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Polish

The Polish or Poland breed is best known for its elaborate crest of feathers that nearly cover the entirety of the head.
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General Information

Breed Purpose
Ornamental
Comb
V-Shaped
Broodiness
Seldom
Climate Tolerance
All Climates
Egg Productivity
Medium
Egg Size
Medium
Egg Color
White
Breed Temperament
Flighty,Noisy,Shy
Breed Colors/Varieties
White Crested : Black, Blue, Cuckoo, Choc. Solid : Black, Blue, White, Cuckoo. Laced : Silver, Golden, Buff Other : Tolbunt, Crele
Breed Size
Large Fowl
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The Polish or Poland breed is best known for its elaborate crest of feathers that nearly cover the entirety of the head. This crest limits their vision and as a result can affect their temperament. Thus, though normally tame, they may be timid and easily frightened.

The oldest accounts of this breed come from The Netherlands, but their exact origins are unknown. One theory suggests that their ancestors were brought by Asian Mongols to Eastern Europe during medieval times, and thus, could have originated in Poland. It is also believed that immigrants brought the breed's predecessors from Spain or Italy in the late 16th century. The Polish was standardised in the Netherlands and declared a thoroughbred in the 16th century already. The American Poultry Association states that the breed was introduced to the USA between 1830 and 1840. The breed was, during a certain period of time, much favoured by American farmers and chicken fanciers.

Polish chickens are bred primarily for ornamental purposes and exhibition, but were originally productive egg layers. Polish hens rarely go broody and are noted for their white eggs.

The American Poultry Association accepted three Polish varieties into the American Poultry Association’s Standard of Perfection in 1874; additional varieties were accepted in 1883, 1938 and 1963. There are bearded, non-bearded and frizzle varieties of this breed.

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Polish eggs

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Polish chicks

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Polish juvenile

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Polish hen

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Polish rooster

For more about the Polish breed and their owners' and breeders' experiences with them, see our breed discussion here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/chicken-breed-focus-polish.1098899/
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Latest reviews

Addicted To Chickens
Pros: Extremely sweet
Friendly
Pleasing to the Eye
Very good target flying
Cons: Runs very fast
DON'T GET ME STARTED ON THIS!!!! There are way to many things about them to love!! Mine are very sweet and easy to socialize with.
PippinTheChicken
Love Polish!
Pros: They can jump\fly very high (not sure if pro or con but I like it)
friendly
beautiful
funny
Cons: They can jump\fly very high (not sure if pro or con but I like it)
My hen hatched some polish chicks in June 2021. I have fallen in love with them. They have such funny little personalities.
They are very friendly with other chickens AND humans, they are always up for a cuddle.
They jump\fly very high, it's very entertaining to watch
Purchase Price
£15 for 6 hatching eggs
Purchase Date
May 2021
J
Jumpyrules
agreed
Addicted To Chickens
Addicted To Chickens
Correct!
lily7grace92
Pros: The absolute cutest
Good egg laying ability
Friendly
Endless entertainment
A great way to add diversity to a flock
Cons: Flighty
Can't see well
Have a tendency to lay anywhere but the nesting box
They bother the other hens (no personal space)
Extremely LOUD
My personal experience with Polish hens:

The good- They have a great temperament when played with as baby chicks. We have one that loves to be picked up and will fall asleep in your arms. They are surprisingly good layers. We have had ours lay almost every day for close to 6 months through the winter even! (we do not use supplemental lighting at all either) They are so funny to watch and we have the greatest time just watching them around the yard. In all they are a good chicken to have especially if your looking for some fun poof heads to laugh at.
The bad- They DESTROY nesting boxes (kick ALL the hay, shavings whatever right out) and then they don't even lay in them! They can also be extremely flighty because they really can't see that good. It can be a pain the trim and keep their head feathers clean and keep them from icing up in the wintertime. One of our hens is probably louder than the rooster and voices her opinion a lot.
I really like my polish hens, but 3 is plenty and I probably wouldn't get more unless something happened to them.
Below is my buff laced bearded polish hen- Mrs. Santa Claus
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Purchase Price
Free
Purchase Date
3/8/18
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Comments

BBCHICKS123
Huh are polish did not even stay on the coop this winter and we had over 4 feet of snow and below freezing degrees and they lived have you only had the frizzled
 
ChickAsThieves
I've actually had (and lost) 1 Tolbunt Polish, 1 White Crested Black,1 Bearded Buff Laced, and the 2 frizzle. All lost due to cold, as far as I can tell. This was over the course of 2 different batches of birds. Everyone else is/was healthy and doing great. I think they are very sweet, but I don't find them to be very hardy birds at all.
 
kajira
I have 3 polish in a mixed flock, and they are flighty and not big on people, but we haven't had any issues with them being picked on by the other birds. I think it helps that there's 3 of them, and they out number the other birds in a trio, as the other birds are all single breeds, for the most part. I also have them mostly with cochins, which aren't known for being mean to other birds.
 
featherhead007
oh no here I go again...i just bought 2 black polish chicks. so cute i couldn't resist. so tiny with white crests/ quite curious as well,
I just turned over a brood into my custom made chicken castle. 7 pullets in all. All 4 weeks old call me Noah because I have 2 of each breed.
Ameraucanas/ one didn't make it so i replaced it with a new chick..... man i miss that little friendly chick!!!
Rhode Island Reds
bantam barred rocks
brown/tan leghorns

The new brood has 2 black polish and the 1 Ameraucana "pssst! I will probably get even more"
Did I happen to mention, I love raising chickens?
 
CascadiaRiver
Don't Polish also come in splash? I dont think its APA but I think anything that comes in blue and black must come in splash too?
 
featherhead007
I don't know very much about these polish white crested feathered friends, but I think they know a lot about me! they will hop right up to my face,
turn their heads and stare right at me "eye to eye" yes I'm already hen pecked and they aren't even hens yet!
 
featherhead007
I guess any breed of chick will warm up to us if they get enough attention. Mine get a lot of attention :)
 
kajira
Mine are psychotic. and skittish. I don't think I'd intentionally get them again on purpose.
 
Minnowey
You should try banding up their topknots. Mine are only a few days old, but it is supposed to make them less flighty and more aware of their surroundings, especially if you've got predators in the area.
 
rdcowman
Question, i got a exotic chick and it was a white crested black polish! I know nothing about these birds! Our fence is around 4 to 5 feet tall! Can they fly over that?? There's only one! Can you help me?
 
Hybridchucks
Poor things are blind as bats!
The "hairdo" feathers are actually attached to another layer of skin on the head, right?
 
PoultryAddict 1
aww lucky you.
I've always wanted these birds, however I fear within the hour their beautiful creasts would be ripped off by my mean old bantam girls.
 
Mezleona
No to the skin on the head, as I mention before I do give her a trim and it helps a lot.
Yes, to reaching that 4 or 5 fence. You need to have ckns in a minimum of 2. They are animals of flock
and very social. If threaten yeah they jump! My polish jumps about 4.5, when she is bored in the small cage I keep them in my garage, or when she wants to Inspect the garage. The other 2 do not do that.
She is very curious, an independent, she will be by herself outside. On the other side of the story my Cochin is a chicken! The moment she is alone, she wipes up a storm !!
 
AmySellersARt
My big girls would if they could.... I built them their own separate coop on the other side of the barn. Two flocks that couldn't be any different if they tried! Fun Stuff.
 
W
I had a White Polish Crested Roo, loved him so much. Had to give him away. :( I love this breed and I hope to get more very soon. :)
 
TheBantyCoop
Mezleona:
Haircuts seem like a good idea. I should give that a try!

rdcowman:
Do not worry! Care for them is essentially the same as it is for any chicken. As long as you have your girl ranging in a flock, she should not leave the others unless threatened by a predator.
 

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Category
Chicken Breeds
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Reviews
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Rating
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