La Fleche Thread ~ PIC of my Black La Fleche

[pgpoultry]

I think that they do take a while to achieve their full weight.Mine were quite large by 6 months, but now at about 20 months are about the same size, but much heavier.

Mine don't eat large amounts of the food my other chickens eat, nor do they spend all day hanging round the back door and following me everywhere after more food. They forage over several fields and eat lots of grass etc. Very good at self-sufficiency!

I think this breed is under appreciated....they have lovely black feathers and lay very well during the longer days. They are said to have some of the best-tasting meat of the chicken world, but not being a meat eater, I cannot vouch for this!

 

[cgmccary]

Quote:
I agree with you that this breed is under appreciated. It is definitely rare here and desparately needs some dedicated breeders. Looking under notable breed threads, I noticed there was not one for the La Fleche so I asked BYC to add this thread as it seemed to already be pretty informative (and they did).

I am looking forward to free ranging mine. I will even let them roost in the trees if they choose the large cedar trees.

Certainly, I appreciate and admire non meat eaters. For moral reasons, I refuse to eat commercailly raised chicken so if I don't raise it, then there is no chicken for me. The Buckeye makes the most delicious chicken & dumplings I have ever put in my mouth and it tastes superb when grilled. I have heard such great things about the La Fleche as a meat bird, I am looking forward to tasting one. The meat is supposed to be a finer texture and one of the best fowl for the table. I am guessing that the butchering age is going to be different for the La Fleche & I will simply go by weight (and will need to grow out some).

I look forward to working with this breed & want to talk more about them here as I hatch and grow my first ones. I will try to compare them to the breed I already know so well & see if I cannot get more people interested. I will use my Hogan methods for selecting as they have served me well so far with my Buckeyes.

 

[pgpoultry]

They are unfortunately rare/very rare here,too. Nobody in the area has them, and I have never seen them in anyone else's 'collection'.

I have a bit of a fascination for different birds and first bought a few Naked Necks.I found, by chance, a picture of La Flèche while I was looking at chicken images. Reading that La Flèche were unable to tolerate very low temperatures, were of nervous disposition, and could fly over any fences, I was a bit sceptical, but it did not stop me buying eggs.The eggs duly arrived and went in the incubator, but the lead was pulled out day 8 for 24 hours or so in temperatures around 40 degrees overnight. I persist with incubating them and hatched 5/6.

They have proven to be pretty hardy, very pretty, and fantastic foragers. They can and will perch in trees and the rooster pictured perches overnight on a rafter in a derelict barn, though the girls dutifully make their way at early dusk into the coops.I don't try to curb their enthusiasm for perching high as there are a lot of foxes around here.

They are fast moving and slightly jumpy, but have not proven to be at all difficult to manage.The roosters don't fight with my others.
Personally, I don't really see any down side with these birds. Their appearance is glossy and sleek and the rooster has a lovely proud stance.Visitors always comment on them positively (though not on my NNs!), and with regards to the 'horns' comb....well it's very small in the hens and the boys get names like Old Nick, Young Nick and Baby Nick to show that I'm proud of them!

We need to promote these lovely birds whenever and wherever we can.

 

[rudy_rooster]

I had a somewhat disappointing experience this summer trying to get my hands on some La Fleche eggs. I bought 6 from a woman in South Carolina, who was advertising La Fleche. Well, three hatched in July (2 hens and a roo). While they were black and possibly had some La Fleche blood in their past, they were not pure bred. The rooster had a strange comb... not quite a single comb, but more like a single comb made of La Fleche horns (if that makes any sense). He also had a tuft of feathers on his head, somewhat like half of what a Polish might have. He was culled and is currently in our fridge. We kept the two hens, but they are very small, flighty and skittish, with multi-point combs.
I guess my point is buyer beware. Maybe down the line I will actually have La Fleche that are as nice as the ones pictured here.

 

[mjgigax]

I think that they do take a while to achieve their full weight.Mine were quite large by 6 months, but now at about 20 months are about the same size, but much heavier.

Mine don't eat large amounts of the food my other chickens eat, nor do they spend all day hanging round the back door and following me everywhere after more food. They forage over several fields and eat lots of grass etc. Very good at self-sufficiency!

I think this breed is under appreciated....they have lovely black feathers and lay very well during the longer days. They are said to have some of the best-tasting meat of the chicken world, but not being a meat eater, I cannot vouch for this!

That makes sense since they they were prized for their breast meat and considered excellent dual purpose birds. My friend, a Cornish breeder, laughed at LeFleche being considered meat birds and said they didn't look like they weigh very much and had "thin looking" bodies.

Their look is quite the opposite of my Cochins. My LF Cochin hen and roo weigh 10 and 12 lbs. respectively but the look as big as 25 lb. Turkeys.

My LaFleche are really "growing" on my interest too. They are quite an interesting contrast to my Cochins. I love my Cochin's friendly and curious personalities but I rather like the LaFleche's aloof style. They aren't really flighty like some of my Ameraucanas. They just walk away when I go in their pen.

 

[mjgigax]

That makes sense since they they were prized for their breast meat and considered excellent dual purpose birds. My friend, a Cornish breeder, laughed at LeFleche being considered meat birds and said they didn't look like they weigh very much and had "thin looking" bodies.

Their look is quite the opposite of my Cochins. My LF Cochin hen and roo weigh 10 and 12 lbs. respectively but the look as big as 25 lb. Turkeys.

My LaFleche are really "growing" on my interest too. They are quite an interesting contrast to my Cochins. I love my Cochin's friendly and curious personalities but I rather like the LaFleche's aloof style. They aren't really flighty like some of my Ameraucanas. They just walk away when I go in their pen.

Must the roos have dubbed combs for showing?

 

[poularde]

La Fleche should not have dubbed combs.

 

[pgpoultry]

Here I show my ignorance and ask what is a dubbed comb?

All mine have just two prongs with two smaller prongs coming out of the 'snout' region. Any crosses from my La Fleche have odd combs split into two fringed ridges which forms into a crown shape in some.

 

[poularde]

Dubbed combs is where the cut off most of the comb. They do this in America with Modern game birds.

Check out this link of someones website. They have pics of dubbed birds and one without.

http://www.poultryhelp.com/lbpics.html

 

[pgpoultry]

Ouch!

I understand it is to prevent frostbite.....I apply a generous layer of petroleum jelly if the weather is going to be bitterly cold. It's sad to have a magnificent (or just plain odd in the case of La Fleche) and then having the impressive parts removed....but frostbite would do that, I guess.

Thank you for the info.