Flock Insider: Cochin Chickens
- Rachelle Shepherd
- May 16, 2023
- 10 min read
Updated: Jul 23, 2023
Cochins are available in all colors, shapes and sizes! From Frizzled to Sizzled, from Bantam to Standard, Cochins come in tons of varieties!
Cochins were all the craze throughout the entire American-European poultry world in the mid-1800s when they were given to Queen Victoria as a present, beginning what was known as "hen fever."
Cochins hail from the China region where they remained a well-kept secret until the 1860s when they traveled to England by aid of British soldiers returning home from war. There are theories and some text to theorize that they may have made it to the Americas perhaps even 100 years before, but this is yet to be proven. In any case, they were gifted to Queen Victoria and instantly fell in love and so, "hen fever" was born (and really hasn't ever ended). Poultry enthusiasts from Europe to America literally flocked for Cochins and their bantam version, then and still now called "Pekins" in most places outside of the U.S.. It's easy to see why everyone was so obsessed with Cochins - they are about as cute as a chicken could get!
Cochins History in America
From their feathered legs and feet to their overly friendly personality, Cochins have evolved to become one of the most desired of breeds - for those seeking pet chickens. While Cochins make reasonable layers, their first usage was thought to have been for their meat, but their taste made people quickly decide this was not their best usage.
You see, while standard Cochins can grow to be 12 pounds, they are more dark meat than breast, which is preferred. As they are only an okay layer and not the best meat producer, they are, in fact, still wildly popular by those who love to keep chickens for their company. Of course, the fact that they are adorable and act like little puppies made it possible for them to stick around in popularity and many have since kept them as pets ever since their debut. They grow slower than other breeds though, so they lay at a later age and their meat develops far later.
They were formerly accepted by the American Poultry Association in 1874 in buff coloring but quickly added "Partridge, White, Black, Silver Laced, Gold Laced, Blue, Brown and Barred (listed in order of their development)" (Cochin Chicken, The Livestock Conservancy). The Bantam version added Birchen, Brown Red, Red, Columbian, Buff Columbian, Lemon Blue, Mottled, and Splash (Breeds & Varieties, American Poultry Association).
Since it was discovered fairly early on that they were not good meat or egg birds, they were never picked up by the commercial chicken farms and so did not gain the popularity that those breeds do. " "Stephen Beale in his 1895 book, Profitable Poultry Keeping, wrote that, “…the Cochin then and now being the least profitable of all of our breeds of poultry… [1850-1895].” " (Cochin Chicken, The Livestock Conservancy).
After the initial craze was over and it was found that there was not a regular way to make the breed profitable, it still did not disappear for another primary reason: Cochins are extremely broody. In fact, they are one of the broodiest chickens out there and for this reason, they are often used as "nannies" for chicks of other breeds - including ducklings, goslings, peachicks and more. Even Cochin roosters have been known to become surrogate mothers for chicks that they adopt! This goes just as well for the bantam variety who is the choice for the smaller eggs or eggs with thinner shells so that they do not crack the eggs beneath the weight of the standard Cochins.
Bantam Cochins are said to have the same personality and primarily all of the same traits as the standard version, including their winning personality. Many people choose to keep them today in their backyards or gardens because their feathered feet makes it difficult for them to scratch at the ground as much as other breeds, so they do less damage to the vegetation and soil. Even when compared to most other breeds with feathered feet, Cochins actually have more feathers on their feet than others.
How Should a Cochin Look?
As I mentioned, they are one of the cutest breeds out there! Cochins are fluffy and are wider than many other breeds. Although standards are heavy, they are bottom heavy and relatively short so they cannot jump high or fly. Even standards can be kept in low fencing because of the short height at which they can jump. Because of this, you should make sure to provide adequate branches and perches for them to get on at night or else they will end up huddled on the floor. I did not realize this at first with our little rooster, Saddles. He was a frizzled bantam, which makes it all the more worse, and I caught him jumping and jumping with all of his might one night to get to a branch! The poor little guy was just literally too short and fat to get up with the rest of the crew. We quickly remedied this the next day, but I felt terrible that I had not thought of this before!
On the note of a frizzled Cochin, this is a really fun variety and what made me, personally, fall in love with this breed. They come in regular frizzled and extreme frizzled and they are just about the cutest things possible with feathers going in every direction! It is quite cute! Take a look at one of my little guys here, and I'll add a few more, because what the heck? They are adorable! Whenever I see a red or buff frizzled Cochin, I think of actual fried chicken! Is that terrible?
Okay, seriously, frizzles are awesome. They are also an accepted variety and one of the more popular versions of frizzles out there. They are commonly used to create frizzled varieties in other breeds because they are good mothers, setters and easy to find in frizzle version. But before you begin breeding them, it should be advised not to breed frizzle to frizzle.
I am no expert on this matter and do not
entirely understand it, but if you do breed one frizzle directly to another frizzle, the offspring have a high likelihood of developing heart defects and dying early. Additionally, many of them receive a duplicate gene and their feathers are messed up and make them really uncomfortable. Instead, it is advised to breed a frizzle to a non-frizzle which will yield part frizzled, part extreme frizzled and part non-frizzle but a carrier. This keeps the lines healthy and pure so that your birds do not die an early, unnecessary death. For more information, please do additional research because I do not know much about this.
Besides being chubby, short and sometimes frizzled, their feathers are very fluffy compared to other breeds. They are quite dense and do not stick close to the body like fair weather breeds. Because of this, they do well in cold climates and usually lay in the winter time. They do not do well in mud though because - you guessed it - their feet are very feathered!
Cochins have smaller, single combs that are red in color and match their red wattles and ear lobes. They do not stand very tall for their weight. Roosters weigh 11-12 pounds and hens weigh 8-9 pounds. Bantams weigh only 4-5 pounds and are tiny, fluffy balls of sass. Their beak is rather pointed and face has a slender appearance in comparison to other breeds. Hens waddles should be small while roosters become longer. Their beaks vary in color dependent upon the color variety of the bird.
They are four-toed and not five-toed like some other breeds from the same area with some similar features. They also do not have black skin but are yellow skinned. Their feet vary in color based upon color variety of the bird. Their feet feathering should continue all the way into past the second and to the third toe in from the outside. They also are supposed to be born with feathered feet, unlike many other feather-footed breeds.
More on That Winning Personality
Cochins make great pets, as has been overtly stated by myself. My kids love to carry them around and hang out with them and they are usually a favorite of one of the kids. Even my teen son really took to Honey, the chicken pictured in the first photo. In fact, his dad came in angry one night because he caught our son with Honey living in his dresser drawer, unbeknownst to us. Of course, we were all lectured about chickens and their diseases (remember folks, wash your hands after handling your birds!), which went on for far too long. But I thought it was actually quite comical - and cute!
Not long after, we experienced our first Cochin bantam rooster, and boy what a boy he was! My husband discovered what it was like to become attached to a chicken and quickly dubbed him "Saddles" because he walked "like he has saddle bags on!" Poor Saddles was a frizzled version and was just a tiny thing, so none of the hens took him seriously either. But he tried to be a rooster and crowed every chance he got!
While Saddles wasn't ever aggressive with any of us humans, I have read a few reports and heard some first hand experiences of bantam Cochin roosters being overly mean. This is not true for the standard version, who are like big babies and love to help raise the chicks too. Maybe it is because the bantams are short and are tired of being picked on, but what do I know?
In any accord, I wanted to make sure that I warned others that there is a possibility that they could be aggressive at some point. I've had a few people decline to take my Cochin roosters because they found out they were bantams and told me they had them go mean before, but that the standards are sweethearts. In almost all breeds, roosters have a chance of going mean, so it really is saying a great deal that there isn't much conflicting information on standard roos.
Caring for Your Cochin
As mentioned many times before, Cochins have extremely feathered feet! Due to this, you need to take care that they do not remain in mud or too much water for too long. They need to have a place to dry their feet off from the rain or water so that their feet do not become waterlogged from their feathers. On occasion, you need to bathe and soak their feet feathers if they do become too dirty so that their feet do not get sores or become irritated from the build up.
Cochins need more love than most other breeds - meaning that they actually seek attention. They will stick by you and tend to not wander away as other breeds. Due to this, they make great free rangers and foragers because they actually like to stay close to home. Many of them learn their names and come when they are called!
Additionally, they are good foragers because their feathered feet makes it so they do not mess up your garden or yard as much as most other breeds. They cannot scratch and pull at the soil or vegetation like non-feather footed breeds do and they have more feathers on their feet than other feather footed breeds. As such, they are sometimes kept in the garden as helpers in addition to being pets.
You also need to take care to feed them greens and healthy food and not allow them to overeat, because they do, and they will become fat which will shorten their lifespan. Their short legs and fat bodies make them susceptible to weight gain (we all know that struggle!), which is hard on their little hearts and bodies so you need to try to keep the snacks at a minimum with them. Instead, try to promote natural foraging which helps them exercise and naturally earn the treat, which is good for them in many ways.
Lots of Cochins end up as actually being house pets believe it or not, because they enjoy the company of people so much they would rather be in the house with you than out in the coop with - gasp - chickens! They tend to become attached to their people and seek their company instead.
Additionally, because of their short statute, they cannot jump well which is good and bad. Bad because they cannot get away from predators easily, if at all. They also cannot get up to the perches as other breeds, so you need to make sure you put branches down low for them to jump up on.
While they are sweet, Cochins are not the brightest bulb in the bunch and so, they are not the greatest at outsmarting predators. Couple that with their inability to fly or jump, and their natural sweet nature making them more trusting, Cochins are sitting chickens waiting to get pecked off. You need to make sure you take extra care of them so that they do not get slaughtered by a stray dog or a quick raccoon.
On the upside, they are far easier to contain than other breeds because they cannot jump or fly far. It is said that you can keep a standard Cochin in a two foot tall fence without it being able to escape. I have not tested this theory, but my bantams are in about that sized pen and they stand no chance of ever escaping.
Finally, while they are great at foraging and easy on the garden, they are also very easy to please. It's said that they will take up home anywhere without much of a complaint. They are winter hardy because of their fluff and often lay into the winter months. You can keep them in small confinement or in acres of grass and either way, they will be happy little chickies. Easy to please, quiet, peaceful and happy, these chicks are the gem of the flock!
Cochins in a Nutshell
To summarise, Cochins make amazing pets, mothers, egg setters, nannies and chick care givers. They have been known to take in chicks of all species and raise them to adulthood, including the roosters, which is very uncommon in chickens in general. Cochins came from China originally, but have been a big part of the poultry world for almost two centuries now. They first arrived as presents to the Queen of England who instantly fell in love with their beautiful, fluffy feathers and short, fat bodies. Plus, their winning personalities added to their charm along with those feathered feetsies! Unfortunately, Cochins do not make the best layers themselves, only bringing about 150-200 medium cream eggs a year to the table. They also are not great meat birds, so not many people wanted them for food either, despite their big size. Cochins tend to become overweight, so care should be taken to make sure they eat a healthy diet. Cochins love attention, are not flighty, recognize their handlers, and seek attention in most cases. They actually enjoy being held and pet, again, unlike most other breeds.
If you are new to the Cochin world - enjoy! You are going to love them!
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References:
American Poultry Association (October 11, 2021). Breeds and Varieties, American Poultry Association https://amerpoultryassn.com/accepted-breeds-varieties/
The Livestock Conservancy (March 22, 2023). Cochin Chicken, The Livestock Association https://livestockconservancy.org/heritage-breeds/heritage-breeds-list/cochin-chicken/
Murray McMurray Hatchery (1998). Cochin Bantams, Murray McMurray Hatchery https://www.mcmurrayhatchery.com/cochin_bantams.html
Purely Poultry (2023). Cochin Bantams, Purely Poultry https://www.purelypoultry.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=437
Chicken Heaven on Earth (October 3, 2017). Cochin Pekin Bantams, Chicken Heaven on Earth https://www.chickenheavenonearth.com/cochin-pekin-bantam-breed-facts.html#:~:text=Cochin%20Bantams%20also%20called%20Pekin,is%20considered%20a%20true%20bantam.
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