Asil

The Asil is the oldest documented breed of fowl in the world. There are Hindu text which date to 1500 BC which describe a breed of fighting fowl which perfectly match the Asil we have today. Thus, they have been bred to fight for over 3500 years.

The Asil is very slow to mature. Most stags will not crow until 9 or even 10 months of age. Asil cocks should not be used in the breeding pen until at least 2 years of age and the cockers of India did not breed from a cock until he was 4 or 5 years of age. Thus, longevity was bred into the breed. It is not uncommon to have a cock bird still fertile at 15 years of age and reports have been given that cocks 20 years of age are still useful in the breeding pen. Consequently, it is necessary to produce more than one new generation of birds but every 4 or 5 years. If you find a cock and hen that produce what you desire simply use them together for years.

The best breeding pen is one in which the hen fights the cock. The cock must ‘win’ the right to breed the hen. Once the initial ‘fight’ takes place the hen will submit to the cock and not challenge him again (as long as they are together that is). If the hen should dominate the cock then he should be removed from the pen and culled (provided you have not tried to breed from him at too young of an age).

Asils are highly intelligent. In a brooder of mixed chicks, they are able to recognize other Asils to fight with. The result will be the possibility of many dead chicks in the brooder. You have to hatch alot to get a few. If brooding naturally then it is not unlikely to see chicks that are two weeks of age attacking their own mother. When brooding naturally the Asil hen will keep guard over her chicks much longer than Bankiva fowl. This fowl is definitely worth its weight in gold when it comes to being broody. It is not uncommon to see a hen still taking care of chicks that are several months old. If you are desiring lots of chicks then the only alternative is to use an artifical brooder; otherwise, you will not be able to hatch many chicks from a single hen in a years time.

Asils have two very distintive traits. The first is their crow. It is not the full 5 syllabels of the normal cock. It is abruptly ended. The second is that you can ‘rub’ the cock near his vent area and he will immediately begin to preen himself.

There are those who would not prefer the Asil because they seem to be ‘slow’ hitters to some. Actually, they are calculated hitters, not slow.

Varieties:

There are many varieties of Asil, some are standardized for shows such as the Reza Asil in the UK, some are simply named after the area where they are bred such as the Mianwali Asil from Pakistan or the colour, red/wheaten Asil are generally known as “Sonatol”.

There are also hen-feathered Asil knows as “Madaroo” these are found in various colours, but the cocks come with feathers in hen colour, don’t have sickle feathers in the tails and miss the large hanging feathers on the saddle. This variety is very rare.

Asil with feather beards under their beaks known as “muffed” and with tufts on the top of their heads known as “tasseled” are also seen, but are very rare especially outside India/Pakistan.

Bhaingam Asil variety have a large single comb but confirm to all the other Asil standards.

Broadly speaking, Asil in Europe are categorized and shown under these three types: MADRAS ASIL

Madras asils are from the southern state of Tamil Nadu and is called locally Kattu Seval or the fighting bird. These birds are big and strong. Madras Asil is the first fighting chicken in history. They seem to have been taken by the Tamil people to various parts of south Asia including Thailand and China. Madras Asils comes in two varieties, one medium height but heavier and the other’s very big and muscular. They can get up to 32″ tall and the main colours are black,red,grey,blue and green.

The best part about this breed is long tail (Kattu Seval), Tail could reach up to 60 cm and this type of breed are classified as Vaal Seval. Reza Asil

Height: Up to 50 cms tall. Weight: Maximum weight for the hens is 1.8 kg, max weight for the cocks is 2.7 kg.

This type is standardized by the Asian Hardfeather Society in the UK and is seen at shows throughout the UK, but is quite rare.

This group of Asil reached worldwide popularity due to books and articles written by gamefowl experts such as Herbert Atkinson, Siran and Paul Deraniyagala from Sri Lanka and Carlos Finsterbusch from Chile. The Reza Asil family according the old (Western) gamefowl literature is subdivided into following strains: (Amir) Ghan (Dark-Red), Sonatol(Light-Red), (Siyah) Rampur(Black), Kalkatiya (Kaptan)(Speckled-Reds) and Jawa(Duckwing). All these strains are identified by their specific color, these colors do not necessarily correspond with the area where the birds come from.

In colonial times other colors such as whites, spangles, golden etc. were regarded as inferior. At present day the “classic” strains and names given mentioned by Atkinson are more or less forgotten. The native people in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka only know the Reza-type Asil by their local names. Kulang Asil

Height: Up to 75 cms tall. Weight: 5 to 7 kg.

The large Asil are divided into sub-varieties : North Indian, South Indian and Madras type. The North and South Indian varieties don’t differ much. Only type of comb, shape of the beak and body shape are different. For example : Northern type = slender, Southern type = heavier build. The Madras Asil however is significantly different. They have a lower station, are heavier build and stronger boned. These birds often come in a bluish colour. This variety is found in the deep south of India, the Tamil Nadu state. Sindhi Asil

It is one of the tallest and biggest breed of Asils. Main colours are red and blue. They are mostly fought in the Sindh area of Pakistan. These aseels have good endurance. Mianwali

This breed is mainly found in Mianwali district of Pakistan. However since its arrival, this breed has risen to popularity in Pakistan, currently the primary game breed used in the pits also preferred by gamblers. It is smaller compared to Sindhi aseels weighing between 1.5 to 3.5 kg depending on the preference of breeders. It is much faster and a better head hitter usually comes in small to medium height. A good Mianwali aseel should kill its opponent within a few minutes. They have been known to kill bigger roosters because of their speed and accuracy. They come in various colors such as Java(duckwing), Lakha (reddish), black and various others depending on the combination used in breeding. Very hard and a brave fighter with attitude to inspire, excellent in naked heels and metal spurs. There are many sub breeds of this breed owing to the combination used in breeding. A good tested Mianwali rooster would usually have offspring of a similar quality. Typical description would be small curved beak, strong joints, pearl/white/yellow eye color, short crow, small comb and do not have heavy body structure. May look smaller than other breeds but is excellent spurer.

Jawa Aseel

Java aseel is one of the most used and best fighter cock in Pakistan/India. It is mainly found in Punjab region, its origin was from Mianwali district, Jawa Aseel is recognized by his black and white colour. Amroha

This is a rare breed of Aseel used in Pakistan and India. Very few of these roosters exist in their pure form. They are known to be small to medium like Mianwali. It is also known that they are champion of naked heel fighting. In simple, it is a fantasy of most aseel breeders in Pakistan.

Bantam Asil Weight: Up to 0.75 kg.

Bantam Asil have been created at the end of the 19th century by an English breeder named William Flamank Entwisle. The breed got very popular after its creation but after a couple of decades interest in this variety slowly died out. Until the beginning of the 1980s nothing was heard about these little Asil. A Belgian breeder named Willy Coppens created them again using Shamo chicken, Indian gameand Reza Asil. The breed was also introduced again in the Netherlands and United Kingdom. At present day Bantam Asil are quite popular and they are bred in various colors.

Lasani Aseel Breed

Pakistani Aseel breeders have developed different varieties of aseel breeds. But one of the rarest breed is what they call Lassani Aseel breed. They are medium size birds with powerful strikes to earn them the title of neck breakers. This breed has a typical parrot like beak and small neck size. Unlike mianwali they have a particular fight style. They don’t like jumping over the opponent rather they like to come closer to the opponent touching him with their front body and than attacking on the neck. So in a typical mianwali versus Lassani fight you will see mianwali birds dominating initially but as soon as they are tired of jumping around and land on the ground somewhat tired lasani breed cock will finish the game with a couple of hits in the neck. Amroha and lassani are closely related however lassani breeds have smaller necks and often closed eyes only few families of Nawab have got this breed in its pure form. And the notion that they are bengam type aseels is mistaken