Cochin
Cochin chicken was originally bred in China and later exported to Britain and America in the mid 19th century. As a very distinctive breed of chicken, it apparently created a bit of a craze among poultry lovers in the English-speaking world, effectively launching poultry fancy as we know it today.
Cochin ancestors first originated in the United States after the Chinese chicken, which was tight-feathered and had moderate to no feathers on their legs, was brought to the eastern coast around 1845. They soon became a hit, and Shanghai lovers took the fluffiest and most feather legged chickens to breed them for those traits exactly. Their result was very nice, with the fully feather-legged and fluffy chicken we now call the Cochin. This began what was known as the “hen craze,” which stretched from the mid-1800s to the early 1900s, when people around the world bred chickens purely for their looks, rather than to create a better egg layer and such. The Cochin today is a very fluffy feathered bird with fully feathered legs and feet. Their very fluffy cushion and short, fluffy tail give them a unique look, with their short, curved-looking back as a result. The cochin is a hardy, friendly, and docile chicken. Cochins also will adapt very easily to confined spaces or open range. Cochin hens are fairly broody and good mothers, and are known to be good surrogate incubating birds in even falcon breeding. However, they are slow to mature. This breed was admitted into the APA in 1874.
Cochin ancestors first originated in the United States after the Chinese chicken, which was tight-feathered and had moderate to no feathers on their legs, was brought to the eastern coast around 1845. They soon became a hit, and Shanghai lovers took the fluffiest and most feather legged chickens to breed them for those traits exactly. Their result was very nice, with the fully feather-legged and fluffy chicken we now call the Cochin. This began what was known as the “hen craze,” which stretched from the mid-1800s to the early 1900s, when people around the world bred chickens purely for their looks, rather than to create a better egg layer and such. The Cochin today is a very fluffy feathered bird with fully feathered legs and feet. Their very fluffy cushion and short, fluffy tail give them a unique look, with their short, curved-looking back as a result. The cochin is a hardy, friendly, and docile chicken. Cochins also will adapt very easily to confined spaces or open range. Cochin hens are fairly broody and good mothers, and are known to be good surrogate incubating birds in even falcon breeding. However, they are slow to mature. This breed was admitted into the APA in 1874.