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Ayam Cemani

The word "Cemani" means "total black" and best describes this unusual breed that is rumoured to be black as tar right down to it's organs!

General Information

Breed Purpose
Ornamental
Comb
Single
Broodiness
Poor
Climate Tolerance
Fair
Egg Productivity
± 70 eggs annually
Egg Size
Medium
Egg Color
Cream to tan
Breed Colors/Varieties
Black
Breed Size
Large fowl
Color
Black
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Mystical, unusual, rare and shrouded in mystery, the Ayam Cemani breed is hard to ignore, or forget, once seen in the flesh. The word "Cemani" means "total black" and best describes this unusual breed that is rumoured to be black as tar right down to it's organs! Pure Cemanis sport black combs, wattles, skins and feathers. A look inside their mouths should show a black tongue as well.

Originally from Indonesia, off the island of Java, the breed is shrouded in mystery. Little is known about the origin of the breed, except that they have been used for centuries by warriors and shamans as sacrifices, or to bring good luck and wealth to their owners. The breed was reintroduced to Europe by a Dutch breeder by the name of Jan Steverink and has since been introduced to the United States as well. Pure Cemanis are highly sought after and steadily gaining popularity with breeders in Europe, the UK and USA.

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Ayam Cemani egg

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Ayam Cemani chicks

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Ayam Cemani juvenile

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Ayam Cemani hens

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Ayam Cemani rooster

For more information on this breed and their owners' and breeders' experiences with them, see our breed discussion here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chicken-breed-focus-ayam-cemani.1072107/

Latest reviews

Pros: Beautiful
Rare
Cons: Loud
Egg production
Even with the cons, I still give my Ayam Cemani 5 stars. Roosters are gentlemen; smart, wary, prolific. Hens are drama queens, for sure! Egg song goes on and on...
Such pretty birds, definitely worth an investment. True Cemani are relatively uncommon in the States still. Do your research into your breeder!
Purchase Price
50+
Purchase Date
2017

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Pros: curious
funny
hen is friendly
Cons: rooster is not friendly at all
moody
I have 2 ayams, Phil (roo) and Lil (hen) they were sooo funny as chicks, I'd let them out during the summer when they were growing up while I cleaned the coop everyday, and they'd jump on my back and chill- then they stopped once they got bigger (like 7-9 weeks) and Phil turned skiddish, and so did Lily. For a good while they both never wanted pets, and Phil is/was on the bottom of the pecking order. Currently Phil still is at the bottom of the pecking order because he tries to fight all my hens, and he's still skiddish, as for Lily she's actually pretty friendly again, and she loves occasional pets, as for eggs they not super big.
Pros: Beautiful docile relatively sturdy and cold tolerant
Cons: Smaller eggs=smaller chicks and can get trampled easier if mixed with larger chicks in brooder
We have bred and sold them for a couple of years now and they are really wonderful birds. Obviously beautiful but also more docile and cold hearty than one might assume from their exotic.

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Comments

@Honora that's a good one! love it.

@notcat I just came from a breeder's place where I was picking up some chicks and she had one there. And some babies that had just hatched recently. I wanted so badly to bring one home! Poppy is beautiful!
 
I love my Ayams! If they are raised by constant people, held, fed, played with, etc, they are less flighty. Mine have no issues being held and are super sweet. I have not had one mean rooster yet!
 
I love my Ayam Hen and her halfblood brother. My little hen has a disability, but she is smart, lively, and opinionated.
 
My 1st hen is the most friendly of my flock! She sprints to the door of the run whenever we get close and insists on her offering of dried meal worms. Just got a rooster who's pretty stable and nice. Overall, pretty impressed with their temperament.
 
My 1st hen is the most friendly of my flock! She sprints to the door of the run whenever we get close and insists on her offering of dried meal worms. Just got a rooster who's pretty stable and nice. Overall, pretty impressed with their temperament.
Who was the breeder you bought them from?
 
I love my Ayams! If they are raised by constant people, held, fed, played with, etc, they are less flighty. Mine have no issues being held and are super sweet. I have not had one mean rooster yet!
What breeder did you get your Ayams from?
 
We have bred and sold them for a couple of years now and they are really wonderful birds. Obviously beautiful but also more docile and cold hearty than one might assume from their exotic.
 
We have bred and sold them for a couple of years now and they are really wonderful birds. Obviously beautiful but also more docile and cold hearty than one might assume from their exotic.
I'm looking into this breed to raise ... I'm intrigued with them! Other than for fun, do you raise them for their dark meat??
 
I have two of these. Sweet birds that share a coop with one of my olive eggers. One had slipped a tendon and now her leg faces the wrong way. She has learned how to move around, but I don't let her out with the other misfits as I know she will be at the bottom of the pecking order. Her two other coop mates protect her when they are out on supervised yard time. Beautiful colors and ok layers. They are small birds and lay a small to medium crème egg.
 

Item information

Category
Chicken Breeds
Added by
Peep-Chicken
Views
27,808
Watchers
16
Comments
19
Reviews
9
Last update
Rating
4.60 star(s) 10 ratings

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