Dutch Crested Bantam

The Dutch Crested Bantam is a graceful and lively dwerghoen, distinguished by its prominent crest and clean-legged appearance. It is a robust breed of medium length, with fairly broad shoulders, and tapering slightly towards the tail. The overall impression should be long and well-filled.

• Weight: Roosters typically weigh between 1.76-1.98 lbs (800-900g), while hens weigh 1.54-1.76 lbs (700-800g).
• Head: Fine and quite small, with a vivid red face. The skull has a well-developed knob where the crest is set.
• Comb: The comb is absent or only rudimentary, sometimes with some reddish, thin comb flesh at the base of the beak above the nostrils.
• Crest: Large, full, and densely feathered, beautifully formed, and not obstructing vision. The crest feathers are regularly set and equally long on both sides, making the crest symmetrical.
• Nostrils: Large, slightly gaping, and raised nostrils.
• Wattles: Rather short and thin, well-rounded, and fine in texture, vivid red.
• Earlobes: Medium-sized, oval-round, smooth, and pure white.
• Eyes: Large, lively, orange-red to reddish-brown.
• Legs: Shanks are medium-long, sturdy, smooth-scaled, and clean (unfeathered). The color varies depending on the plumage color, usually slate-blue or light horn-colored.

Dutch Crested Bantams are good layers, producing a decent number of eggs for their size. They are particularly noted for their year-round laying ability, even in winter.

• Egg Production: Hens can lay approximately 140 eggs per year.
• Egg Size & Color: They lay small to medium-sized white eggs, typically weighing around 1.6 oz (45g).
• Broodiness: Dutch Crested hens are generally not easily broody. This trait ensures more consistent egg production throughout the laying season, making them a good choice for those primarily interested in egg yield.

Beyond secondary sexual characteristics, there are no significant differences between Dutch Crested Bantam roosters and hens in terms of body shape. Both sexes share the breed's elegant, upright posture and prominent crest.

The rooster's crest feathers are longer and flow more freely. His tail is richly developed with strong, long, and broad sickles. The comb is absent.

The hen's crest is typically more rounded and dense, forming a full, ball-shaped appearance, set firmly on the head. Her comb is also absent.

The Dutch Crested Bantam is a hardy breed, capable of adapting to various climates. Their robust nature and rich feathering provide good protection against different weather conditions.

They do not have excessively high demands for housing. However, their large crest requires some attention, it should be kept clean and dry to prevent matting, especially in wet or muddy conditions. A dry, clean coop with good ventilation is important. Their lively nature means they appreciate space to forage, though they are generally calm enough for more confined environments.

The Dutch Crested Bantam is recognized in several striking color varieties, with the White Crested Black being particularly popular. The breed is recognized in eleven color varieties, categorized into those with a white crest and those with a colored crest.

Varieties with White Crests:

• White Crested Black: Glossy black body plumage with a contrasting large, pure white crest.
• White Crested Blue: Even blue body plumage with a contrasting large, pure white crest.
• White Crested Cuckoo: Barred body plumage with a contrasting large, pure white crest.
• White Crested Splash: Splash-patterned body plumage with a contrasting large, pure white crest.

Varieties with Colored Crests:

For these varieties, the crest color is the same as the body plumage.

• Black: Solid, glossy black plumage.
• White: Pure white plumage.
• Blue Laced (Blauw gezoomd): Blue plumage with dark lacing.
• Buff: Even, warm golden-yellow plumage.
• Red: Even, vivid red plumage.
• Striped (Gestreept): A barred dark grey ground color with light grey-white barring.
• Lavender (Parelgrijs): A uniform pearl gray plumage with very fine transverse pigment accumulations.

The Dutch Crested Bantam is a bantam version of the Dutch Crested fowl (Hollandse Kuifhoen), an ancient breed with a long history in the Netherlands. Its ancestors are believed to have come from the Baltic Sea region, possibly giving rise to the English name 'Poland' for some crested breeds.

Paintings from the 17th century by Dutch artists like H. and C. Saftleven depict white-crested chickens, and J. Bronckhorst's 1657 work shows black-crested white chickens, indicating the breed's historical presence. While the White Crested Black variant faced extinction in the 19th century, it was successfully re-bred in the early 20th century. The Dutch Crested and Bearded Crested Bantam Club was founded in 1980 to promote and preserve these unique breeds, with the bantam version being first exhibited in 1917.

The prominent crest of the Dutch Crested Bantam is a key genetic trait, resulting from a skull knob. The presence of frizzled feathering is an autosomal, incompletely dominant genetic factor. Mating two frizzled birds produces double-frizzled offspring with severely compromised feather structure, negatively impacting their welfare. Therefore, the recommended breeding strategy is to pair smooth-feathered birds with frizzled birds to ensure heterozygous frizzled offspring with good feather quality, avoiding the detrimental effects of double frizzling.