Partridge Chantecler
Partridge Chantecler
Named from the French words ‘chanter,’ meaning “to sing,” and ‘clair,’ meaning “bright,” the Chantecler is considered the first Canadian poultry breed with its inception in 1908. Decades later, Dr. J. E. Wilkinson of Edmonton, Alberta developed a Chantecler with a color pattern more suited to camouflaging in free-range conditions. The Partridge Chantecler was admitted to American Poultry Association’s Standard of Perfection in 1935. The Livestock Conservancy lists the Chantecler heritage breed at the priority of “Watch.” There is an estimated global population of less than 10,000.
Hatching eggs can be shipped nation-wide. Your ordered hatching eggs are collected on Saturday and/or Sunday, ship out on Monday and arrive at most U.S. addresses by Thursday. Live poultry – baby chicks and started pullets – are only offered to Wyoming poultry keepers due to the rural mail service. Baby chicks are available by pre-order, and hatch from March to May with in-state delivery or on-farm pickup available.
Characteristics: Gentle, personable. Excellent forager. Their laced brown plumage makes them less conspicuous to predators.
Eggs: Large, Brown. Average 220 eggs annually.
Meat: A dual-purpose heavy breed for both eggs and meat, the males average over 8 lbs. mature weight and females over 6 lbs.
Cold Tolerance: Excel in northern winters and maintain egg production in cold climates. Thick plumage, combined with small wattles and a tiny cushion comb, makes this breed cold-weather hardy.
This product can only be shipped within Wyoming, except for hatching eggs.
Shipping Schedule:
Hatching Eggs: Ships every Monday from February to August.
Baby Chicks: Ships every Wednesday from March to May.
Started Pullets & Roosters: Ships every Wednesday from May to October.
SKU:
Category: Live Poultry
View full detailsAdditional Information
History of the Chantecler, from Chantecler Fanciers International.
The Chantecler breed was developed in the early 1900s by Rev. Brother M. Wilfrid of the Okra Agricultural Institute in La Trappe, Quebec. He sought to create, “a breed of poultry able to resist our severe winters would be appreciated by all Canadian poultrymen. My ideal, therefore, was to originate a bird really Canadian and eminently practical. Having its individual characteristics and particular qualities, without any fantastic or whimsical features. Knowing by experience how roosters’ combs are damaged by our heavy frosts, I wished to obtain a new type with comb and wattles reduced to the minimum. Preferring utility birds, I wanted my new breed to have an abundance of succulent flesh, and to be, at the same time, a good layer, especially a good winter layer.”
Breeds that went into development of the original White Chantecler include the Dark Cornish, White Leghorn, Rhode Island Red, White Wyandotte, and White Plymouth Rock. The White Chantecler was admitted into the American Poultry Association Standard of Perfection in 1921.
Dr. J. E. Wilkinson of Alberta developed the Partridge variety decades later by crossing the Partridge Wyandotte, Partridge Cochin, Dark Cornish, and the Rose Comb Brown Leghorn. Partridge Chanteclers were admitted into the Standard in 1935.
Quebec Heritage News
May/June 2006
Origin of the Canadian “Chantecler” Fowl
by Rev. Brother M. Wilfrid at the 1928 World’s Poultry Congress, La Trappe, P.Q., Canada
Chantecler Poultry
by Michel Boulianne – Canada
Origins of the Partridge Chantecler
by Percival J. Timms (1935)