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Chantecler

The White Chantecler was created in the early 1900s by a monk from Quebec. It was recognized by the APA in 1921. The Partridge, originally called the Albertan, was created by Dr. Wilkinson a short time afterwards and admitted to the APA in 1935.

General Information

Breed Purpose
Dual Purpose
Comb
Cushion
Broodiness
Average
Climate Tolerance
Cold
Egg Productivity
Medium
Egg Size
Medium
Egg Color
Light Brown
Breed Temperament
Friendly and Docile
Breed Colors/Varieties
White, Buff, and Partridge
Breed Size
Large Fowl and Bantam
APA/ABA Class
American/AOCCL
Buy URL
http://www.chantecler.club/ (Look for Breeders Directory)
The Chantecler is a dual purpose Canadian breed that is hardy, productive, and well suited to harsh winters. They are decent winter layers of large brown eggs, yet fairly broody and good mothers. Their meat qualities are also good, as they dress out at about five pounds most times. They are notable for having a very small cushion comb and almost no wattles, making them very resistant to frostbite. Their temperament is generally calm and quiet, though young birds can be flighty. They are often very good foragers. The name Chantecler was created from the combination of the French ‘chanter,’ “to sing,” and ‘clair,’ “bright”.

The White variety was created by Brother Wilfrid, a Trappist monk, at the Oka Agricultural Institute in the Province of Quebec. It was first presented to the public in 1918 after 10 years of effort and refinement, but it was not admitted to the Standard until 1921. Four crosses were used in the production of this variety: a Dark Cornish male over a White Leghorn female and a Rhode Island Red male over a White Wyandotte female. The next season, the pullets from the first class were mated with a cockerel from the second class. Select pullets from their offspring were bred to a White Plymouth Rock male and the subsequent breedings produced the fowl as it is today. Commercial breeds replaced the Chantecler over time, and by 1979 the Chantecler was no longer found in the university or commercial hatcheries and was in danger of extinction. A number of small flocks persisted, however. It has regained popularity in the last ten years or so, and can again be found available in a number of commercial hatcheries.

The Partridge variety originated in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Four breeds were used in the production of this variety: Partridge Wyandotte, Partridge Cochin, Dark Cornish, and Rose Comb Brown Leghorn. Some claim Dr. Wilkinson also used Orloffs to create this new bird. It was originally named the Albertan, but upon presentation to the APA in 1935 for recognition they deemed it so close in character to the existing White Chantecler that they classified it as another variety.

The Buff variety is a commonly bred and quite spectacular bird that unfortunately has not been recognized as of yet. There are many dedicated people working on it, however, so I expect we will see it in some future edition of the Standard of Perfection. Edit 3-12-18: the Buff Chantecler has now been recognized by the ABA. There are not enough qualifying breeders to mount a bid for APA acceptance, though, so if you are a member of the APA and breed LF Buff Chanteclers, please consider helping out!

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Chantecler eggs

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Partridge Chantecler chicks

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Partridge Chantecler juvenile

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White Chantecler pullet


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Buff Chantecler bantam rooster with hens

For more information on this breed and their owners' and breeders' experiences with them, see our breed discussion here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chicken-breed-focus-chantecler.1076088/

Latest reviews

I have owned over thirty breeds and varieties over the years, but Chanteclers (Buff and Partridge) are easily the best of all of them. They are very cold hardy and have small combs and wattles, so I don't have to deal with winter trimming every year. They have nice large frames that make processing old hens and extra cockerels worthwhile, and those same large frames give extra room for egg production. They're docile, yet range wary and certainly not dumb. If you live up north, please give these birds a shot.
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Pros: Good layers, Have Great temperments, Roosters are super frendily, Can handle the worst bilzzard no problem!
Cons: Roosters can get a little agressive with each other, Can't think of anything else
Got some white ones, and I was love at first sight, Great brids, I have 2 that raised 3 white ones together!

They are good, I just got myself some of the buff, and I'm not dissipointed!

Just fantastic brids, double thumbs up! :thumbsup
Pros: friendly and calm, beautiful, cold hardy
Cons: none so far
I see a lot of people are saying that Chanteclers are flightily. That has not been my experience at all! They are the most friendly and curious of all my breeds. When I'm in the run there is usually at least one tapping at my leg wanting treats or picked up. Yes they like to be picked up and just being near you. They are also good foragers and are brave. Very smart. They do have a bit of an attitude like they just know they are special. They make unique noises, not loud just chatting. They are not bullies but will stand up for themselves. My rooster is very much the gentleman and sweet natured he has never shown any aggression at all, a bit shy in fact. He doesn't crow much and when he does its a bit different than your average, less obnoxious. The

hens are quite a bit heavier than my other heritage breeds. They would be a very good dual purpose bird if thats what you are looking for. When I chose to get them my reasons were primarily that they would do well in a cold climate and I also have to say that they have done just as good or better on hot days compared to my others. If I could have only one breed they would be it. In the pic my roo is 4 1/2 months old.

Comments

I have two partridge hens as well, they are about a year old. They are odd little hens! I love them but they do act strangely - they will stay in the corner of the hen house brooding if you let them. Sometimes there's an egg under them and sometimes not. One of them used to hang around in the "favored" nestbox but now she takes the opposite corner from her sister. When they do go out with the rest of my flock, (I actually have to pick them up and toss them out of the coop!) they do act a little bossy. They chase each other around and the other five hens as well. Nothing serious but just a little bossy. I forgot, they have no tails! I have a Welsummer hen who picks the Chanticler's and my Araucana hen's feathers. If she wasn't such a good layer I'd be sending her to freezer camp! I have to say that the Chanticlers have the softest feathers of any of my hens. I will definitely use them to brood when I decide who's eggs I want to hatch.
 
I was in the same position as you, wanting to create a good free ranging breed....then I accidentally discovered the Basque Thread on BYC...if you go there...you will understand what I mean............................Mike
 
I have two pairs of buff chanteclers...they are the best birds ive ever had. however my hens haven't started laying yet and are now 21 weeks old. I want to preserve this rare and awesome winter hardy bird. I hope my girls start laying soon so we can start making everyone happy.
 
I am always surprised when Canadians go looking for "other breeds" which they hope can survive your frigid winters. The Chantie is such a wonderful bird that meets all of your rigid climate conditions. I guess they just hadn't heard about them. Would love to have some down here in western PA, USA, but it gets to hot for them in my valley here in the summer.
Best,
Karen
 
Hi Karen,
I guess everyone likes diversity ;)
I feel obligated to let you know that although Quebec (where these birds were originally bred) can get outrageously cold, it also gets quite hot in the summer. On average it gets hotter than in Pennsylvania. I live in the Fraser Valley in southern British Columbia (think Washington state area) and for the summers we are steadily in the high 80's/low 90's for minimally four (usually five) weeks. And the humidity!! Good heavens it get stifiling and oppressive! My point here is if you want them...get them!! They can take the heat! And you know that if you get hit with a particularly bad winter, those girls will make it through without a problem.
Cheers,
Trina
 
That is so true about the hens being pretentious! They make me laugh they are so haughty!! It just makes them more entertaining, especially in a mixed yard. A wee story about how they like to be with their own kind...a few months back my daughter came tearing into the house out of breath telling me in broken words that I needed to come out to the coop RIGHT NOW! On the way back to the coop she got it out that one of our golden girls (translation: buff Chantecler) was laying down in the yard and not moving. She was definitely not moving, and the other girls were giving her a wide berth too. The two remaining Chanteclers were oddly quiet for about a week after. It was almost like they were mourning the one who passed. They are back to normal now and I find it hilarious how all they have to do is pause in what they are doing and any bird that has entered their personal space jumps right back out of it. So funny!
 
I have limited experience with the Chantecler but I am familiar with Canadian weather. Greenmum is right on the money! My cousin used the breed as part of an experimental breeding and the results were outstanding. The off-spring were better than than the parent birds but I feel the major contributor was the Chantecler!
 
I love my Buff Chantecler! Definitely my favorite hen. She does go broody from time to time, but she is a great mother and it is fun to watch her with the chicks. She is a perfect mom until they are 4 weeks old...then she is done. haha. When not broody she lays regularly. I would love MORE like her!
 
Curious...what makes you say good winter layer? Unlighted I presume? I live in rainy, moderate Oregon, so I'm not worried about torrid summers (although we get some "heat waves" in August)...but I really want to find some good natural winter layers that will still produce without artificial lighting. I've been thinking about Chanteclers for that purpose. Your thoughts?
 
Thank you for the information, I actually started maybe wanting some but this review stopped me in my tracks. I am hoping to remember to read the reviews before I get a chicken.
 
You might not want to believe every word written on these reviews. BantamFan...is a bantam fan and might be just a little jaded against the size of the Chantecler. I'm not Canadian but I've spent some very miserably hot summers in Montreal over the years.

Not a big fan of this breed myself but I'm very familiar with them and they DO make good pets and in my opinion, they are fair to good layers, year 'round.
 
I have a Chantecler and she is my favorite hen! She is sweet and gentle. She does tend to go broody and is an excellent mom. I especially appreciate that she allows me to handle her and her chicks. She doesn't peck at me and go crazy like my other broodys do. She does lay well through winter, unless she is brooding.

I have plenty of chickens, but I would love to have more Chantecler hens! Highly recommend.
 
Update! My Buff Chantecler is now brooding her third set of chicks. She is JUST the best mama.
 
Well, I've got some Chantecler hatching eggs under a hen.... hope something hatches! I have been wanting Chantecler since I heard of them- maybe a year ago? I'm just looking for a breed to enjoy looking at and I also want to help preserve this rare Canadian breed.
 
Had the only true Chantecler. The white.
Pretty hardy. Didn't seem to mind the heat. Never got a single egg. Darn dogs(not mine).
Extremely cold winter -50*C, took what was left. My old coop is not heated or insulated.
That being said, we definitely were't expecting it to get that suffering cold.
The few we butchered were excellent tasting. Very low fat, nicely fleshed, easy to clean. One of the best pots of soup I ever tasted. Not bad at all fried. Nice roast. Mostly free range on grass and whatever too. A little corn, barley and wheat. Cheap to raise for such a good sized carcass at 4&1/2 months. I like my food birds to be a tad older. Better taste and healthier(for my consumption).
Too bad about them darn dogs tho. I sure would have liked the hens to give us some eggs and even a few clutches of little ones.
The Chantecler and the Albertan are to my knowledge the only 2 Canadian breeds of chicken. I would really have liked to be helpful in propagating the original Chantecler.
The birds I had weren't flighty at all. Actually kinda friendly. Probably because I spent so much around them.
Maybe at a later time I will get some more but right now my coops are full. I have 100 all together. Different breeds.
Well, 18 ducks & 9 turkeys. The rest are chickens. 3 colors of Brahma, RIR, PartridgeRock, BuffOrp and Grazers. Got my work cut out for me this summer......and fall.
In my opinion this is a pretty good all around bird.
Just do your homework because there are at least a hundred different breeds of chicken out there. They are all different in their application, even if just slighly.
 

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Category
Chicken Breeds
Added by
BantyChooks
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