History of Berg Blue Muffs

          Dave Berg was associated with John Hoy in eastern New York state and used some of the Hoy Muffs and Whitehackles, etc. On the way home from a hackfight one night, a young fellow who was with Berg asked if he could have a Muff cock that had fought that night and won. "I didn't like the way he acted toward a down cock" said Berg. "What do you want him for?" "I want to breed him to a Shelton Knobcomb Blue hen that I bought from Burnell Shelton" said the young fellow. "Well he'll be good enough for that" said Berg. He told him he could have the cock. I told you back in those days short heel cockers had little use for most southern fowl. The following fall the young fellow came to Berg, told him he had 19 stags that were killing one another and asked if he could use some of his empty coops until he got some made. Berg told him yes, but to hurry up and get his coops made as he had no time for that kind of fowl.

          He brought over the stags, all big husky blues with muffs. Not long after that John Hoy came to see Berg, saw the muffs and asked what they were. Berg told him. He idly kicked open a door and let two of them go together. They went at it hammer and tongs, and quickly picked them up saying "They look good to me, don't fool them away and we'll use them later on." That was the beginning of the famous Berg Blue Muffs. They were almost invincible in short heels. Later on some of Dr. Hollock's (of Saranac Lake N.Y.) Whitehackle blood was added and they were as good as ever. Phil Marsh said those Blue Muffs carried their wallop better than any fowl he had ever seen. They were much in demand by short heel cockers for the next several years. Incidentally, on numerous occasions, an inbred straight comb family crossed on fowl with Roundheads which carried some Oriental blood, of course have produced some really wonderful fowl. It was so in the case of the Shelton Knobcomb and Hoy Muff blood. This Writer never saw and Berg Blue muffs. Lets say for practical purposes that they were gone by about 1928 or so.