you too

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,576 admin
    edited February 2021

    Well, I've come to a difficult decision that I feel good about. I am going to do a huge downsize...but most likely will fill it otherwise.

    I will sell most of my beautiful huge jersey giants (that is a bit painful), but will keep a trio and one pullet who has become my youngest's pet. Through the summer, I will determine my darkest marans layers and sell the others.

    I will keep the largest of my other heritage meat types too and try to combine them to make a great meat bird that I like, hopefully having it have the best traits of all of them & hopefully be auto-sexing (gender known at hatch). My husband wants to try caponizing too, so that will increase weight gain on the males.

    In April, I will buy 2 dozen eggs (one of dark laying marans & one of bright blue laying ameraucana.

    With any other money I might get, I will most likely get Canada's rare heritage breed of turkey, Ridley Bronze. I also wish to get some peafowl.

    We might sell our Indian runners & one muscovy hen.

    Quail are a part of the plan too, but so totally easy to find. I'm not too concerned about that right now.

  • JennyT Upstate South Carolina
    JennyT Upstate South Carolina Posts: 1,273 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I'm happy to hear that you have figured out what is best. Hopefully in the long run you will see it was all worth it and for the best.😊