British Faverolles and Deutscher Lachshünner

[Tim]

Hello all,

I've been talking with some Germans about Faverolles and I'm trying to make sure I have my facts and understanding right.

The Deutscher Lachshünner or German Faverolles was (I'm told) split from the French and the British as early as 1905 into a seperate Breed. The German Bantam Faverolles (Deutscher zwerge Lachshünner) followed in 1925 and was the first bantam of this breed.

Unlike the British Faverolles that traditonally needs double pen mating to produce show cocks and show hens (as found with the Dorking Fowl, due to the cocks colouration) the German breed only needs a single pen to breed both sexes to show quality.

I think most of this stacks up but my question is do you double pen mate British Faverolles? I wasn't aware of this if you do...

Tim

 

[darkbrowneggs]

Ummmm ...... Faverolles...... I am toying with the idea of some for next year. Does anyone know what size / colour eggs they lay. Have they retained thier laying abilities. How quickly do they mature - I understand they were originally a dual purpose bird etc etc.

 

[foxy]

Well the German faverolles type is very similar to the British, being very "blocky" in type. From what I gather, they have only one preference in colour and that is a medium chestnut in cockerel colour, I need to double check though. The French have two colours in salmon (fonce = dark and clair = light) and depending which is your preference double mating would be needed to achieve these two distinct colours.

When it comes to the salmon colour in the UK, the jury is out, some do not agree with double mating or do not feel the need too and some do, it depends on what you are trying to achieve in terms of the colour. I double mate with salmons and I believe so does Dorinda Fontana, that is because we both prefer a dark cherry in the exhibition boys, however this does not lend itself to nice even coloured pullets, so a different cockerel would be needed to get a better pullet colour.

I will send Dorinda a message and also check with a couple of German breeders I know

 

[foxy]

Ummmm ...... Faverolles...... I am toying with the idea of some for next year. Does anyone know what size / colour eggs they lay. Have they retained thier laying abilities. How quickly do they mature - I understand they were originally a dual purpose bird etc etc.

My old girls continue to lay into their 4th/5th year. My boys weigh between 9 and 10lbs at the moment, hatched early this year and free range their whole life. I find they lay consistently well but I wouldn't say prolifically..a medium pinkish tinted egg 17

 

[dorinda]

I double mate - I've 2 cock breeding pens and one pullet breeding pens in Salmon - in both LF and bantam - the females from the cock pens hoften have splotches in their beards - these girls are either kept for breeding cock birds sold as layers or go into my laying flock - this answers DBReggs question, O still have good laying from my favs - good sized tinted eggs and I've got a couple of old girls here - 9 years old and they are still laying wellish!! the French have two colours as Foxy said, but I've not long ago seen a video on the faverolles page on FB which says the darks are now called German, another interesting thing to note, that people here are trying to get cobbier shaped birds - more like the German birds, this seems definitely to reduce their laying capacity!

 

[darkbrowneggs]

OK I am liking the sound of this, my preference is for dual purpose utility type fowl, and they sound as though they fulfill this function, so if anyone will be having some eggs preferably pinkish and a good size I would like to put my name down for some. Sooner the better I suppose depending on fertility etc Pm me if you have or will be having some for sale

 

[Tim]

Thanks for the information Foxy / Dorinda I appreciate it.

I am adding the breeds pages to the new website and updating some of the information as I go. I've just about reached the Faverolles page so I will update it with the French and German info and that some will use double pen mating.

Have a great New Year!

Tim