We are all familiar with the Christmas Christmas carol : the enthusiastic lover demonstrating an deathless devotion with an amazing raiment of fowl , jewelry , musician and more . While the superfluity of presents is for the most part airy by today ’s standards ( and probably by 18th - one C standard , too ) , one gift amongst the dozen merit further consideration : the three French hen .
Why French hens above all other breeds ? The English of yore had a passion for French mode , be it vesture , hair styles or gastronomy . Britain ’s Francophilia extend well beyond hairdo , couture and culinary art , so their favoring the French strain of Gallus gallus above other Continental salmagundi is altogether understandable .
A less romanticise explanation is that the English simply confused the full term Gallic , signify French , with Gallus gallus , the scientific name for wimp . Whatever the reason might be for including Gallic hen as a gift for one ’s on-key love , you will get laid tot this trio of French chickens to your backyard hatful .
Read more : What are the bird of “ The 12 Days of Christmas ” anyway ? We take a look .
Bresse
No other breed ( French hens or otherwise ) quite compares with the Gauloise Blanche de Bresse . This strain is ferociously beloved as a national gem by the people of France , who use the image of the Bresse rooster on up-to-dateness , military machine and athletic uniform , andas a symbolization of France itself . It is the only strain of chicken that pay the covetedAppelation d’Origine Contrôlée condition , awarded by the French National Assembly in 1957 , and the Appelation d’Origine Protégée , awarded by the European Union .
As such , the Bresse can only be raised in a specified geographical area , its breeding overseen by a individual entity , the Comité Interprofesionnel de la Volaille de Bresse ( CIVB ) . The CIVB ’s hatcheries produce about one million chicks each class , which are stagger to several hundred approved poultry farms to be call down according to very strict banner .
These includeaccess to spacious meadowlands ( a lower limit of 10.2 meter per doll ) and a prescribed diet of non - GMO cereal grain and dairy product . The Bresse metabolizes its provender in a unparalleled agency and develops certain type of muscles in a unique charge per unit that makes the breed genetically alone . The result essence is luscious , marbled and so flavorful that renowned foodie Brillat - Savarín called the Bresse “ the queen of fowl , the fowl of kings ” in his 1825 bookLa Physiologie du Goût .
The Gauloise Blanche de Bresse was first document in 1591 , appearing in the registers of Bourg - nut - Bresse . The birdie reflects the colouring of the French flag in its appearance , with a brilliant red exclusive coxcomb , lily-white feather and smooth blue leg . At maturity , males weigh around 7 lbf. and hens matter roughly 5 pound .
Bresse birds are effective forager , browse for one third of their diet on their own . Bresse hens produce an average of 4 or 5 medium - sized , emollient - colored eggs per workweek ( about 250 per year ) . They are favorable , cold - hardy birds and a great addition to any flock . Bresse can be purchased in the United States throughMcMurray HatcheryandGreenfire Farms , both of which designate their birds as American Bresse to reflect their breeding and resting outside of the French controlée laws .
Crevecoeur
Originating from the township of Creve - Coeur in Normandy , this classifiable double - purpose doll is one of the oldest poulet breed in France , itsexistence documented as far back as the 12thcentury . The Crevecoeur was elevate primarily for its high - quality kernel , with fine white titty meat and colored , rich leg nitty-gritty .
Its succulence head to its ruin . During World War II , the German army reached Normandy and , within two years , all the Crevecoeurs ( minus the few that had been hidden away ) had been eaten . Because of this , the Crevecoeur is critically jeopardise at an international layer .
Efforts are now underway in France , Australia and the U.S. to recover this breed .
Crevecoeurs are smooth , friendly birds with sweetened dispositions . They make excellent favorite , specially when handle often as chicks . male reach a mature weightiness of 8 pounds while females reach 6.5 pound . The females produce approximately three medium to magnanimous eggs per week ( about 150 per year ) .
Crevecoeurs are black in colour , with blue - black leg , black schnoz that shade down to a gray - horn color at the beak , and ruby - brown eyes . They sports full beards and crests , both of which have a inclination to frost over in wintertime , although they contentedly adapt to most climates . Like Polish chickens , Crevecoeurs ’ crests be given to mist their eyesight , so covered runs should be a serious circumstance .
It ’s the Crevecoeur ’s most alone feature , however , that beguile care : its V - determine comb . Because of it and its crest , the Crevecoeur tends to be bullied and should only be raised with chickens with similarly gentle temperaments . Crevecoeur wench can be purchased at both McMurray Hatchery and Greenfire Farms .
Faverolles
view one of the best breeds of chicken produce in France , the Faverolles originated near the village of Faverolles southwest of Paris . While several colour varieties be , only the Salmon Faverolles is recognized by theAmerican Poultry Association .
With its compact , stocky body ; abundance of downy feathering ; and ability to lay eggs during the colder , minimally daylit month , theFaverollesis the ideal bird for troop owners in northerly climates .
Female Faverolles lay three to four tinted eggs per week ( about 150 to 200 per year ) . They are excellent sitter , setting orchis from other breed as well . They make caring , responsible for mother .
Both male and female Faverolles are favorable and docile , yet energetic , alarm and curious . The Faverolles will loudly call out if it get word an unknown animal come on , form it a welcome summation to any flock .
At maturity , the male Faverolles press about 8 pounds and the female approximately 6.5 pounds . The Faverolles is feather legged , with five toes per base and a full face fungus to jibe its fluffy eubstance .
One striking and convenient trait with the Salmon Faverolles : The chicks auto - sex activity by four weeks of age , with the cockerel ’ wings being pitch-dark and white while the frier ’ annex turn a multicolor mix of Salmon River , black and white .
As grownup , the males have a contraband beard , clean hackle and semblance blocks of ashen , shameful and dark coppery brown on the remainder of its body , similar in radiation pattern and coloration to a Golden Duckwing . The female person become a beautiful emollient people of color topped with a layer of salmon feathers .
Not only are these Gallic hens beautiful to lay eyes on but , with their temperament , winter hardiness and peck - friendly behaviors , Salmon Faverolles ( both singular and plural end in an ‘s ’ ) are the pure breed for the beginning poulet owner . They are available for purchase through many major hatcheries .
