Retford Grouseleg
Origin
Britain.
Classification
Heavy Soft Feather.
Egg colour
Pale - speckled.
⸻
A British breed developed for cold and wet conditions, particularly suited to northern smallholders and heavy soils. It combines Asiatic substance with the balance and utility of traditional English stock. Feathered shanks provide winter insulation while featherless toes reduce fouling on clay or damp ground; compact head furnishings help limit frost damage. The breed is intended to be forgiving: robust, practical and manageable, with a calm and confident disposition.
⸻
General characteristics: Male
Carriage
Bold, steady and confident, carried high in front with a grounded, well-balanced stance.
Type
A large, wide yet compact fowl, short-coupled and deep. In profile the outline forms a clear Y-shape, with head and tail carried high in balance. From the front the thighs are widest, the breast broad and the neck narrower. The breast drops vertically from the base of the neck before the keel angles gently toward the rear. Width must be maintained through the hips. The saddle is long, broad and abundant, flowing over the hips to cover the base of the tail and forming a continuous rear mass rising at approximately 40 degrees, giving almost as much volume behind the legs as in front. Only the terminal tail sickles should show, continuing at the same angle as the saddle, the longest and most forward saddle feathers descending very low.
Head
Broad and strong with a firm, slightly beetled brow giving a purposeful expression. Eyes large and curious. Beak strong, long and slightly curved. Ear-lobes long and narrow. Comb sits as a small oval mass in unity with the head, coarse in texture and bumpy, narrow, low and centrally highest, compact and without cleft, without clear separation of triple blades or lateral spread. Wattles small to medium, rounded and close fitting, not longer than wide; a central dewlap characteristic.
Neck
Medium length, strong and well arched, flowing smoothly into the body and saddle.
Legs and feet
Legs strong and set wide apart; thighs broad and prominent. Shanks of medium length and heavily feathered. Feet strong with four toes only; toes entirely free of feathering.
Plumage
Plumage dense and abundant with rich underfluff for insulation, yet firm enough to resist damp. Feathering loose without softness or silkiness, and not so excessive as to impair movement or summer welfare.
⸻
Female
As for the male, allowing for natural sexual variation; softer in outline with fuller cushion and a more rounded rear. Comb smaller and less textured.
⸻
Colour
The Black
Male and female plumage: Rich, even black throughout with a green sheen where appropriate. Colour sound and uniform, including breast, body, saddle and tail. Undercolour dark. No red, brown or straw leakage desirable.
The Blue
Male and female plumage: An even, clear blue throughout, ranging from soft pigeon blue to deep slate, provided the shade is uniform. Each feather thinly laced with a darker shade of blue. Hackles and, in males, shoulders may be inclined to a shade darker than the body, but even colour throughout is ideal.
The Splash
Male and female plumage: Ground colour ranging from light blue to almost white with darker blue markings evenly and clearly distributed. Shade and patterning may vary, but balance and evenness are required. No red or yellow leakage desirable.
⸻
The Gold
Male and female plumage: Rich golden buff ground colour throughout, as even as possible, though the male’s shoulders may show deeper copper. Tail, flight feathers and centres of hackles black, blue or splash, corresponding to standard of the solid variety. Excessive washing-out undesirable.
The Silver
Male and female plumage: Pure silver-white ground colour throughout. Tail, flight feathers and centres of hackles black, blue or splash, corresponding to standard of the solid variety. While splash-based silvers typically show pale blue patches in the tail, an occasional purely white bird is permissible, provided it does not become the norm.
The Bronze
Male and female plumage: As the Gold, but ground colour deepened to a rich mahogany bronze, as even as possible. Tail, flights and centres of hackles black, blue or splash, corresponding to the solid variety.
⸻
The Black Fawn
Male plumage: As the Black, with deep amber to mahogany restricted chiefly to the shoulders and upper back. Neck and saddle hackles silver to pale cream with the black centres, the saddle darker than the neck. Even and limited mottling of cream or fawn on the breast and thighs desirable if not excessive.
Female plumage: Warm fawn ground colour with clear the black pencilling. Hackles silver with the black centres. Tail, flight feathers and undercolour black to dark slate.
The Blue Fawn
Male and female plumage: As the Black Fawn, substituting the black with blue throughout, this following the standard of the Blue variety.
The Splash Fawn
Male and female plumage: As the Black Fawn, substituting the black with splash throughout, this following the standard of the Splash variety. Colour may appear softer or washed; clarity and balance preferred.
⸻
The Red-Necked Black
Male plumage: Body as the Black, with the front of the neck showing a clear blaze of deep red ground colour. The remainder of the neck deep amber to copper. Centres of the hackles black and particularly wide in the lower neck.
Female plumage: As the Black, with a distinct red to amber front to the neck. The remainder of the neck amber or black, provided the red patch is clear and well defined.
The Red-Necked Blue
Male and female plumage: As the Red-Necked Black, substituting the black with blue throughout, this following the standard of the Blue variety.
The Red-Necked Splash
Male and female plumage: As the Red-Necked Black, substituting the black with splash throughout, this following the standard of the Splash variety.
⸻
Notes
Colour is secondary to type, balance and condition. No white, straw or red leakage is desirable outside the specified areas.
The only dilution of black in the Grouseleg breed comes from the blue/splash gene. Recessive or dominant white should not be present, hence purely white birds being a rare occurrence only in the Splash-based Silver.
⸻
In both sexes and all colours
The beak, the legs and the feet should be yellow. The eyes should be amber to deep red. Skin colour yellow to yellow-white.
In the Black and the Blue, and the corresponding Red-Necked varieties, some darkening or slate shading of the beak and shanks is permissible. Such darkening is a fault in all other colours.
⸻
Weights
Large fowl:
Male: 10 lb (4.5 kg)
Female: 8 lb (3.6 kg)
⸻
Scale of points
Solid and Columbian varieties
(The Black, The Blue, The Splash, The Gold, The Silver, The Bronze)
• Type and carriage – 45
• Head, neck and expression – 15
• Legs and feet – 15
• Colour and markings – 15
• Condition and handling – 10
Total: 100
Fawn and Red-Necked varieties
(The Black Fawn, The Blue Fawn, The Splash Fawn, The Red-Necked Black, The Red-Necked Blue, The Red-Necked Splash)
• Type and carriage – 4
• Head, neck and expression – 15
• Legs and feet – 10
• Colour and markings – 25
• Condition and handling – 10
Total: 100
⸻
The egg
Egg colour pale, with any quantity of dark speckles (as seen to camouflage the eggs of some wild landfowl) desired if even and consistent. Cream, beige or even green shells accepted, with colour falling secondary to a large, quite rounded egg with a subtle point to the end away from the air sac.
Serious defects
Narrow, long, leggy or shallow bodies; lack of the characteristic width through the thighs and rear; excessive or dominant tails, squirrel tail, or tails breaking the saddle line; feathering on the toes; more than four toes; upright single combs, broad rose combs, or split or clearly separated triple combs; excessive white in the ear-lobes; red, straw or white leakage outside designated areas; poor condition, weakness or lack of vigour.
⸻
Bantam
The bantam Retford Grouseleg is a true miniature of the large fowl, retaining all characteristics of type and balance. Greater broodiness is acceptable in bantams, and reduced emphasis on egg production is permissible, provided type, soundness and breed character are maintained.
Bantam weights:
Male: 36 oz (1.02 kg)
Female: 32 oz (0.91 kg)
