Gâtinais Chicken

     The Gâtinais is an old breed of Chickens, which originated in the forest of Orleans, south of Paris in France. It’s a dual-purpose bird, which is known with its tasteful meat.

    The Gâtinais is a relatively healthy bird, as it tolerates most climates. It has a single comb, red earlobes, whitish-yellow legs, and comes only in the white color-variety. The Gâtinais is also closely related to the Bourbonnaise‎ chicken breed, as it’s the ancestor of the later species.

     The Gâtinais is being raised according to some regulations in its country of origin. It has to be free-ranged, supplemented with cereal and fresh water and left to forage grassy shaded areas.

     Gâtinais hens are good layers of white eggs of weight 60 g or higher per each. They produce a respectable number (around 170 eggs per year) and go broody too. A bantam version is also available for the Gâtinais, and is quite popular.