Faverolles Thread

[pasofinofarm]

I will also add one thing. My tolerance maybe be just a teensy bit higher than average. On our farm we work with several rare to very rare breed including not only chickens but also Saddleback Pom geese, Cotton Patch geese, Welsh Harlequin ducks, Red Wattle Hogs (down to 95 total breeding animals in the 1990s), Old Spot pigs, Dexter cattle, Old World Jersey cows, etc. We see all manner of issues in many breeds of animals however we have the option of eating our mistakes.

I do try to be sensitive to hobbists in that for them these chickens are not utility birds but are rather pets and they can become quite distressed with any flaw... I think sometimes that does not come across as well as I wish it would. Yet and still I would hope that others would also see that preserving the utility of an animal as well as it's beauty is worthwhile and only consider our farm if they understand that firstly we are producing food... secondly we have invested in great stock and have done all possible to improve it over the years, not the other way around.

Peace

 

[gottsegnet]

I'm going to say I think those are my birds and yes that is a purebred Fav. Looking at her I would not worry that she could be crossed with the Lav Am who may have jumped the fence. I would have culled her for those feet on day one. But since you said you had a large laying flock you planned to add her to, you decided not to. However, since that is not the question of the moment let me try to answer what you've asked. I would not breed this bird since you are hoping for show winners as the toe issue may carry to the offspring...I'd make it simple and put her in the pot but everyone deals with the issue of less than ideal birds in their own way. Since y9o have several quality birds from that hatch including two show winners perhaps you could focus your breeding on them if they have other qualities you are looking to reproduce. Cull heavy if the trait carries and each successive generation will see less of the issue... This is true for most any problem. No matter what line you choose to breed you will find some issues. Each flock is a work in progress and every change (a new roo, closer linebreeding, a new outcrossing... brings surprises... some good and some... not so much.

It is tolerance for a less than perfect bird and finding joy in improving birds that make a good breeder. If someone wants perfect stock they should probably stick to buying only adult birds or at least young birds that have survived many rounds of culling. That is an acceptable way to go but one who only benefits from the work of others is not a breeder.

I am often amazed that some folks believe that if they get a dozen eggs shipped to them 12 perfect chicks should pop out. When we did meat birds for the 4H we raised hundreds of birds and eventually culled down to a group of 10. When we raise replacement pullets in spring I hatch at least 100 to pick 5-10. The rest are raised for stewing.

It's always nice to keep expectations in line with reality so that disappointments are minimal.

Perhaps there are some breeders here who are able to pop perfect birds from every egg... If so... come forth, I want some chickens from you!

Thank you for your help. I certainly don't expect perfection! We have a lot of imperfection from hatchery birds and from show stock, but have always been able to pull out one or two that were worth breeding for future purposes. One out of eight ducks from show quality stock was worth showing and she won best of class! We were very excited and never worried about the defects and DQs in her hatch mates . . . the drake only got a red, but we learned so much about ducks talking to the judge about the breed, it was more than worth it. It goes with the territory. I was just originally told these were crosses, and having no experience here, I had no reason to doubt that.

I am looking forward to our first salmon faverolle stew. I've heard good things about their meat and I was pretty impressed with my 18 month old Wyandotte roo who was just getting too aggressive. Home raised, free ranged birds are yummy!

 

[pasofinofarm]

Thank you for your help. I certainly don't expect perfection! We have a lot of imperfection from hatchery birds and from show stock, but have always been able to pull out one or two that were worth breeding for future purposes. One out of eight ducks from show quality stock was worth showing and she won best of class! We were very excited and never worried about the defects and DQs in her hatch mates . . . the drake only got a red, but we learned so much about ducks talking to the judge about the breed, it was more than worth it. It goes with the territory. I was just originally told these were crosses, and having no experience here, I had no reason to doubt that.

I am looking forward to our first salmon faverolle stew. I've heard good things about their meat and I was pretty impressed with my 18 month old Wyandotte roo who was just getting too aggressive. Home raised, free ranged birds are yummy!

I worried they were crosses because I'd never seen 4 toes in my flock before... It was you who brought to my rememberance that we were also breeding a new roo at that time. He came from Dianne in Houston when she got out of Favs. She had some beautiful birds she imported from Belgium many years back. Unfortunately that roo died not too long after being introduced to the flock. I do still have some hens from her that I got a few years ago and if it is a recessive it is surely the line breeding that brought it out. We have since replaced that roo with another from my original birds (origins unknown)... the ones I have been working with for years... Which again goes back to the importance of keeping extra birds around. Mike at Honeysuckle farm keeps several of the varieties we breed and saved my bacon last year with a GC Marans cockerel after mine got hung by a spur and died up-side-down.

Faverolles meat is excellent. They make great roasters and stew birds. I don't use them for fryers simply because I have so many Ameraucana cockerels that are good for nothing else.

 

[ashandvine]

FYI.... love the blue cock!!! Just lovely.

My SF are noisy little things. I don't recall anyone else being so noisy-- they trill often. Maybe they are complaining and I don't know it but the water is good, the heat and food.... they need to be moved to the bigger brooder though. One hopped out this morning and left a few nuggets in the library for me. At least I found them before the dog.

 

[keesmom]

I have around 10 boys right now for possible breeding

I kept 12 to grow out for now. I'll see how they look in 2-3 months. Hopefully Dick will have time to come up and look them over too.

 

[flyingmonkeypoop]

While at the show I was able to get a gorgeous cockerel from Jeanine (cloverleaf) to add to our flock. We had a trio of salmon faverolles from McMurray and a hen from her lines but just weren't happy with the hatchery birds other than the color and beard of the rumpless hen. We put the new rooster in with the other hatchery rooster and the size difference is HUGE. The cockerel from her is +/- 4 months and our rooster is almost 7 months. The new rooster makes ours look like he is half bantam! I'll try to get a pic up before too long, it is hot and rainy here today and I called in sick, the long drive to/from the show didn't agree with my stomach

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

While at the show I was able to get a gorgeous cockerel from Jeanine (cloverleaf) to add to our flock. We had a trio of salmon faverolles from McMurray and a hen from her lines but just weren't happy with the hatchery birds other than the color and beard of the rumpless hen. We put the new rooster in with the other hatchery rooster and the size difference is HUGE. The cockerel from her is +/- 4 months and our rooster is almost 7 months. The new rooster makes ours look like he is half bantam! I'll try to get a pic up before too long, it is hot and rainy here today and I called in sick, the long drive to/from the show didn't agree with my stomach

LOL Glad you like him! Sorry you're not feeling well today though! Hot and rainy together is just yucky!

 

[gootziecat]

Here's an updated pix of my Fav bantams. They are almost 4 mo. old. The cockerel is a brick to pick up. I'm enjoying watching them grow.

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

The Merlin kids had their first full day in the big coop today....

Gambit is on the left, Merlin on the right. Morgana is hiding in the coop.




The rains have started, and the run is already muddy! GAH! Time for a load of bark nuggets....

On a not so great note, my hatchery cock that roams the yard with his ladies decided to fence fight with the Merlin boys today. I found him hanging upside down from a spur that had gotten stuck in the wire fence...he's in solitary now, he hurt his leg really bad. He CAN walk on it, but doesn't want to. I don't think it's broken, I didn't feel any crunching, but he is a hurting unit, that's for sure.

 

[n8ivetxn]

Poor roo


OH, I looove that blue roo! He is gorgeous... I need a small flock of those in LF