Day Old Blue Cochin Baby Chicks
Hatching March to September.
Cochins are well-known as extra friendly chickens, who possess outstanding mothering capabilities.
Production: Blue Cochins are beautiful, and they are sweet, but they are not great layers. They are kept far more often as pets than as production birds.
Cochins were never a commercial success, but because of their large size, they were historically raised as meat birds.
Temperament: Blue Cochins, like other color varieties of the same breed, are gentle, easy-going chickens. Even Cochin roosters have been known to "mother" chicks! Cochins are good with small children and are not aggressive with other breeds.
History: Cochins originated in China, and for a short time were sometimes called Shanghai Fowl. They are super fluffy, with lots of feathers, which exaggerates their already large size. When they were first imported to the US in the 1840s, they caused an immediate sensation.
Blue Cochins were not among the first Cochins to be included in the American Poultry Association's Standard of Perfection in 1874. It took a bit longer for breeders to perfect the variety and they were accepted by the APA in 1965.
Colors: Blue Cochins are grayish-blue. As with all blue poultry, they do not breed true. When you breed a blue hen with a blue rooster, 50% of the chicks will be blue, 25% will be black, and the remaining 25% will be splash - a light color with splashes of blue and/or black over the body.
Livestock Conservancy Watch.
Body Type: Cochins are frequently described as "fluff balls." They are large chickens, with rounded bodies that are covered by an abundance of fluffy feathers. Their legs and feet are fully feathered.
Due to all the feathering, Cochins do quite well in cold weather, as long as their feet are kept dry. They are susceptible to frostbite on their toes and feet if their pens are muddy when it is cold.
Weights: Cockerel 9 lbs, Pullet 7 lbs
APA Class: Asiatic
