Faverolles Thread

[FVRM]

Just wanted to share a few pics of my girls. Stella and Gracie! They are about 7 months old. Ready to lay, but not yet laying.

Nice photography! Favs take longer to start laying. Mine hatched in early march of last year and i just got an egg yesterday. They should lay all the way into winter

 

[Farmer Viola]

If you are having a baby soon you should definitely cut back in your breeds. Mine are older now but I STILL do not have much free time.

The double mating idea is much debated - some think it is necessary while others do not. It is definitely not something you need to do if you choose not to go there. Count me in the not to go there party.

Line breeding is separate from inbreeding. Line breeding is father to daughters, mother to son, or aunts to nephew. Inbreeding is breeding siblings. Inbreeding will double down on faults. Linebreeding can also produce faults but they tend to be less extreme than those produced by inbreeding.

Faverolles are a difficult breed. Good BLRW aren't easy either.

My husband wants me to just do the BLRW and no other breeds.

He is probably right, but I'm having such a hard time letting go!

It seems that you would have to start off the very first generation brother to sister before moving to father to daughter the next season?

 

[keesmom]

My husband wants me to just do the BLRW and no other breeds.

He is probably right, but I'm having such a hard time letting go!

It seems that you would have to start off the very first generation brother to sister before moving to father to daughter the next season?

Well, what is your #1 breed? Do you like working with your BLRW? Blues are difficult on their own without having to worry about the depth of the mahogany. They are also not an accepted color (though you said you weren't showing). Do you have pictures of your BLRW? It is a breed I have had in the past so maybe I can help. However the breed you keep should be your favorite.

 

[Farmer Viola]

Well, what is your #1 breed? Do you like working with your BLRW? Blues are difficult on their own without having to worry about the depth of the mahogany. They are also not an accepted color (though you said you weren't showing). Do you have pictures of your BLRW? It is a breed I have had in the past so maybe I can help. However the breed you keep should be your favorite.

The BLRW are definitely my #1.... #2 SFs, #3 Javas.
I absolutely love the BLRW and went to a lot of trouble to get good stock so they aren't negotiable! haha

here's some pics of the BLRW




(hen on the far right is different genetics, bad lacing bad mahogany, egglayer flock for her)

 

[FVRM]

Farmer Viola i like your set up and your hens. is the tarp covered cage their coop?

 

[Farmer Viola]

Ha thank you!

That tarp covered dog kennel was a temporary shelter in addition to the main coop, you can't see the main coop in the photos I posted...

They live in a barn that's secured with hardware cloth. I don't have any good photos of their current coop, but here is one from the interior featuring two Fav cockerels

 

[mame1616]

Quote:

It is frustrating that after so many failed attempts I still don't have good genes to breed with and so I am considering not breeding Favs at all.

I am interested why Faverolles are not line bred as I have learned with my other breeds.

It sounds like the unrelated hen shouldn't be considered at all, so she'll stay in the egglaying flock.

Almost all the cockerels have tails that look like that.. There is one that is wider in the tail, he's the one who had an injured eyelid when he was a chick and it's stayed that way. He can close his eyes but it looks weird. He's easy to pick out of the crowd at least. They are still in the skitish phase, they keep their distance from me, but I'll try to get them banded and get better photos of them sometime soon.

My choice now boils down to eliminating the Favs or the Javas... I enjoy the Favs a LOT more, but I think my Javas have less faults overall.

Sounds like you have a lot of knowledge to work with, but - as the other moms here have stated, you might not want to start something with a new one on the way, Take my word for it - spare time will be a fond memory for a long time yet, even though it's for a great reason!

Cloverleaf is going to start her flock up again this spring, and I know she can put you in touch with other breeders near her who took her birds when she had to get rid of them. Contact her again.

I agree with Keesmom on the inbreeding/linebreeding issue - do it only if you have no other choice. I don't care what breed it is.

Favs ARE hard to get, and hard to get right, but they are worth the work, and the patience of waiting for good ones. We could use another breeder who is knowledgable and conscientious about preserving and improving the breed. You are way ahead of a lot of people who are just starting. The knowledge and experience you've already earned with the other patterned birds will help you a lot towards understanding the pattern - it's the type knowledge you need to work on now. My suggestion to you, as an expectant first-time mom, is to find some good local birds or eggs, and hang with them awhile, regularly taking pics and getting opinions as they grow. I can't tell you how much I've learned by simply observing! The pictures help a lot, too, when I go back to look at them and see each bird at the different stages. When you've got the baby thing down, (well, as much as possible - my girls are grown and I'm still second-guessing myself!) THEN start your breeding program. I know it's hard to wait - patience is the hardest lesson I've had to learn with these chickens, but, you'll be way ahead of the game knowledge-wise, and make smarter decisions which will save you time, money, and frustration in the long run.

 

[BuffyBugSlayer]

I agree with Keesmom on the inbreeding/linebreeding issue - do it only if you have no other choice. I don't care what breed it is.

I hatched some eggs late last summer that came from a flock of 15 hens and 4 cocks. Are those that I hatched considered siblings? I am still forming a plan on what I would like to do with them. I ended up with 3 cockerels and 5 pullets. Mine also came from piperomar and she said her flock was a mix of her breeding and Ron Patterson's.

 

[PiperOmar]

To clear the air since I noticed several people are commenting on my lines, I added 4 hens last year into my pen which were from Patterson lines. I did NOT have any Patterson roosters in my pen. I have a rooster from 2 other breeders of entirely separate lines and one of my own breeding which was a mix. If you have questions about my birds, please ask me directly and privately rather than posting things on a public forum. I am happy to answer questions but please do not take bits and pieces of my flock line description and then make things up from there.

 

[BuffyBugSlayer]

To clear the air since I noticed several people are commenting on my lines, I added 4 hens last year into my pen which were from Patterson lines. I did NOT have any Patterson roosters in my pen. I have a rooster from 2 other breeders of entirely separate lines and one of my own breeding which was a mix. If you have questions about my birds, please ask me directly and privately rather than posting things on a public forum. I am happy to answer questions but please do not take bits and pieces of my flock line description and then make things up from there.

If that is directed at me I said nothing of the sort. I am sorry if I started some kind of controversy.