I am hopefully getting some MF D'uccles next weekend (eggs due to hatch the 28th!) and am fairly new to chickens so I need some guidance as far as what I am reading and looking at when I look at a D'uccle hen. I have been following this thread to see what I can learn about this breed. Sounds like they tend to be friendly/inquisitive and come in so many colors I can't count. But I hear also a lot of terminology about shape and form that I don't understand (for instance, what are "vulture hocks?") and would like to know if there is anywhere that I can view the various conditions and characteristics explained, like a morphology key for D'uccles. Are all D'uccles boot footed (that's called "cochin" maybe?) AND bearded? I found the breed standard but sort of need an illustrated key to really understand what it is talking about in some cases because I don't know the terminology for any breed and this one seems to have a lot going on. I just know that I LOVE them, having seen a pair of MF for sale at a local flea market a couple years ago or so. Thanks!
Vulture hocks- are those feathers that slant similar to the wing, but are attached to the leg. in these pictures, you can see the length of the vulture hocks are longer than the wing itself.
these are juvenile gold necks.
Cochin is a separate breed of chicken, very short and round, like a giant cottonball.
Most of the colors of d'uccle are variations of the same thing.
Mille Fleur - the colombian gene and mottled gene together. (no copies of blue)
Blue Mille Fleur is the same, only blue covers black, (one copy of Blue)
Gold Neck same, only black has been covered completely by white,(two copies of blue)
Pocelain is the same, only both reds and blacks have been covered by the Lavender gene, also known as self blue, different from the other blue.
Colombian gene- black accents on buff
Mottled gene, causes white ends on feathers, should be on most feathers.
babies should have fuzz on the two outer toes, have fuzzy cheeks.
Adults should have toe feathering on the two outer toes, have vulture hocks, beards, five point on their combs and very little to no wattles.
That should get you going....