Tiense Vechter

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Tiense Vechter
Conservation statuscritically endangered [1] :56
Other names
  • French: Combattant de Tirlemont
  • Dutch: Brabantse Vechter
Country of originBelgium
Use cock-fighting
Traits
Weight
  • Male:
    full-sized: 5 kg [1] :56
    bantam: 600–700 g [1] :57
  • Female:
    full-sized: 4 kg [1] :56
    bantam: 700–800 g [1] :57
Skin colourwhite
Egg colourcream-coloured
Comb typetriple
Classification
EE yes [2]

The Tiense Vechter, French : Combattant de Tirlemont, is a critically-endangered Belgian breed of gamecock. It dates from the late nineteenth century, and was bred specifically for cock-fighting. It named for its area of origin, that around the city of Tienen in Flemish Brabant, in eastern central Belgium. It is one of three Belgian breeds of fighting-cock, the others being the Brugse Vechter and the Luikse Vechter.

Contents

History

The Tiense Vechter derives from the oldest of the three Belgian fighting-cock breeds, the Brugse Vechter, which originated in western Flanders in the early years of the nineteenth century and was formerly common throughout Belgium. [1] :47 [3] In the later part of that century, in the area of Liège, in Wallonia in eastern central Belgium, efforts were made to improve the fighting capabilities of the Brugse Vechter by cross-breeding with fighting birds of Oriental origin, which gave rise to the Luikse Vechter. The Tiense Vechter was created in much the same way, in the provinces of Brabant, Liège and Limburg, and mainly in the area of Tienen in Flemish Brabant. It was reared particularly in the villages of Cumptich  [ nl ], Glabbeek, Hakendover  [ nl ], Oplinter and Vissenaken. [1] :47

The Tiense Vechter is critically endangered. It is the most threatened of the three Belgian gamecock breeds. [1] :47 In 2010 there were 33 birds, all in Flanders. [1] :56

A bantam Tiense Vechter was bred in the second part of the twentieth century. The plumage colours are superior to those of the full-sized breed. [1] :48 Like the full-sized bird, it is critically endangered. [1] :57

Characteristics

The Tiense Vechter is a large and powerful bird. Like the Luikse Vechter and unlike the Brugse Vechter, it has a steeply inclined back-line. Unlike both the other fighting breeds, it has no dark pigmentation of the face, skin and legs, which are all pale. The comb is triple, [1] :47 and the wattles are rudimentary or completely absent. [4] In addition to the seventeen plumage colours recognised for the Brugse Vechter, there are four others, including cuckoo, which is the pattern most commonly seen. [1] :48 [2]

Use

The Tiense Vechter was bred for its fighting ability. Cock-fighting is against the law in Belgium, and practitioners of the sport usually travel to northern France. [5] Some strains are reared only for exhibition at poultry shows.

Related Research Articles

Flemish Brabant Province of Belgium

Flemish Brabant is a province of Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders on the Belgian provinces of Antwerp, Limburg, Liège, Walloon Brabant, Hainaut and East Flanders. Flemish Brabant also surrounds the Brussels-Capital Region. Its capital is Leuven. It has an area of 2,118 km2 (818 sq mi) which is divided into two administrative districts containing 65 municipalities. As of January 2019, Flemish Brabant has a population of 1,146,175.

Provinces of Belgium

The country of Belgium is divided into three regions. Two of these regions, the Flemish Region or Flanders, and Walloon Region, or Wallonia, are each subdivided into five provinces. The third region, the Brussels Capital Region, is not divided into provinces, as it was originally only a small part of a province itself.

Tienen Municipality in Flemish Community, Belgium

Tienen is a city and municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant, in Flanders, Belgium. The municipality comprises Tienen itself and the towns of Bost, Goetsenhoven, Hakendover, Kumtich, Oorbeek, Oplinter, Sint-Margriete-Houtem and Vissenaken.

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Brugse Vechter Belgian breed of fighting chicken

The Brugse Vechter, French: Combattant de Bruges, is an endangered Belgian breed of gamecock. It dates from the early nineteenth century, and was bred specifically for cock-fighting. It named for its area of origin, that of the city of Bruges (Brugge), in West Flanders in the north-east of Belgium. It is one of three Belgian breeds of fighting-cock, the others being the Luikse Vechter and the Tiense Vechter. It is a hardy breed, but the birds are often aggressive; those reared for exhibition may show less aggression.

The Luikse Vechter, French: Combattant de Liège, is an endangered Belgian breed of gamecock. It dates from the late nineteenth century, and was bred specifically for cock-fighting. It named for its area of origin, that of the city of Liège in Wallonia, in eastern central Belgium. It is one of three Belgian breeds of fighting-cock, the others being the Brugse Vechter and the Tiense Vechter.

The Yakido is a Japanese breed of fighting chicken. It belongs to the Shamo group of breeds. It was bred in Kansai region in southern Honshu in the mid-nineteenth century. It was made a Natural Monument of Japan in 1950.

Flemish Horse Belgian breed of draught horse

The Flemish Horse, Dutch: Vlaams Paard, French: Cheval Flamand, is a Belgian breed of draught horse. It became extinct in the nineteenth century when it was merged with the Brabant to create the Belgian Draught. From about 1993 it was recreated from some stock kept by Amish people in the United States. A breed association, Het Vlaams Paard, was formed in 1999. In 2005 the breed was officially approved by the Flemish government, and the breed association authorised to manage the stud-book.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 N. Moula, M. Jacquet, A. Verelst, N. Antoine-Moussiaux, F. Farnir, P. Leroy (2012). Les races de poules belges (in French). Annales de Médecine Vétérinaire156: 37-65. Accessed January 2017.
  2. 1 2 Liste des races et variétés homologuée dans les pays EE (28.04.2013). Entente Européenne d’Aviculture et de Cuniculture. Archived 16 June 2013.
  3. Breed data sheet: Tiense vechter/Belgium. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed January 2017.
  4. Tiense Vechter (in Dutch). Vereniging ter Promotie van Belgische Neerhofdieren. Accessed January 2017.
  5. Breed data sheet: Brugse vechter/Belgium. Domestic Animal Diversity Information System of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Accessed January 2017.

Further reading