Bresse Chickens

[wickedgame89]

So I'm pretty stumped at this point in what kind of chickens I have. The people I got them from said they are White Faced Black Spanish Bantams. Well I recently came across Black Breese eggs on ebay and it made me reconsider what kind of chickens I actually have! They are small...with white. I looked up pictures of both [male wise] And mines [earlobes I think] Are bigger than that of a breese, but no big white face like that of the WFBSB. Mutts? Or Breese? Or WTBSB?

 

[juststruttin]

So I'm pretty stumped at this point in what kind of chickens I have. The people I got them from said they are White Faced Black Spanish Bantams. Well I recently came across Black Breese eggs on ebay and it made me reconsider what kind of chickens I actually have! They are small...with white. I looked up pictures of both [male wise] And mines [earlobes I think] Are bigger than that of a breese, but no big white face like that of the WFBSB. Mutts? Or Breese? Or WTBSB?

Considering the rarity of Black Bresse I doubt they are Bresse.

If they originated from a hatchery they could have been marketed as WFBS as hatcheries do not breed to the standard.

Other breeds that come in the black variety with white ear lobes are:
Minorcas, leghorns, Penedesencas, WFBS and I am sure more.

What color egg do they lay?

 

[wickedgame89]

Thank you for your quick response!

 

[wickedgame89]

Considering the rarity of Black Bresse I doubt they are Bresse.

If they originated from a hatchery they could have been marketed as WFBS as hatcheries do not breed to the standard.

Other breeds that come in the black variety with white ear lobes are:
Minorcas, leghorns, Penedesencas, WFBS and I am sure more.

What color egg do they lay?

It's a white and an off white color. Rather small. I was just starting to second guess the fact I was told they are white faced. But being explained about hatchery, it makes sense now.

 

[wickedgame89]

ruled out Minorcas. Mine are tiny compared to a 9 pound bird! lol The male started crowing recently and they are around 7 months old. Already laying at least one egg a day [one of the hen sometimes lays 2] And are very Flighty. Gotten into the trees sometimes [when we first got them] but stopped and just ended up roosting above their house. Is it just size that you can usually tell between the other breeds?

 

[juststruttin]

ruled out Minorcas. Mine are tiny compared to a 9 pound bird! lol The male started crowing recently and they are around 7 months old. Already laying at least one egg a day [one of the hen sometimes lays 2] And are very Flighty. Gotten into the trees sometimes [when we first got them] but stopped and just ended up roosting above their house. Is it just size that you can usually tell between the other breeds?

Minorcas, WFBS and Leghorns are all mediterranean class. The Minorcas are the biggest and the Leghorns are the smallest. Leghorns are supposed to have yellow legs but you never know with hatchery birds. If not WFBS, I am pretty confident they are from the Mediterranean class. Most breeds in this class are good layers, flighty and non-setters.

 

[homeworkin]

Grr, second set of Bresse hatching eggs was a total bust. Not one developed. I am out a small fortune in eggs with only 4 chicks to show for 2 dozen eggs - and two have foot/leg issues. I had other healthy chicks hatch out at the same time, and some since, so I don't think it is the incubators. Just a lot of bad shipped eggs. (Also had a dozen clear Delawares, and 3 dozen bad BCM eggs, while I had nice hatches of Speckled Sussex and plenty of my barnyard mix chicks, as well as a 60% hatch on BCM in September). Don't know if our PO is bouncing them around or what. I'll check with Chiquita if I decide to do another hatch in the spring. It is just so late to be trying again with winter nipping at my heels.

And yes, they hatch with pink legs, but these guys started turning blue at about 5-6 days.

 

[ronott1]

Grr, second set of Bresse hatching eggs was a total bust. Not one developed. I am out a small fortune in eggs with only 4 chicks to show for 2 dozen eggs - and two have foot/leg issues. I had other healthy chicks hatch out at the same time, and some since, so I don't think it is the incubators. Just a lot of bad shipped eggs. (Also had a dozen clear Delawares, and 3 dozen bad BCM eggs, while I had nice hatches of Speckled Sussex and plenty of my barnyard mix chicks, as well as a 60% hatch on BCM in September). Don't know if our PO is bouncing them around or what. I'll check with Chiquita if I decide to do another hatch in the spring. It is just so late to be trying again with winter nipping at my heels.

And yes, they hatch with pink legs, but these guys started turning blue at about 5-6 days.

Send me a pm and I will help you figure out any hatch problems you may be having.

 

[Ray C]

I will be picking up my first trio of white La Bresse in a couple of weeks. They sound like the perfect dual purpose breed and a very quick maturing bird.

 

[ronott1]

I will be picking up my first trio of white La Bresse in a couple of weeks. They sound like the perfect dual purpose breed and a very quick maturing bird.

They are great chickens.