Frizzle + Frizzle = ???

[Albanydog]

UPDATE: My White Super Frizzle Rooster is as ugly as ever, still has blotchy red skin and looks part bald and raggedy but he is healthy and happy at 11 months old. I keep him in a large outdoor pen with all our baby chicks so he is out of the free range population of approx. 125 chickens of all shapes and sizes and gave him a little black cochin hen for a mate. I then chose a couple eggs and hatched them under a broody hen as a test. We got 2 black chicks, one is smooth and the other is the beautiful little perfect frizzle you see below!! I still feel a little nervous about hatching out his offspring (fear of another super frizzle) but I guess you all were right about breeding smooth to frizzle and there being nothing wrong with a super frizzle other then their odd look and possible skin problems. We certainly would never follow in the poor breeding practices of the breeder we got our super frizzle rooster from and breed frizzle to frizzle, it just isn't right to breed animals knowing you will end up with some super frizzle chicks that grow up unwanted and plagued by skin issues. Thanks all!

 

[chicmom]

You know, I'm also glad for this thread. I love my Polish frizzle rooster, and I bought him a couple of cochin frizzle girlfriends (all bantams). Anyhow, now I will never let them hatch their eggs. He also has a smooth feathered polish bantam girlfriend, and a silkie girlfriend. I really love those cochin frizzles....They're just darling, so I'll be keeping them as pets anyhow. We just won't hatch their eggs.

Good to know. Thank you for sharing this info!

 

[MemawSwift]

Thanks for posting this photo. I ordered frizzle chicks from our local feed store and 2 out of 3 look like this. I didn't know what was wrong with "the twins"! They are about a year old now and I will make sure they have plenty of access to the heat this winter!

 

[Albanydog]

Thought I would update my previous post.
My white Super Frizzle rooster with the red blotchy skin (pictured in message #11 above) died suddenly less the two months after this post. He died overnight, though he seemed as healthy as always and the bright red skin turned out to be a "normal" condition for double/super Frizzles. I learned later that it is not unusual for them to die early and suddenly and that these poor, badly bred, birds often have heart & organ issues/conditions that you can not see and their poor bodies can not handle once they reach adulthood. So for those of you who wondered if super Frizzles could live happy, healthy lives the real answer is no, they may appear healthy enough, though shy of feathers and red, blotchy skin but their hidden ailments will likely end their lives early. He never appeared to have suffered, except from the ridicule of his peers and everyone who saw him and maybe the occasional chill so I would not have culled him because we do not kill any of our animals that are not suffering, and he appeared to have a good life but I would never breed frizzle to frizzle on purpose. The mail order breeder I purchased him from obviously went for the 25% increase in the number of frizzle feahered chicks and could care less about how the animals or their owners might suffer:
* Smooth feather to Frizzle feather breeding equals an average of 50% Frizzle chicks & 50% Smooth chicks.
* Frizzle to Frizzle breeding equals an average of 75% frizzle chicks & 25% Smooth chicks, however of that 75% frizzled feathered birds, 25% of them will likely be Super or Double Frizzles with the thin feathers, red skin and other health issues, so I would never breed two frizzle feathered birds together!

I'm going to look through my records to find the breeder and write them a nasty letter about their bad breeding practices!
RIP Ugly Frizzle, I pray you had a happy life without suffering and are even happier now!

 

[MemawSwift]

All three of my frizzles are male and all of my hens are regular. I do have 3 baby's that hatched and one is obviously frizzle. The other two may have the genes and it's just not apparent. It's looking like my obvious one may be a pullet, we'll see. If so, I won't allow any of the eggs to be hatched unless she was separated from the frizzle males for a while. I won't hatch any from the other two because I can't be sure. My twin boys seem to be happy enough but are very timid. I will just care for them as I do my blind hen and give them extra attention. I hope I can give them a good life for how ever long they live. We would not cull them unless they were in obvious pain.

 

[Albanydog]

I believe you can breed Frizzles to Frizzles just as long as one Frizzle has smooth feathers, this breeding does not create the bad Super or Double Frizzle and only 50% of the chicks will have smooth or fizzled feathers.
Someone please correct me if I am wrong.....

My Frizzle chicks all had a dark purple/blueish mark on their skin on their shoulders, right at the top of each wing. I haven't bred any in a few years and my memory is bad but I believe even the smooth feathered frizzle chicks have these markings, that is why we never knew who would have the frizzled feathers until they actually started to show.

 

[MemawSwift]

I don't know. I'm just not willing to chance it. None of my chickens are for show, they are mostly pets for the grandbabies. I love to hatch eggs and give the chicks away, but I'm not going to chance it.

 

[jessnd12414]

My little bantys roost is only about 3 inches off the floor. They seem happy with that height. Hmmmm..super frizzled? Now I cant waite! About 18 days to go!

This is what you get when you breed frizzle frizzle Not a good result. I had gotten a bunch of chicks at an auction and ended up with 2 really nice frizzles a bunch of smooth and then this little guy who is growing at a much slowe pass than the rest

 

[Lemonade72]

After all the comments regarding the high risk of the resulting chicks SUFFERING, Due to a genetic mutation that makes them CUTER? Not even one that makes some more able to avoid predators or something possibly beneficial to the resulting chick, something that you find a cuter, you're willing to possibly risk putting even one through that misery? knowing the risks? and reading what more experienced breeders took the time to inform you about the dangers, AND post links to the scientific facts AND research regarding this, and you're still not sure? ITS NOT WORTH IT, please ...