, country = Belgium , distribution = , standard = , use = cock-fighting , apa = , aba = , ee = yes , pcgb = , maleweight = full-sized: 5 kg
bantam: 600–700 g , femaleweight = full-sized: 4 kg
bantam: 700–800 g , skincolour = white , eggcolour = cream-coloured , comb = triple , note = , type =

Chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster or cock is a term for an adult m ...

, latin = Gallus gallus domesticus The Tiense Vechter, french: Combattant de Tirlemont, italic=no, is a criticallyendangered 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 Flemish Brabant ( nl, Vlaams-Brabant ; french: Brabant flamand ) is a province of Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders on (clockwise from the North) the Belgian provinces of Antwerp, Limburg, Liège, Walloon Brabant, Haina ...

, in eastern central Belgium. It is one of three Belgian breeds of fighting-cock, the others being the Brugse Vechter and the

Luikse Vechter The Luikse Vechter, french: Combattant de Liège, italic=no, is an endangered list of Belgian chicken breeds, Belgian breed of gamecock. It dates from the late nineteenth century, and was selective breeding, bred specifically for cock-fighting. It ...

History

The Tiense Vechter derives from the oldest of the three Belgian fighting-cock breeds, the Brugse Vechter, which originated in western

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

in the early years of the nineteenth century and was formerly common throughout Belgium. In the later part of that century, in the area of

Liège Liège ( , , ; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far from b ...

, in

Wallonia Wallonia (; french: Wallonie ), or ; nl, Wallonië ; wa, Waloneye or officially the Walloon Region (french: link=no, Région wallonne),; nl, link=no, Waals gewest; wa, link=no, Redjon walone is one of the three regions of Belgium—alo ...

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

. The Tiense Vechter was created in much the same way, in the provinces of

Brabant Brabant is a traditional geographical region (or regions) in the Low Countries of Europe. It may refer to: Place names in Europe * London-Brabant Massif, a geological structure stretching from England to northern Germany Belgium * Province of Bra ...

and Limburg, and mainly in the area of Tienen in

. It was reared particularly in the villages of ,

Glabbeek Glabbeek () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Flemish Brabant. The municipality comprises the towns of Attenrode, Bunsbeek, Glabbeek proper, Kapellen, Wever and Zuurbemde. On January 1, 2006, Glabbeek had a total population ...

, ,

Oplinter Tienen (; french: Tirlemont ) 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-Margr ...

and

Vissenaken Vissenaken is a village in Belgium. It is part ('' deelgemeente'') of the municipality Tienen. It is located north of the city of Tienen and is divided into two parishes: Sint-Maartens and Sint-Pieters. The saint Himelin is known only in Vissena ...

. The Tiense Vechter is critically endangered. It is the most threatened of the three Belgian gamecock breeds. In 2010 there were 33 birds, all in Flanders. 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. Like the full-sized bird, it is critically endangered.

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 A comb is a tool consisting of a shaft that holds a row of teeth for pulling through the hair to clean, untangle, or style it. Combs have been used since prehistoric times, having been discovered in very refined forms from settlements dating ba ...

is triple, and the

wattle Wattle or wattles may refer to: Plants *''Acacia sensu lato'', polyphyletic genus of plants commonly known as wattle, especially in Australia and South Africa **''Acacia'', large genus of shrubs and trees, native to Australasia **Black wattle, c ...

s are rudimentary or completely absent. 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.

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. Some strains are reared only for exhibition at

poultry show A poultry show is a specific subset of a livestock show that involves the exhibition and competition of exhibition poultry, which may include chickens, domestic ducks, domestic geese, domestic guineafowl and domestic turkey. Domestic pigeon ar ...

History

Characteristics

Use

References

Further reading