Houdans

[HaikuHeritageFarm]

If I had to guess on the comb, it would be because of Polish influence in the American development. That makes sense, right?

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

yes, virtually every crested breed in the US is V combed

 

[Chilifur]

Yes, but WHY… All I'm getting at is that I can't find anything that explains why we would find it necessary to change such a thing to the point that the breed standard differs. And, because of this, bringing back this breed in its true form seems to be a lot harder than it should be.

I mean, wouldn't taking a French bird that is correct in every other way and breeding it to an inferior bird to just change the comb defeat the purpose? Of course, this is assuming there are no longer any birds of proper type available and that one would have to go overseas to start over again...

Just asking if anyone knows the reasoning behind the way things are - I already know our standard is different and that most of the crested breeds have the V. Do you think we intended to restrict vision to be more like the Polish? Or for other reasons?

And, out of curiosity, how could the standard be changed if there is no active club? I see mention of Bantam Houdans as part of the Polish Club, but there doesn't seem to be anything for the regular Large Fowl.

Stopping here - sorry it seems as if every response just spins out 3 more questions. Thank you - need more input!

 

[Chilifur]

Guessing that no one here really knows - which is an answer in itself. Makes sense in that there seem to be very few (if any) breeders working with the standard. Perhaps the ones that know (or would have known) are no longer in the breed?

I apologize if my style of writing is somehow offensive, too aggressive, etc. Suppose I'm guilty of "bull in a china shop" tendencies when going after information.

At any rate, if anyone is interested, development photos can be found here . No, there are far too many to post in this forum - Picasa webs is Google's photo site, so it's safe and won't hit you with a bunch of spam or other garbage. With each bird, I try to get a decent comb/nostril head shot, sides, and wing development - that runs 3 to 5 photos per bird. It's more or less weekly and I do weigh them weekly as well (as I do all the chicks) to learn how the breeds I have mature and all that stuff. Always looking to see what or if there are indictors of gender or anything else.

The site is updated with photos from 4/3; I plan to take more today but may not have them up right away. Will post here when they are!

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

I have 18 bantam houdan eggs in need of a home if any of you are interested. Loaded all 5 incubator to the rims, or I would be setting these myself.
Just PM me if interested

 

[rtroxel]

The University of Arkansas is working with SOP Houdans. They will give you eggs if you go pick them up. From what I understand, they are getting fairly close to SOP after several generations of work. They have a unique project in that they can hatch several thousand every year and cull extremely hard. I got a few chicks this year from them and they have been doing very well. Hardiness has not been an issue in the least. Excellent 5th toe, leg color, etc. They are holding their own in the brooder with 2 other breeds. But as to how they will be as adults, I have no idea

Contact Keith Bramwell from UofA.

I would guess, unfortunately, that you are not going to drive from AK to AR

 

[Chilifur]

Wow, these little guys are active little kernels of popcorn!

Down to 10 as one was strangled in a small mat in the Silkie foster momma's feathering. That really sucked - I had no idea she had any mats but she was promptly cleaned and clipped to ensure nothing like that could happen again! As it is, at 3 weeks, they were active and big enough to not need her in the house anyway.

So far I have noticed that these guys are as developed flyers and aggressive as my Pumpkin Hulsey gamefowl! Really curious to see how they mellow out and change - or not. A few of them had notably pinker nostril ridges than the others and I'm waiting to see if those do, indeed, turn out to be males. One of them, Panda, is the biggest and actually flew feet first into the face of an adult bird who tried to put him in his place today.

This https://picasaweb.google.com/chilifur/Houdans#]Picasa Web Album[/url] is up to date with photos from the last two weeks. Next shots will be on Tuesday when they are 28 days old.

 

[Chilifur]

Rudy - I'm in CA, so even farther away! Thank you so much for that information, though. I have been in contact with Keith because I figure the information he's gathered during the process is invaluable all by itself.

4 weeks of age, sides, wings, and a head shot (5 photos each) are now up:
https://picasaweb.google.com/chilifur/Houdans#

Also noted - they are finally starting to think past the fight or flee instinct; about the right age as other breeds.

Now to go upload the *other* breed photos…

 

[rtroxel]

One thing I will say is that the birds I have from Keith have much bigger crests than yours at similar ages. Their coloration is very similar, tho.

I caught him on a trip up north and he brought me some eggs then. Maybe he'll go to CA someday

 

[nova7353]

I had 3 Houdans but a dog killed my girls, i was so sad so now all i have is my roo and hes a mean butt but i love him he goes after everyone heres a pick of him