Cochin Thread!!!

[ki4got]

Quote:

Can any of you tell me if this cochin is a boy or girl? My chickens are 54 days old today. Also what color is it??

pretty sure it looks like a cockerel. and not sure on the color, but sure is pretty... maybe a blue partridge?

 

[County Boy]

Can any of you tell me if this cochin is a boy or girl? My chickens are 54 days old today. Also what color is it??

very pretty, i think it's a cockerel and its color is possibly red laced blue. I know it's a color for wyandotte chickens.

 

[Desirai]

Oh noooo that means I have 5 boys and 7 girls..

 

[Desirai]

Some people are telling me that cochin roosters tend to be docile and don't fight each other. Other people tell me any rooster could turn at any minute and attack anyone or anything.

I love my roos already they're more friendly than the hens so far.. I have one that rides on my shoulder and they love their wattles stroked!!

I'll definitely have to get more hens though.. but what do you guys think, could 5 cochin roos live together peacefully if I have enough women to go around?

 

[Desirai]

here are some other pictures of Linda

 

[JosieChick]

Desirai- I personally would not keep 5 cockerels in the same pen together no matter how many hens I had with them. My cochin boys are all super sweet with me but I have set up a zero tolerance policy for naughty behavior with me. If they peck me, try to flog me etc they get corporally cuddled and carried around in front of their women and that sets most of them straight. If they are really naughty I don't keep them around, they go in the butcher pen or get sold with the disclaimer that they are naughty. I don't care how nice a rooster is in type if he has a bad attitude I don't want that passing on to offspring.

I may keep 2 cockerels together in a pen of 6 or more hens but only if they are raised together and get along well. I find that if both boys are actively mating it is a lot for the hens to put up with so I have only done that when space was limited until I could get more fencing up to separate out boys I wasn't going to use for breeding at the moment but didn't want to get rid of. They seem to think they need to be the last one to hop off the hen so the poor hen gets mated 5 times before one boy finally gives up. It is not fun for anyone.

I know the boys are friendlier now and I have found that is the way they are when they are young. When the girls reach the age that they are laying they get much more social and if given attention will get just as friendly as your boys are now. I would decide if you have one or two favorite cockerels and keep only them or at least separate out your extra boys.

I have never had cochin cockerels injure each other until two months ago. I had bought a young black cockerel unseen and he had an attitude with the other boys. He would pick a fight and then when the other cockerel would back down he would keep chasing instead of claiming victory and backing off. He was promptly separated but one day managed to fly over 2 fences and get in with my splashes and by the time I found them he had almost killed my splash roo who was bloodied and exhausted. The black cockerel is in a grow out butcher pen now and he will be sent to freezer camp with the rest of the extra roos this summer. I have no tolerance for that behavior and it is awful to find a bird bruised and bloodied like that. They are sweet now but 5 boys is a lot in one pen.

Just my 2 cents and I know others have different experiences.

 

[thecochincoop]

Some people are telling me that cochin roosters tend to be docile and don't fight each other. Other people tell me any rooster could turn at any minute and attack anyone or anything.

I love my roos already they're more friendly than the hens so far.. I have one that rides on my shoulder and they love their wattles stroked!!

I'll definitely have to get more hens though.. but what do you guys think, could 5 cochin roos live together peacefully if I have enough women to go around?

I think it depends on the linage. My males all get along except for one BLR project male. I normally keep a 50/50 split of hens and roos

 

[County Boy]

here are some other pictures of Linda

I changed my mind, that's defianatly a blue partridge. if I were you, I'd keep him. He's georgous. But them again I don't know what the other roos look like.

 

[lilcrow]

My personal opinion is yes he has Partridge in him, but I'm guessing he's a project bird from someone trying for Blue Laced Red. His type is not good, but his color is striking. I wouldn't use him to breed because you're just going to end up with a mess, but he'll make a nice yard ornament.

I changed my mind, that's defianatly a blue partridge. if I were you, I'd keep him. He's georgous. But them again I don't know what the other roos look like.

 

[Desirai]

Yea, the lady who sold me the cochins said they were just some mixed mutts she had in her incubator. I do agree his colors are beautiful. I would love to try and breed out that red and keep his head and neck glossy black and the rest of his body beautiful blue. but I don't know anything about breeding anything so I'm not going to purposely breed any of my chickens

My personal opinion is yes he has Partridge in him, but I'm guessing he's a project bird from someone trying for Blue Laced Red. His type is not good, but his color is striking. I wouldn't use him to breed because you're just going to end up with a mess, but he'll make a nice yard ornament.