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CO
TERSTEEG and
DIRK
DE JONG
40 years
in the Fancy
By: Elly Vogelaar. Photos: Elly Vogelaar
and Dirk de Jong.
40 years in the Fancy? I can hear you think… "This will probably be an
annoying story about two easy-going, know-all old men." Well, do read on. Easy-going? Both men are still full of the joys of life. Old? Age is only
a number. And know-alls? Yes, I dare say; as it concerns our hobby, these two are truly all-knowing ~ in a good way!
Co Tersteeg and Dirk De Jong These two neighbours live on a picturesque square in IJsselstein , and have a
long history together. They are primarily known for breeding French chicken breeds, such as Crêve Coeurs, La Flêche, Houdans, Bresse, Faverolles, Noord-
Franse Vechters and Limousines en Marans. The latter should have been mentioned first, because it was Marans that originally got these two into the hobby. However, in the course of this story you will encounter many other
animals.
Co Tersteeg is, by occupation a house painter; but from his fortieth birthday he and his wife had their own pet shop, and he was also animal carer at the Welland College in Houten. Animals have always surrounded him, even when the young
family still lived in a flat, where there was really no room for such things - even a built-in wardrobe was converted into a sea aquarium! Hence, he rented a piece
of land where he kept among other creatures, goats and Welsummer chickens; real fun for his kids. Dirk De Jong was an electrician in his working life, and also had a piece land
where he kept all kinds of cattle. The two have known each-other since their 12th or 13th birthdays; together with other friends they went to the polders
around IJsselstein observing the wildlife, that included peewits, ducks, crows,
magpies, etc.; later, of course, they also looked for pretty girls. In 1976 Dirk received his first LF Marans, descendants of a trio of black
coppernecks entered by a Belgian fancier at the Ornithophilia Show. They were disqualified because of foot feathering! The breed was recognized in the Netherlands, but was no longer mentioned in the Dutch Poultry Standard at that
time, hence the many wrong assessments made at the exhibitions. The Belgian had left them in the Netherlands at
a friend of Dirk's, in exchange for a couple of pigeons. Soon, the neighbour, Co Tersteeg, was
interested in these chickens too, especially as they were so
extraordinary, much quieter than his Welsummers, and he found it was more fun for his children.
These two neighbours were soon determined to continue with this
particular breed. They became members of the National Poultry
Union and first showed their Marans in 1977. And they were fanatic! As the Dutch judges did not really
know the breed, and the assessments were not very positive,
they thought that much nicer Marans could be found in France. However, their breeding base was
also very restricted; it was a matter of finding French breeders of
Marans.
Especially on their searching trips, these two have really
experienced the craziest adventures. When I took a cup of coffee at Danja’s - a
daughter of Co, who lives next to his current piece of land, in
Cabauw, the stories start pouring out; my pen can hardly keep pace! Danja also
tells me, in the meantime, that thanks to her father's close
friendship with neighbour Dirk, she had a great youth because she could always have all the
pets she wanted, either from her Dad or Dirk, and all her friends were insanely jealous.
But how do you find Marans? At the beginning, they asked everyone who they heard speaking French, whether they might have Maranschickens? That did not
work out. Eventually they found a railway officer from Bodegraven who knew someone on the Belgian / French border, who bred cuckoo-coloured Marans.
Thus, they received their first new blood-line. These chickens laid browner eggs than their own Marans. They sent them to the Europa Show in 1981 at SAVOA in Amsterdam and Co won Europe Champion Marans with a hen; Dirk came 2nd
with a rooster. From Mr. Otten, the secretary of SAVOA, they
received a few addresses of French breeders. After some correspondence, Co went on a pleasant day-out to Charles
Mattern in Hœnheim (near Strasbourg) with 20 of his Maranshatching eggs, in exchange for French eggs. However, this turned-out to be a big disappointment; for the French Marans
turned out to be of much lower quality than the Dutch! The French breeders, however, were delighted with the Marans from Co and
Dirk and asked for more hatching eggs. Their friendship with Charles Mattern had 'clicked' immediately. Together with him, they went to French exhibitions and began to enter their chickens
in those Shows. Soon they became famous figures in France and were often ‘officially’ welcomed to the French Shows. As a direct
result of both gentlemen, Marans flourished in France once again, and Co even received a distinction from the French Minister for Agriculture. For the record, they still have contact with Charles
Mattern!
Dirk and Co with
the Grand Prix
d’Honneur won in
Hœnheim, France,
1994.
How do you find chicken
breeders in another country? Here is a good tip from Co. Go
to a local pet store and ask: "Does anyone buy big bags of chicken food here?" - because whoever buys a lot of
chicken food, must have a lot of chickens. Yes, how simple can it be! For
example, this is exactly how he came into contact with the Austrian gamefowl breeder Mariann.
Left: Gamefowl breeders from
Austria, (both holding a rooster) to-
gether with Willem van Ballekom,
visiting Dirk at the Children’s Farm.
They will bring them some North-
French Game soon.
Right: Co is the one who is always doing the
talking and acting, while Dirk is more a thinker, a
writer and photographer.
In 1983, Co Tersteeg founded the French Chicken and Bantam Breeds Club (shortly the F.H.C.), of whom Co is again Chairman today and Dirk has
been secretary since 1996. In those years, the only French breeds in the Netherlands were the
Houdans and Faverolles; there were no La Flêche or Crève Coeurs - these latter ones do not seem to thrive in our climate, and are preferably kept in
sheltered surroundings or in hen houses. Step by step they brought all kinds of French breeds from
France to the Netherlands; also the bantams of most breeds, but they didn’t have Marans
bantams. In the countries around us, including Luxembourg, Belgium and of course France, they were recognized, but they were not to be found
there.
However, internationally renowned Dutch judge Annie Banning-Vogelpoel had a contact in the United States who bred Marans bantams, a Mr.
Fugate, who could arrange to send hatching eggs of the Marans bantams to the Netherlands. He in turn would like to have hatching eggs of the LF Marans. The
correspondence is still there, in Co's museum*. That Mr Fugate has been here in Holland too. He appeared to work at the CIA and knew a pilot who was willing to transport the eggs. So one day, all of a sudden, they were sat around the kitchen
table talking chickens with a CIA man.
But the American Marans bantams were cuckoo-coloured and had clean legs, just like those in England. In 1988, Dirk started to breed with the breed of "true French" Marans, along with fellow breeder Jan Ewald, under the highly optimistic
name: "D.J.Trophy Hunters". However, in the Netherlands there was little hope of trophies, because the Marans bantam was not recognized here. In 1994, their
efforts were rewarded and the Marans bantam in the colour black copper neck was included in the Poultry Standard. At that time many of their chicks went to Germany, where they were also wanted these bantams recognized; something
which succeeded in 1999.
*Museum: In the cellar under his house, Co has set up a museum of all kinds of collections related to the small animal hobby.
Many of the objects are very old and
often unique too; not only books and prints of chickens, but also of pigeons
and rabbits. Co was once a meritorious King Pigeon Breeder and Breeder of the Belgian Hare for years.
Also, exchanges of letters he has
conducted over the years with people in many countries, even America and Mexico, have been carefully stored in
folders.
Below: The breedings pens in Co’s stable.
La Flèche
A breed with noble appearance. Long time known, there
are pictures of La Flèche dating 500 years ago. Always
walking fierce and proud, the plumage smooth and tight.
On the head we find a comb consisting of two little
horns that together with the open nostrils give a very
special appearance. The most common colour is black.
Of this aristocratic breed there is also a bantam version
that is in no way subject to the large fowl. A breed for
the lover of beauty.
Crève-coeur
A very old breed, originating in Normandy, with a
striking head, adorned with a beard and a crest and not
to forget a horn comb with two somewhat V-shaped
horns. This breed is abundantly feathered, but has no
feathered legs and just the ‘normal’ 4 toes. They come
in black, white and blue variety. The Crève-coeur is a
rare breed.
Houdan
The Houdan is also a very old breed, with many
attributes: a full beard with two muffs, a crest, an
unusual butterfly-shaped comb and five toes. They exist
in the black mottle colour. The bantams of this breed
are perfect copies of the large ones. A popular breed by
all these details and therefore (especially in the bantam
size) not very rare.
Faverolles
We know this breed in
two different forms;
The French and German type. The Faverolles bantam is
of the German type. The Faverolles reflect the peace of
the good life in France. Characteristics are a upright
single comb, a beard, foot feather and five toes. They
are recognized in several colour varieties, of which the
beautiful salmon colour, with a totally different colour
pattern in rooster and hen, is best known. For the lover
of a calm breed, the Faverolles is absolutely to be
recommended; this also applies to the bantams.
Here you can read more on the Faverolles bantams:
http://www.aviculture-
europe.nl/nummers/05N02A05.pdf
Marans
Marans are also called "La Poule aux oeufs d'or" in
France, which means "the chicken with the golden
eggs". This breed lays beautiful big dark red-brown
eggs. They are recognized in various colour varieties.
Black copperneck is the most famous, but cuckoo,
white, black, silver cuckoo silver and gold-cuckoo are
also very attractive colours. Marans bantam hens are
also very good layers, summer and winter. Although
their eggs are not yet as brown as those of their larger
sisters, the fanciers are working on it. In addition to the special eggs, vitality, fertility and
rapid growth are positive qualities of this beautiful breed.
Here you can read more on the Marans and their breeding:
http://www.aviculture-europe.nl/nummers/13N06A03.pdf
Here you can read more on the Marans bantams and their breeding:
http://www.aviculture-europe.nl/nummers/06n06a05.pdf
Here you can read more on the genetics of the egg colour of the Marans:
http://www.aviculture-europe.nl/nummers/14N05A14.pdf
Bresse-Gauloise
This breed is the symbol of France; his image adorns
almost every church tower. The appearance is of a
common chicken; they are therefore mainly bred for
their excellent table quality. The real gourmet does not
just eat chicken, but 'Poule de Bresse'. There are
members of the special club specializing in the breeding
of Bresse-Gauloise for the utility qualities; vitality and
good laying qualities are also reason enough to breed
the Bresse-Gauloise.
Here you can read more on the Bresse-Gauloise:
http://www.aviculture-
europe.nl/nummers/07N02A04.pdf
The following three French breeds are not yet
recognised in the Netherlands:
The North-French Game (Combattant du Nord)
This is the latest addition to the French chicken breeds
in the Netherlands. It is a normally feathered gamefowl
breed with yellow skin and yellow (or olive green) legs.
They are recognized in various colour varieties, but in
the assessment the colour of the feathering is
dependent on the body type and the fiery appearance.
They also exist in three sizes: Le Grand Combattant du
Nord (the large one, weight rooster 4 to 5 kg; hen 2.5
to 4 kg); Le Petit Combattant du Nord (the small one,
rooster 1.25 to 1.50 kg; hen 1 to 1.25); and Le
Combattant du Nord Nain (the bantam, weight rooster
750 g, hen 625 g). The Large variety is now in the
Netherlands, but the gene-pool of this breed is still very limited.
Left: A limousine rooster.
Here you can read on the Limousine: http://www.aviculture-
europe.nl/nummers/17N01A05.pdf
Right:
Gournay bantams.
Here you can read on
the Gournay and
Gournay bantam:
http://www.aviculture-
europe.nl/nummers/10N01A03.pdf
In addition to the chickens, each men still has
several other animals on his 2000m2 piece of land. For example, Co has a few Toulouse geese, white
Call ducks, Guinea Fowl, King pigeons, mini pigs, an Eurasian Eagle-owl and a Great Grey owl. The last one is tame and comes sit on his arm. And there is
always room for something special; I
even saw a Kosovo Longcrower. Co has a large stable with separate breeding
pens for each breed on each side, and the attic is used as a meeting location for the members of the French Chicken
Club. Links: Co with his Great Grey owl.
Below: Wheather it concerns waterfowl,
chickens, pigeons or rabbits, they have
knowledge of the breeding and bring
good ones to the show.
Above: King pigeons.
Right: Soultzer Haube.
Many years ago Co was one of the
founders of the Dutch King Club. He
still breeds them, together with his daughter Danja, also the Soultzer Haube –
in particular because the latter is a French breed. Back then he also bred top
quality Belgian Hares.
Lately, Dirk works as a manager of the Children’s Farm in Montfoort and has
pigeons, turkeys, pearls, ducks and geese, rabbits, Ouessant sheep, and many of these animals are breeds of French origin! In addition, there are also a pot-
bellied pig and three ponies. This 'occupation' presents a lot more obligations, as he has to be present every day during opening hours for the public. At Co’s, that's just a little easier, also because his daughter lives close to his land
and is always willing to keep an eye on the animals when Co is going abroad for a few days.
Fortunately Dirk has some help from his grand-daughter Phoebe, who comes almost every day, often with a friend. The two girls are always happy to lend a hand with feeding or cleaning; although they are, of course, especially interested
in the ponies.
What has 40 years in the hobby brought them? What are the most beautiful memories? Almost simultaneously, both mention the international contacts. And
that still has not stopped; for example, they still exchange hatching eggs. They are always honest with everyone, and always help everyone; that
reinforces every friendship. Have there been black days in those 40
years? The answer is again unanimous. They are great friends, but there was indeed a short period
when they disagreed seriously about the Marans; as Co wanted to
select for exhibition quality, while Dirk wanted to select more for utility and egg colour, thus hoping
to find more fanciers interested in the breed. However, any difference
of opinions was sorted-out long ago.
The Standard has also been modified -
according with the standard in the parent country, France - so it's all the more
feasible. Nevertheless, they have not yet bred a Marans that had been awarded 97 points; and that is
something Co still hopes to achieve one day.
Left: A Cayuga drake.
Onder: Indian Runners.
and a Rouen drake.
Is the hobby still something of these
Times? Yes, they think it is ! For them it was important at the time they joined the local club together (and with a few
more new members). Being a 'newbie' together is more fun, and makes you
stand a bit stronger before the established order. They see the future as
positive. Everything is a little easier
nowadays, including the contacts with judges and the Standard Committee. Although, they do put in a lot of effort in
as well; for example with the French Chicken Club; as when requested, they
take various breeds to the Show where judges have to do their exams. (These rare breeds are not often entered and
without the birds, the judges would not be able to do their exams.) The annual
Club Day is also open for interested judges, who will reap its benefits later
when judging. Also the new plans for recognition are a positive step; colour varieties already recognized in other European countries in a breed can now be
recognized in the Netherlands without first presenting them to the Standard Committee. Very nice, because Dirk also has some cuckoo and wheaten Marans
in his runs that lay beautiful brown eggs. Now he will be able to show them and, more importantly, arouse interest at other breeders.
Left: A Toulouse gander and a Canada
goose.
And the bird flu? It casts its shadow over the coming exhibition season like a dark
cloud. “Then let's see if the Show season can be shifted to late spring or late summer; finally, in France and England
they show throughout the year. Who knows, in consultation with the
government, permission can be obtained to show strictly at local club shows, so that there is virtually no wide-felt
movement of the chickens.
Yes”, they decide unani-mously, “that's also a beautiful
thought, as all in all, the local clubs are the basis of the hobby.”
Right: Cauchois pigeons at the
roof of the dovecote.
Left: White Fantails. These
pigeons are easily satisfied with
even such a small dovecote.
Here ends my report of a day when I saw and learned so
much. Hopefully I have given you a realistic picture of Co and
Dirk, two dyed-in-the-wool breeders who, hopefully, can share their knowledge with us all
for a long time to come.
Copyright ©2017
All rights reserved by the Aviculture-Europe Foundation.
This is a publication by the online magazine www.aviculture-europe.nl
English edition ISSN: 2352-2445
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