Curly or Frizzle...What is the difference between the two

[Kimsfarm]

I always thought they were one in the same.....today I read that they are two different chickens.......can anyone help me on this. Also read not to breed a frizzle with another frizzle. What breed of chicken is best to breed a frizzle to?

 

[WestKnollAmy]

I am not sure what a curly is but I usually tell folks not to breed a curly feathered bird to another curly feathered bird. If so you are likely to hatch chicks that have very few feathers and those few they do have will be very brittle. It isn't a fun life for an outside animal.

I have Frizzles that are bantam Cochins, some others on BYC are breeding the LF Cochins and they have made Frizzles with them. Some breeders have bred curly feathered Seramas making them Frizzled. And then you can cross a Frizzle to a Silkie and get Sizzles.

Do a search and enjoy the photos. They are beautiful and terrifically soft to the touch.

 

[ruthless]

Quote:
Frizzle is not a breed it is a type of feathering. You can have frizzled Cochins, frizzled Serama, etc.

A curly usually results from two frizzled parents. They often have very brittle feathers and sometimes very slow to feather or have naked spots.

 

[nzpouter]

depending where you are in the world, frizzle can be a breed..... but in general, frizzle is a feather condition caused by autosomal dominant gene F that causes a bird feather to curl backwards.....

Your "normal" looking frizzle is a bird carrying one dose of the gene F/f, while your curlies are birds that carries 2 doses of the gene F/F (homozygous).

when you mate 2 frizzle together, F/f x F/f, the offsprings will be 25% F/F (curlies), 50% F/f (classic frizzle look), 25% f/f (normal feathered birds).

an F/F bird have more brittle feather than normal birds, by early summer some will only have their feather shaft left (porcupine condition).... much like a freshly liberated battery hens.... There are pics of them in the frizzle thread.

 

[Kimsfarm]

Thank you all so much for the information! Very helpful!