Old English Games

Lemon Blue OEG pullet
Photo courtesy of Beth Adams

Roosters were used for cockfighting from ancient times. The Old English Game (OEG) is probably the first breed of chicken developed in Britain. It was originally a fighting breed, but today--since cockfighting has been outlawed in many countries--it is maintained by fanciers.

OEGs are very hardy and excellent foragers. The hens go broody often and make very good mothers.

There are many varieties in this breed, some examples being the Black Breasted Red, Spangled, Black, Dun Breasted Blue Dun and Brassy Back. Normally a single-combed breed, males were originally dubbed for fighting. This means that the comb and wattles were removed. It made the bird less vulnerable to damage and gave it a more fearsome look. It is still necessary to dub the birds to show them in the US and Britain.

Mature cocks need to be isolated from each other or they will fight to the death, so modern fanciers often maintain the old method of tying the birds out. A ring is put around the rooster's leg and a short leash is attached. There is an illustration of this below.

Additional information on OEGs can be found in the article by Shahbazin.

And here's Dick Demasky's SPPA article on The Old English Game as We Know It.

And another SPPA article by Doyle Lovingood on the Perfection Grey Old English.

There is a separate page for Old English Game bantams.

From the UK we have the Old English Game Colour Guide by Dr. J. Batty. Totally filled with pictures of OEGs, both large and bantam, there's no logic to the order of things that I can see, but if you want pictures of many colors of OEG, this is the book for you. It is available from Beech Publishing.

From Australia we have A Study of "Old" English Game by David Holden, nd (but I received it in 2010), 70 pp., $60AUD, available from David Holden, 25 Miles Rd, West Creek VIC, 3992, Australia; Phone: 0356749390; cheekylilchic@gmail.com. The book contains information on conformation, judging, colors, husbandry and exhibition of OEGs.

Here's the new book Oriental Gamefowl by Horst W. Schmudde, 2005, 208 pp., AuthorHouse, ISBN: 1420876813. If you want to learn about the history, breeding and maintenance of many breeds of gamefowl, including longtails and long-crowers, this book is for you. Read more about it in the SPPA review.

Another new book is The Game Fowl Colour Guide by Owen Dickey, [2006], 141 pp., privately published. Available from the author at: Owen Dickey, PO Box 1016, Ballymena, BT42 9AH, Northern Ireland. 30.00L plus postage: UK: 2.50L, Europe & Irish Republic -- Unfortunately the author's address no longer works. I don't know how to get it: 4.00L; Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA: 6.00L. Very nice book if you want to see the range of colors that Game Fowl can be found in. There are 86 full color original images, mostly photos but a few paintings. Most of the birds shown are Irish Game, but there are also some American Game and some Oxford OEGs. There is also a section at the end on Asils.

And I've also discovered A Bibliography of Gamecocks & Cock-fighting, by John Norris & John Palmer, 1995, 34pp., pamphlet, Arnold Books, ISBN: 0-9583250-0-6. The emphasis in this collection is on historical titles.