Faverolles Chicken: All you must know

Are you thinking about keeping a Faverolles chicken? That’s great! But there are some things to remember when caring for this French fluffy breed. Let’s find out all there is to know about the Faverolles bird.

We’ll start by addressing the most important topics:

• Faverolles lay up to 200 eggs per year
• Large cross-breed of multiple chicken breeds
• They are a beginner-friendly breed and very friendly and docile
• Only chicken breed in the world with a Salmon color
• Originated in the French village Faverolles in the 1860s

Characteristics

Faverolles chickens have a distinctive and fancy look, with their large body, fluffy beard, and muffs.

These bearded beauties are large and heavy birds suited for meat and egg production, but more giant chickens are available on the market.

Faverolles have five toes on each foot, like Silkies. They’re fluffy and heavily feathered with plumage on shanks and toes. 

Faverolles come in various colors, such as black, white, ermine, cuckoo, mahogany, blue, and splash. But, the most popular color, by far, is Salmon. Salmon Faverolles are the most popular color in this breed, with the females having a lovely brown and cream color and the males darker with a (light) brown and black color.

The Salmon color is exclusively (officially) found on the Faverolles chicken and, therefore, is unique for this breed.

The breed is quite large and heavy, being a dual-purpose breed bred for meat and eggs. According to the British Standard, roosters weigh approximately 11 pounds (5 kg), and hens are tipping the scale at 9 pounds (4.1 kg).

But the Standard of the United States refers to a smaller bird, at only 8 lb (4 kg) for roosters and 6 lb (3 kg) for hens.

There’s also a Bantam miniature version available of the Faverolles weighing 1.9 lb (0.9 kg) for a male and 1.5 lb (0.7 kg) for a female.

Faverolles Breed

The fluffy breed originates in Faverolles, a village in North-Central France in the 1860s. Therefore, the name ‘Faverolles’ is always written with an ‘s’, even in the singular form, but it’s a silent ‘s’, so you don’t need to pronounce it.

By cross-breeding multiple chicken breeds; Houdan, Brahma, Malines, French Rennes, and Dorking, the Faverolles was developed.

The breed was introduced into the US in the first years of the previous century and soon gained popularity.

In 1914 the Salmon Faverolles was recognized by the American Poultry Association, followed by White in 1981. These are the only colors officially recognized by the APA today.

Faverolles were initially bred as dual-purpose birds, but nowadays, there are far better options for meat and egg birds. Currently, the breed is mainly kept for its show qualities and to participate in exhibitions.

Egg production

Faverolles are decent egg layers, laying three to four large eggs weekly. That’s up to 200 eggs per year! They start laying at the age of 20-22 weeks and continue to lay during the winter because of their cold hardiness.

Faverolles hens are not extremely broody birds, but they occasionally go broody. They are good mothers and keep in mind that egg production will temporarily stop during broodiness.

Pink Chicken Eggs

There are plenty of articles to be found online telling you a Faverolles lays pink or purple eggs. But we have to be honest; most Faverolles hens lay brown eggs, so don’t be disappointed if you find a ‘boring’ normal-looking egg in the nesting box.

However, some eggs of Faverolles look pinkish or purple, resulting from reddish pigments in the bloom, the protective cover on the egg’s surface.

Faverolles are genetically predisposed to produce pink blooms that make the egg look pink.

When a reddish bloom covers a light brown egg, it creates a pinkish shine. The base off-white shell color mixes with the reddish bloom and turns the egg pastel pink.

Personality

Faverolles make great pet chickens. They’re sweet, friendly, and kind and are a great asset to your backyard chicken flock, especially when having small children running around.

The breed is not aggressive or assertive; even the roosters are known to be quiet and calm.

However, this gentle nature also makes them an easy target for bullying as they are seldom on top of the pecking order.

It’s best not to keep Faverolles with assertive breeds such as Rhode Island Reds or Wyandottes. Look for calmer birds, like Orpingtons, and Silkies, or keep a flock of only Faverolles.

Faverolles are great foragers but are also happy in confinement. Just make sure they have enough space inside the run and coop. They can be kept in any climate because they’re cold and heat-hardy. But remember that any bird needs extra attention in extreme weather circumstances.

Summary

Faverolles are bearded beauties known for their stunning looks. They’re quite large birds and, therefore, a dual-purpose breed, but they’re mainly kept for their show qualities. Faverolles are incredibly kind and friendly chickens, which makes them a favorite pet chicken.

It’s best not to mix them with assertive breeds, as Faverolles may be bullied. They lay up to 200 eggs per year, some of them with a pinkish color resulting from reddish pigments in the bloom, but most eggs are brown.

There are hundreds of chicken breeds in the world! If you want to get to know them all, rare or common, heritage or hybrid, go to our ‘All Chicken Breeds & Types Worldwide: List of 500+ Breeds‘.

If you want to learn more about chicken breeds that lay colored eggs, check out our article ‘10 Popular Chickens With Colored Eggs‘. Or go to our listicle breed summary on ‘The Classroom‘, or, if you’re unsure where to start, take a look at our ‘Chicken Breeds: Ultimate Beginners Guide‘.

If you’re interested in the best and most beginner-friendly brown-colored chickens, take a look at ‘Top 15 Brown Chicken Breeds: All Beginner-Friendly‘.

Faverolles are astonishing chickens, so they made our ‘10 Fancy Chickens That Go Viral On Social Media‘ list.

Related Questions

Credits Featured Image: @fabulous_faverolles (IG)