Cochin

The Chinese Shanghai fowl came to Great Britain and America in 1845. The name of this Asiatic breed was later changed to Cochin. The earliest Cochins were more or less buff in colour. By its striking appearance, due to great size and profuse, soft feathering, which distinguished it from all other known breeds at that early period, Cochins created a sensation in England, resulting in a great boom for the "Cochin China," as it was called in the days of "Cochin craze."

Since then, four varieties have been produced: namely, Buff, White, Black, and Partridge, all being admitted to the Standard in 1874.

Both male and female are massive in appearance, with an extraordinary profusion of long, soft plumage and a great abundance of down fibre in the under-fluff, producing a rather bulky appearance, and conveying the idea of even greater weight than actually exists. Hard or closely-fitting plumage is a very serious defect.

Economic Qualities: Although primarily bred for exhibition, the Cochin is a dual purpose fowl for the production of meat and eggs. Colour of skin, yellow; colour of egg shells, brown.

SHAPE OF MALE

Comb: Single, of medium size, set firmly on head, stout at base, upright, straight from front to rear, low in front ; serrations moderately deep, evenly serrated; free from wrinkles, fine in texture.

Beak: Short, stout at base, curving to point.

Head: Rather short, broad, deep, prominent over eyes, juncture with neck well-defined; face, smooth, of fine texture.

Eyes: Moderately large, mild in expression.

Wattles: Rather long, well-rounded at lower edges, thin and fine in texture.

Ear-Lobes: Smooth, well-defined, about two-thirds as long as wattles.

Neck: Short, full, well-proportioned, beautifully arched from rear of head to back; hackle, very long and abundant, flowing well over shoulder and cape.

Wings: Small, carried well up and well folded; fronts, embedded in plumage of breast; tips nicely tucked under saddle plumage; wing-bows, smooth and exceedingly well-rounded; primaries and secondaries, broad, and overlapping in natural order when wing is folded.

Back: Short in appearance, very broad and well-rounded; shoulders, very broad, flat under hackle; saddle or cushion rising at base of hackle or cape, very broad and round; plumage, very profuse and long; saddle feathers, flowing over tips of wings and mingling with fluff and under-plumage of tail.

Tail: Main-tail, short, well spread at base, filled underneath with profusion of soft feathers; sickles, short, well-rounded and enveloped by coverts and lesser sickles, showing as little of the stiff feathers as possible; saddle and tail to have soft, round bulky appearance; main-tail feathers, broad and overlapping.

Breast: Carried forward, very full, well rounded, of great breadth and depth.

Body and Fluff: Body, of moderate length, broad, deep, well-rounded from point of breast to abdomen, well let down between the legs, broad and well-rounded from breast bone to tail, depending more on length of feathers for fullness than on muscular development; fluff, soft, full, abundant.

Legs and Toes: Legs, set well apart, straight when viewed from front; lower thighs, of moderate length; large, straight the more long, soft, outstanding plumage, extending well down the shanks and covering hock joints, the better, having the appearance of two great globes of feathers concealing the legs from view; hocks, covered with flexible feathers, curving inward about the joints; free from vulture-like feathering; shanks, short, stout in bone; plumage, long, beginning just below hocks and covering front and outer sides of shanks, from which it should be out standing, the upper part growing out from under thigh plumage and continuing into foot feathering. There should be no marked break in the outlines between the plumage of these sections; they should merge naturally into each other and blend together; toes, straight, stout, well-spread; middle and outer toes, heavily feathered to ends.

SHAPE OF FEMALE

Comb: Single, small, straight and upright; nicely rounded to conform to shape of head ; divided into five points; free from wrinkles, fine in texture.

Beak: Short, stout at base, curving to point.

Head: Neat, fairly full in skull, fashioned after that of male, except finer in form; face smooth, of fine texture.

Eyes: Of medium size, mild in expression.

Wattles: Small, nicely rounded ; fine in texture.

Ear-Lobes: Oblong, fairly well defined, fine in texture.

Neck: Short, nicely arched; plumage, very full, flowing well over shoulders and cape.

Wings: Small, well-folded and carried without drooping; fronts, embedded in plumage of breast; tips, concealed between cushion and thigh plumage: wing-bows, smooth and exceedingly well-rounded: primaries and secondaries, broad, and overlapped in natural order when wing is folded.

Back: Short in appearance, very broad, well-rounded ; shoulders, broad, flat under neck feathers; cushion, rising from cape, wings well into thigh plumage and almost covering tail feathers.

Tail: Short, broad at base, carried rather low; well filled underneath with profusion of soft feathers and nearly enveloped by tail coverts, which help to form the cushion; main-tail feathers, broad and overlapping.

Breast: Carried low in front, full, well-rounded, of great breadth and depth.

Body and Fluff: Body of medium length, broad, deep, full and well rounded from point of breast to abdomen, well let down between legs, full and round from breast bone to tail, with great length and fullness of feather; fluff, full, soft, profuse.

Legs and Toes: Legs, set well apart, straight when viewed from front; lower thighs, of medium length, moderately large, straight; with great profusion of long, soft, outstanding fluff plumage, completely hiding hocks and covering shanks almost to feet; hocks should be well covered with profusion of soft, flexible feathers, curving inward about joints, free from vulture-like feathers; shanks, short, stout in bone, covered profusely with long plumage; toes, straight, well-spread; middle and outer toes, heavily feathered to ends.

COLOUR

THE BLACK

Beak yellow, horn, or black. Comb, Face, Earlobes and Wattles bright red. Eyes bright red, dark red, hazel, or nearly black. Legs lizard. Plumage rich black, well glossed (dull black very objectionable), free from gold or red.

THE BUFF

Beak rich yellow. Eyes: Reddish bay. Comb, Face, Wattles, and Ear-Lobes: Bright red. Legs yellow, fading in old birds, with a shade of red between the scales. Legs and Toes: Shank and toe feathers, rich golden buff; shanks and toes, rich yellow.

Plumage of male and female - surface and undercolour: rich golden buff - even, free from mottling or mealiness, and sound to the skin. The hackles, back, shoulders, wings and tail of the male bird may be of a deeper shade, as long as it harmonizes with the remainder, and is free of black pencilling or cloudiness, and the tail particularly free of white.

THE CUCKOO

Beak rich bright yellow, but horn permissible. Comb, Face, etc., as in the Black. Eyes bright red. Legs brilliant yellow. Plumage dark blue - grey bars or pencilling (across the feather) on blue-grey ground,, the cock's hackle to be free of a golden or red tinge, and his tail free of black or white.

THE PARTRIDGE

Beak yellow or horn. Comb, Face, etc., as in the Black. Eyes bright red. Legs and Feet dusky yellow.

Plumage of the Cock - Neck-hackle rich bright red or orange-red, each feather with a dense black stripe. Back, Shoulder Coverts, and Wing-bow rich red of a more decided and darker shade than the neck. Wing Coverts green-black, forming a wide and sharply-cut bar across the wing. Secondaries rich bay outside and black inside, the end of every feather black. Primaries very dark bay outside and dark inside. Saddle rich red or orange red, the same colour as, or one shade lighter than, the neck. Remainder of plumage glossy black, as intense as possible.

Plumage of the Hen - Neck bright gold, rich gold, or orange-gold, with a broad black stripe in each feather, the marking extending well over the crown of the head. Remainder of plumage (including leg feathering) brown distinctly pencilled in crescent form with rich dark brown or black, the pencilling being perfect and solid up to the throat.

THE WHITE

Beak: rich bright yellow. Comb, Face, etc., as in the Black. Eyes: red to deep yellow. Legs yellow.

Plumage- Pure white, free from any straw or red shade, or ticking of black or buff.

EXTRA COLOURS

Colours recognised in Australia include Black, Blue, Buff, Cuckoo, Partridge, Gold Laced, Golden Creel, Silver Laced, and White varieties. For any colour detail not covered here, see the Wyandotte Standard.

STANDARD WEIGHTS

Cock 11 lbs (5-6kg). Hen 8 lbs (4-5kg).

Cockerel 9 lbs (4-5kg). Pullet 7 lbs (3-4kg).

SERIOUS DEFECTS

Vulture hocks, shanks not feathered down the outer sides, outer toes not feathered to last joint, bare middle toes, plucked hocks.

• Primary wing feathers twisted on their axis;

• "Slipped" wing, the primaries being outside the wing, is objectionable but not sufficiently serious to cause a bird to be entirely thrown out of competition;

• Utter absence of legfeathers;

• Leg colour other than as stated, except in Blacks, which may be black;

• Black or white feathers in Cuckoos;

• Badly twisted or falling combs;

• Any deformity.

SOURCES

• The American standard of perfection, illustrated. A complete description of recognized varieties of fowls, as revised by [the Association at its 62d-67th annual meetings, 1937-42.] https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/009169004

• The Poultry club standards, containing a complete description of all the recognised varieties of fowls, ducks, geese and turkeys, ed. by William W. Broomhead. https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/009202629