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A fluffy Cochin rooster with a red comb and feathered feet standing on grass.
Photo: sammydavisdog, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Cochin Chicken

Gallus gallus domesticus

A big, fluffy, calm chicken breed with feathers all the way down its feet.

🐐 Farm Animals🐓 Ground Birds
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About the Cochin Chicken

Cochin chickens are known for heavy feathering, even on their legs and feet. They usually weigh 7 to 9 pounds, and roosters can reach 12. Their short wings can't carry them far, but they can flutter up to low branches. Cochins come in white, black, blue, buff and other colors. Like other chickens, they eat seeds, insects, worms, greens and even mice.[1]

Quick facts

Scientific name
Gallus gallus domesticus[1]
Weight
7 to 9 pounds. Roosters up to 12 pounds.[1]
Lifespan
8 to 10 years.[1]
Diet
Omnivore. Seeds, insects, worms, grubs, greens and sometimes mice.[1]
Habitat
Farms.[1]
Group life
Groups of one rooster and several hens.[1]
Babies
About a dozen brown eggs, incubated about three weeks.[1]
Conservation status
Domestic breed. Not assessed by the IUCN.[1]

Fun facts

  • Cochins have feathers on their legs and feet.[1]
  • Hens eat eggshells or oyster shells to replace calcium used to make eggs.[1]
  • Roosters crow all day long, not just at sunrise.[1]
  • There are about 500 breeds of chickens.[1]

Vocabulary

breed
A group of domestic animals with a certain look, developed by people.
gizzard
A muscular part of a bird's stomach that grinds food, often with small stones.
comb
The red, fleshy crest on top of a chicken's head.
incubate
To keep eggs warm until they hatch.
omnivore
An animal that eats both plants and other animals.

See it in person

Sources

  1. [1] San Francisco Zoo & Gardens. “Cochin Chicken.” https://www.sfzoo.org/cochin-chicken/ (accessed 2026-10-02)

Facts last checked 2026-10-02.

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