Most fighting-line breeds get a bad rap for being flighty, aggressive, and hard to handle. Not the Bruges! While you do have to be careful integrating them into your flock due to their large size (and, therefore, tenancy to rule the roost), Bruges roosters are gentle with their hens and great flock protectors. While active, they are not flighty - likely due to their 10-12 pound weight and the difficulty getting off the ground! With people, they are surprisingly docile - confident and curious, they are easily trained to be handled. Sadly, a recent census concluded that there are less than 200 Bruges worldwide - making them critically endangered, even in their homeland of Belgium.

 

Visually, they stand out among the rest - a large, stocky bird, many sporting a dark face that gives them a tough look. Their feathers have a gorgeous metallic gloss to them in blues and purples. The hens lay large cream-to-tan eggs. The oldest cockerel in the group we have acquired (photos below) is a gorgeous Black Red with purple highlights! We have two additional young cockerels (both black red), along with several black hens, a partridge hen, and multiple black, black red, and silver birchen pullets for our grow-outs. Once they reach adulthood, we will evaluate for color and quality and pair them accordingly.

 

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