Recent content by tbird9

What I have heard (on good authority) is that shortly after GF released their first import they lost the entire flock to a predator attack. They have been able to import again, but those are the lines that people have reported the most problems with. Most people who have them now have the later...

This is one of my old men, he has been through three harsh mountain winters, we are zone 5a. So, yeah frostbite the first winter is an issue, but they recover and are not as susceptible in following years. This winter was not so bad for us and you can see the one in the background who was...

I did a side by side with Bresse, pastured Cornish and supermarket chicken: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=915127698637632&id=669588303191574

I would actually say there is a strong broody streak in them. This is my seventh year raising Bresse and I’ve had quite a few go broody. Currently 4 out of 25 of my hens are sitting on eggs, and another one that would like to be. I let them free range and have had multiple experiences of a hen...

I just posted a side by side comparison of pastured Bresse vs pastured Cornish vs supermarket Cornish that might interest folks. https://www.facebook.com/Panhandle-Poultry-Producers-669588303191574/?hc_ref=ARTOthIxYDDQokgqzglvF5e0Cu7Y0vQGqqRlhSxw1x4F_BWe7OWPVW16hOd7oBWEazQ

I haven’t seen that at all. I have been breeding from three GF pairs bought through Rare Breed Auctions 6 years ago with no new birds introduced and leg color is one of the major traits I’ve selected on. Some of mine have legs that light in color, but I only breed the much darker blue ones.

I have not seen that. Do you have a picture?

Half weren’t fertile! I would not be happy with that. Anyone selling eggs for hatching should at least be making sure they have enough roosters in the game and the birds enclosed well enough to ensure close to 100% fertility of the eggs. Half not hatching I can totally understand, especially...

I agree, they are fabulous, hardy dual purpose birds for a home flock. Eggs are huge and the meat is great. But if you are considering them for a ‘get rich quick’ scheme, yeah, no. People aren’t yet willing to pay a higher price for the ‘Bresse’ reputation and the hybrids that only take half...

Did you try any this year? I have been breeding and raising Bresse for 6 years. I would say that the market is not currently out there. You would have to do a lot of work to educate people about what they are. While the “terroir” is important, there ARE genetic differences in the Bresse breed...

They won’t blaze their own trails in deep snow, but a couple inches shouldn’t bother them. I suspect your guys just weren’t used to it. We have deep snow cover for 2-3 months of the year and they stick to the barns and areas that have been packed down. We throw straw on top and that gets them...

You don’t have to. Below is the text from a marketing brochure I picked up on a trip to Bresse. “Young” males butchered at 4-5 months don’t need it. The capons, raised to 8 months are definitely a rarer specialty. Inside it has descriptions of the different ways they can be finished. I...

We got several weeks of negative temperatures last winter. Here are pics of the two roosters I have left that went through it. They all started out with beautiful huge combs and suffered serious frostbite, but we didn’t lose any to that.

Anyone in NE Oregon or SW Idaho? Here is a link to my Panhandle Poultry Producers Facebook page- https://www.facebook.com/Panhandle-Poultry-Producers-669588303191574/ This is the panhandle of Baker County, OREGON, not Texas or Florida or wherever. We bought some of the very first pairs/trios...

Nathan and Ryan- I just ran into a woman I sold a Madien Rock hen to a few years back. She still has her and said she's still laying. Please message me if you are interested in getting in touch with her.