Cochin (chicken)
| Cochin | |
|---|---|
|
|
| BDRG - Standard No. | |
| origin | China |
| year | |
| colour | Yellow, white, blue, black, cuckold, black and white checkered, partridge colored banded, silver and gold black lined |
| Weight | Tap 3.5 - 5.5 kg
Hen 3.0 - 4.5 kg |
| Laying performance | 120 eggs |
| Eggshell color | Brownish yellow |
| Egg weight | 53 grams |
| List of breeds of chicken | |
Cochin (in German Kotschin, from Kotschinchina , French Cochinchine , Vietnamese Nam Kỳ ) is an old breed of domestic chicken from China, which was brought to Europe in the first half of the 19th century and because of its fletching and body structure, both of which differ greatly from traditional European races, quickly met with enthusiasm. The British Queen Victoria was one of the first owners of Cochins in the western world and made a significant contribution to the popularity of this breed.
Cochins are still a very popular breed in hobby chicken farming as they become very tame. They are among the heaviest and largest of today's chicken breeds.
origin
It was originally bred in Cochinchina (what is now southern Vietnam), but is now common around the world. This breed has been crossed in particular in breeds that were bred for meat performance. The Cochins are assigned to the dual-purpose breeds , as they not only have a high fattening ability, but their laying performance can also be considerable.
features
The Cochin is one of the largest and heaviest breeds of chicken. Roosters often weigh up to 5.5 kilograms. Not only are they unusually tall, but they are also unusually broad, which gives them an overall compact appearance. This impression is reinforced by the very dense plumage.
The yellow legs are not visible because the fletching reaches down to the claws. The chest is deep and well rounded. The neck is short and densely feathered. The head is small in relation to the body. They grow relatively slowly: it usually takes a year and a half for a Cochin chicken to develop fully.
Because of their calm temperament and weight, Cochins do not fly. A two-inch fence is usually enough to keep them in their run.
breed
The BDRG named the Cochin breed of the year 2002.
Cochins can be seen at poultry exhibitions and are also a magnet for spectators there. They are not only kept by private breeders because of their dense fletching that reaches down to the claws (technically called belatierung). However, there are only very few breeders in Germany who deal intensively with Cochin. Despite their size, they do not need a lot of exercise because they do not move very intensively, but when they are large they are also constantly looking for food. Cochin are absolutely weather-resistant. They also enjoy the reputation of being particularly tame and trusting towards their owner. The race of the dwarf Cochin has completely different roots than the Cochin.
Breed care is offered in Germany by the special association of Cochin, Brahma and dwarf Brahma breeders.
history
In September 1842, Queen Victoria and her Prince Consort Albert received five hens and two roosters from the British navigator and polar explorer Edward Belcher , who was returning from Asia.Their tame, compact physique, size and rich fletching are strikingly similar to traditional British breeds distinguished from dorking . Belcher's indications of the origin of his souvenir from Asia are contradictory. He called the small flock of chickens both Vietnamese Shanghai poultry and Cochin China poultry , but the chickens may actually have come from Malaysia.
Queen Victoria had a large aviary built for the chickens, appointed a keeper for them and started a very successful breeding program. As early as the following spring, the Belgian King Leopold received fertilized eggs from this " very rare and very interesting " breed of chicken, which is now known as the Cochin. In her description of the Cochin chicken breed, Esther Verhoef points out that the animals imported at the time did not quite correspond to the appearance of today. Today's breed characteristics were developed through the efforts of European and North American breeders.
The royal interest in this breed of chicken quickly caught the press. As early as 1844, the Berkshire Chronicle recommended the breed for crossbreeding with British land breeds, and a little later Queen Victoria had hens and roosters of her breed shown at agricultural exhibitions. In doing so, she possibly started an enthusiasm for exotic breeds of chickens, which was called " The Fancy " between 1845 and 1855 in both Great Britain and North America and, because of the exorbitant prices paid for exotic breed chickens, with the Dutch tulip mania in the second half of the 16th century. For example, in the United States, a Cochin rooster and hen was priced at $ 700, 10,000 percent more than chickens at the time.
Trivia
The American style icon Martha Stewart is one of the best-known holders of Cochins . Susan Orlean believes that the illustration of Martha Stewart with her Cochins and Araucanas in Stewart's first book Entertaining in 1982 marked the beginning of the new trend in backyard chicken farming. Photos of her chickens also appeared in Stewart's other publications and helped make chicken farming popular again.
literature
- Andrew Lawler: Why did the Chicken cross the World - the epic saga of the bird that powers civilization . Duckworth Overlook, London 2015, eISBN 978-0-7156-5026-4.
- Esther Verhoef, Aad Rijs: The Complete Encyclopedia of Chickens . REBO Publishers, Lisse 2006, ISBN 90-366-1592-5
Web links
- Website of the special association of Cochin, Brahma and dwarf Brahma breeders
- Breed boards chickens. (PDF file) In: bdrg.de/rassetafeln. Bund Deutscher Rassegeflügelzüchter , p. 23 , accessed on July 31, 2014 (6 MB).
- Susan Orlean: The It-Bird: The Return of the back-yard chicken , The New Yorker, September 28, 2009
Single receipts
- ^ A b c Esther Verhoef, Aad Rijs: The Complete Encyclopedia of Chickens . P. 217.
- ^ Esther Verhoef, Aad Rijs: The Complete Encyclopedia of Chickens . P. 218.
- ^ Andrew Lawler: Why did the Chicken cross the World . Chapter: Giants upon the Scene , ebook position 1871.
- ^ Andrew Lawler: Why did the Chicken cross the World . Chapter: Giants upon the Scene , ebook position 1878.
- ^ Esther Verhoef, Aad Rijs: The Complete Encyclopedia of Chickens . P. 216.
- ^ Andrew Lawler: Why did the Chicken cross the World . Chapter: Giants upon the Scene , ebook position 2047.
- ^ Andrew Lawler: Why did the Chicken cross the World . Chapter: Giants upon the Scene , ebook position 2067.
- ↑ a b c Susan Orlean: The It-Bird: The Return of the back-yard chicken , The New Yorker, September 28, 2009, accessed July 25, 2015