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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

TheBantyCoop
Funny girls! I am having lots of fun watching mine's crest grow in. More of an afro meets Einstein look than a crest! Super cute, but I am yet to see her gain more polish features and personality traits. I can hardly wait!
 
hellbender
I guess if Polish were the only kind of chickens, I'd have to have some but I'd surely give them Army regulation hair cuts on a regular basis. Based upon what I've read, they arent as dumb as they are blinded by that rediculous glob of feathers on the head...
 
mamalaoshi
One of my Polish had his neck ripped open too (it was horrific and huge) and was perfectly healed a few weeks later.
 
Tacampbell1973
I loved my splash hen, Angel. She would lay her head on my shoulder as I patted her floofy white head. She was predated by coyote last year and my heartbreak was lessened only by keeping her two sons Elvis and Panda, despite already having 8 roosters. GREAT BIRDS! You cannot trim their crest down too far or they will bleed. You can tell the difference in the blood feathers and trimmable hair. I used hairbands in Angels hair and every other day undid them and massaged her scalp.
 
hellbender
I guess if you are going to have the breed, you must do whatever it takes to keep them safe from themselves. While some birds of any breed can appear stupid, I doubt the ratio that's laid upon the Polish. Enjoy them!!!
 
MarionCraig
I have two Polish silver laced bantams and they are great. Good layers as well for a more 'unusual' breed. One of them I can see her eyes quite well and she is very inquisitive. The other one is slightly fluffier and she can't see me when I approach from the side. However they have integrated well the 3 silver laced wyandotte bantams and bantam cockerel.
 
applebutter14
well i ordered a hen so i hope thats what it was. i guess you could say i never known because she died,
 
sunnypj
I had a polish frizzle rooster and he was very aggressive. When he started to go after me I knew he had to go. I thought it might have been because he was picked on by another rooster at his previous home and we thought he would be ok once he settled in.. never happened and would throw himself at the fence trying to get at us if we walked past. One of his offspring I have is also a rooster and was very friendly until he matured enough to start mating. Now he is aggressive as well so I also think it might be the breed.
 
smsabean
Our neighbor had a polish rooster and whenever anyone would step into the entry way of the coop he would fly and hit the coop doorr. Nasty fellow, he was. However our Polish hen was one of the sweetest little personalities that you could ask for.
 
chickenchick12
Some polishes just have different attitudes. I had one that would run away for a few days, we would all be convinced that she was dead, and then she would show up again! She also survived a dog bite and countless "chicken fights". Her name was Squakish. Unfortunately, a mystery disease took her a couple of years ago. But she was an interesting bird because the other chickens had pecked her bald except for a fringe of feathers around her head. She was a good 4-H hen and we miss her. I have never had a polish roo, though, so maybe the roos are just more aggressive. I hope that he becomes more likable as time passes. Thanks for the review!
 
brightpennies
I have a mixed flock, and I've had nasty behavior from breeds that other people praise for being easygoing and sweet -- my last roo standing sounds a lot of like yours, and here's a hint, I have no roosters at the moment... I'm pretty sure the bad ones taste better. Out of curiosity, do you free-range? I kept my bad roo around much longer than I would have if I kept my girls in a run, because when they were on range he was very protective, and I'm pretty sure he could have taken a fox if it came down to it. Unfortunately, he was aggressive with my ducks and turkeys and liked to attack me from behind, so he had to go. Thanks for the heads up, and I'm sorry you got a bad apple.
 
austrolover1
Sort of... He would fly out of the fenced in area in the morning and would come out at night About eating him... he kind of small.
 
Goosebumps
I love my Polish girl "Gita." I've never had any aggressive behavior come from her. She used to bow down when I said her name knowing I was about to pick her up. Then I got Rue, my Black Cochin bantam (did I say that right?) Now she will have nothing to do with me, she adores him and he worships her.
 
Violetsrblu
I love their names, may have to copycat you if I get some Polish chix. Hubby and I think they look really cool and we love living yard ornaments.
 
Tacampbell1973
I found my best friend Angel at auction. She was a beautiful Splash Polish Hen. She also was cuddly and extremely goofy made even more so with her Phyllis Diller style hair. I say was because a predator took her from me. I have her son and grandson now but they are also have Cochin, picture a cochin with a topnotch and you have Elvis and Junior.
Anywho, I have been looking for another Polish hen. The big chicken dealers all have a minimum order, and Im not in the market for 10 birds or so, Thelocal feed stores dont ever get them as they are too ornamental. Does anyone know where i could look for one well ok two would be good.I am in Western Washington. Thank you for any and all advice
 
austrolover1
I'm sure it was the breeding strain. There are tons of great reviews about Polish chickens. Like my BA's; people say they are the most docile chickens ever! Mine were the meanest we had had next to Dominiques.
 

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Category
Chicken Breeds
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Reviews
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Rating
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