Bresse Chickens

[bayocum]

Do you ever caponize your cockerels?

Great question. We have considered this for a long time, and we continue to explore the idea. There are a lot of opinions on it, but at the end of the day, it seems like something worth doing if you can do it well. We are not ready to start doing so yet, but I expect it will be something we continue to study and investigate. How about you, have you given it a try?
-SF

 

[BCMaraniac]

Great question. We have considered this for a long time, and we continue to explore the idea. There are a lot of opinions on it, but at the end of the day, it seems like something worth doing if you can do it well. We are not ready to start doing so yet, but I expect it will be something we continue to study and investigate. How about you, have you given it a try?
-SF

Actually, I have. I decided to learn to caponize over the course of last winter. So I read everything I could, and finally took the plunge this spring. I guess you could say that I am self-taught. I lost my first one, but none since, I bought straight run AB chicks and ended up with 4 extra cockerels. Since there is a learning curve involved with caponization and the chicks were not cheap, I was hesitant to caponize them until I felt more competent, so they ended up being 10 weeks old before I caponized them. I caponized some mixed flock dual purpose males raised by a broody hen, and some White Rocks, Orpingtons, and Giants that I bought this past spring before I caponized them. The Bresse are 20 weeks old now, and I am growing them out with the other white males. I have ended up with one Bresse slip, but the other three appear to be full capons. It was absolutely amazing to watch those huge red combs shrivel and turn pink within about two weeks following the procedure. I need to make pictures of the capons and the intact males to show the difference between the two since they are the same age.

My Bresse pullets aren't laying yet, but I am looking forward to getting eggs to incubate to have younger cockerels to caponize, because the last cockerels that I caponized were 4 weeks old, and seemed to tolerate the procedure extremely well. They were a mixed breed lot that I incubated from my dual purpose layer flock in order to hone my skills a bit, and to determine what age seems less stressful for me and the birds. I have approximately 30 birds total that I have caponized, but a few of them are slips.....another part of the learning curve.

I have pullets from the same mixed hatch that are 13-14 weeks old now that I am going to poulardize in the next week or so to see how they turn out meat wise. They have to be older than the cockerels because the oviduct has to be large enough to identify(it is about the size of a piece of dry spaghetti at this age). Removing the oviduct actually prevents the ovary from developing, which I find very interesting. Apparently the poulard is even better than the capon in terms of the meat quality, and they are supposed to grow more quickly than a laying pullet because they aren't spending energy to make eggs. I guess I will find out soon enough.

It is going to be interesting to see how the three full capons compare to the slip when I butcher them in terms of the meat.

 

[TNBEARCHICK]

I did not finish mine in the French way . but I did cook it in a traditional French salt crust and eat it. It was noticibly different in texture and very succulant. My birds free range on about 1/2 acre eat a lot of grass and eat organic crumble. The flavor was not terribly differnt from my marans but the texture and tenderness was outstanding and he was bigger much faster.

I didn't weigh him but the 2 of us ate it over 2 nights

So can not wait to try mine for the first time, we were telling them the other night that someone was supper at least between the 2 males.

 

[juststruttin]

I am enjoying the Bresse. I had heard they were indifferent with people but that has not been my experience at all. I find them to be really friendly. Perhaps a little too friendly as I had a hard time getting photos of them. I am impressed by their bone structure, especially the space between their legs. I wish some of my other breeds had this much space.







As comparison, here is a photo of a Brabanter rooster. Clearly the space between his legs needs help.

 

[chiqita]

juststrutting, that second boy looks like he is on stilts! TOO FUNNY. iLL HAVE TO GO CHECK EVERYONE LATER TODAY NOW IM CURIOUS.
oh no capslock!

 

[juststruttin]

juststrutting, that second boy looks like he is on stilts! TOO FUNNY. iLL HAVE TO GO CHECK EVERYONE LATER TODAY NOW IM CURIOUS.
oh no capslock!

I know right? It looks like he has pantaloons on. BTW, these are the ones I hatched from the eggs I got from you. : )

 

[PetRock]

I am enjoying the Bresse. I had heard they were indifferent with people but that has not been my experience at all. I find them to be really friendly. Perhaps a little too friendly as I had a hard time getting photos of them. I am impressed by their bone structure, especially the space between their legs. I wish some of my other breeds had this much space.

Nice looking birds! My Bresse came from the same breeder as chiqita's. I'm going to have to go look for pantaloons on mine!

My Bresse are very curious and friendly. I have 3 young Langshans in my aviary with a group of young Bresse. The Langshans think that I'm out to get them while I have to actually move the Bresse out of the way in order to get anything done in there. Their father on the other hand is not a very nice bird. He attacked me the other day but I fortunately had jeans on. He might have one more year of breeding and then he is going to be replaced. Some of his sons are looking better in type than he does and they are not aggressive, at least yet!

 

[sonew123]

Mine are from Chiqita as well. I love their curiosity and demenor!

 

[TNBEARCHICK]

Ours are from GFF.

 

[PetRock]

Ours are from GFF.

I think that the ones chiqita and I have came from a breeder who got hers from GFF. Isn't that right, Shantih?