The Forwerk Chicken is a rare dual-purpose breed bred in Germany. The breed was named after breeder Oskar Vorwerk. He set out to develop an attractive, easy-to-raise breed of chicken that would be a good laying hen and produce large meat.
Oskar Vorwerk began building medium-sized utility hens with Belted Lakenvelder plumage in the early 1990s.
The main difference in appearance between the two breeds will be the deep golden base color of the Vorwerk chick rather than the white color of the Lakenwelder. Sometimes forwerks, especially in North America, are incorrectly called Golden Lake Falls. But the Golden Lakenvelder is a separate plumage type and breed from the Forwerks.
Different breeds of chickens were used to create the Vorwerk chicken. Including; Andalusian chicken, Buff Sussex, Buff Orpington and Lakenwelder. The breed is now rare and nearly extinct after World War II.
There is a light variety of forwerk chickens. But the standard version was never accepted into the American Poultry Association’s Standard of Excellence.
Characteristics of Chicken Forwerk
The Forwerk Chicken is a powerful and compact bird. He has a broad back, a deep and rounded chest. The head of forwerk chickens is broad and the muzzle is well feathered. They have a medium-sized, bright red comb.
They have small white earlobes and medium length antennae. Their feet are blue with four toes. Their plumage is soft and shiny. Their head, neck, and tail are completely black, while the rest is fawn. They have orange-red eyes and dark gray skin.
Standard Vorwerk roosters weigh around 2.5-3.0 kg and hens around 2.0-2.5 kg. There are two dwarf varieties of this breed of chickens. And American standards for Vorwerk bantam chicken are different from European standards.
In particular, vorverk roosters in Europe weigh 910 grams, and chickens – 680 grams. But in the United States the breed is smaller – 765 grams for roosters and 650 grams for hens. Photo from Wikipedia.
Behaviour/Temperament
The Forwerk Chicken is sturdy, alert and active. It is a dual-purpose breed that is suitable for both meat and egg production. They are fickle and require adequate fencing to contain them. They have excellent foraging abilities and are a good choice for a free range system. But they also do well in captivity.
Chickens grow quickly and mature quickly. Forwerk chickens are considered cold hardy breeds that continue to bear all winter. The hens lay medium-sized light brown eggs. Roosters are tolerant of each other, and more than one rooster can be kept in a flock.
The Forwerk Chicken is a friendly and relatively calm breed of chicken. And they are easy to handle and the chickens are very easy to tame. See the complete Forwerk Chicken Breed Profile below.
| Breed name | Vorwerk |
| another name | Vorverkhun |
| Purpose of the breed | dual purpose |
| Broad temperament | User friendly, quiet, shutter tolerant, easy to handle, volatile |
| Breed size | big |
| sullen instinct | Rarely |
| comb | A |
| climatic tolerance | All climatic conditions |
| egg color | light brown |
| Egg size | medium |
| Egg performance | medium |
| feathered feet | Not |
| scarcity | Ordinary parts |
| Varieties | The breed is found in a single color, which has black stripes on a yellow body. |
| Native country | Germany |
