# What Color Is My Pekin?



## KaderTheAnt (Jan 4, 2018)

I recently bought a pair of Pekin. The supposed rooster is Birchen, the supposed hen is the one I'm having issues with. Any info would be greatly appreciated.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

hi, but I don't know what they are.


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## boskelli1571 (Oct 30, 2017)

KaderTheAnt said:


> I recently bought a pair of Pekin. The supposed rooster is Birchen, the supposed hen is the one I'm having issues with. Any info would be greatly appreciated.


So, bear in mind I'm not an expert, but it looks to be like you have too much 'bleeding through' of the white. If you Google birchen pekin hens, their white seems to be more uniform..


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

Welcome!!!When I read Pekin,I thought duck.I've never heard of a Pekin chicken.Sorry I can't help you but someone else may know.


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## KaderTheAnt (Jan 4, 2018)

@boskelli1571 are you talking about the one on the right or the one on the left (referring to the photo from above)

I bough the one on the left as a Birchen, the other was something (she called it a robin belly or something weird)

@chickenqueen my bad! I'm guessing in most other places theyyre called bantam cochins..sorry for the confusion


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## boskelli1571 (Oct 30, 2017)

KaderTheAnt said:


> @boskelli1571 are you talking about the one on the right or the one on the left (referring to the photo from above)
> 
> I bough the one on the left as a Birchen, the other was something (she called it a robin belly or something weird)
> 
> @chickenqueen my bad! I'm guessing in most other places theyyre called bantam cochins..sorry for the confusion


I was talking about the one on the right. The one on the left is shy so I really can't tell....


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## KaderTheAnt (Jan 4, 2018)

I tried to get better pictures of both as I'm wanting to know what I have. Some of y'all are saying that the one I was sure of isn't what it was supposed to be so now I'm extra curious.










This is the one I thought was a Birchen



















This one is the one I'm clueless about.


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## boskelli1571 (Oct 30, 2017)

KaderTheAnt said:


> I tried to get better pictures of both as I'm wanting to know what I have. Some of y'all are saying that the one I was sure of isn't what it was supposed to be so now I'm extra curious.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


So in my un-expert opinion the top one does look like birchen color. The second one I suspect, is a mix of separate breeds. I would contact the seller again and ask what s/he sold you. 
Quite frankly, you can sell any bird call it what you want - yellow toed, blue whatever, but it doesn't mean it is a recognized breed.
She is quite pretty though


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## KaderTheAnt (Jan 4, 2018)

boskelli1571 said:


> So in my un-expert opinion the top one does look like birchen color. The second one I suspect, is a mix of separate breeds. I would contact the seller again and ask what s/he sold you.
> Quite frankly, you can sell any bird call it what you want - yellow toed, blue whatever, but it doesn't mean it is a recognized breed.
> She is quite pretty though


I did actually. She said it was a color variation she was working on. The Robin Belly. I'm going guess it's because of the orange belly that she has.

It's an interesting project, it'd be cute to see some robin colored chickens. I wonder if it's worth getting into.


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## Steinwand (Sep 23, 2017)

Pekins are like the predecessor to Cochins?


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## boskelli1571 (Oct 30, 2017)

I


Steinwand said:


> Pekins are like the predecessor to Cochins?


In the Uk and some of Europe Cochins are called Pekins - same bird, different name.


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## Steinwand (Sep 23, 2017)

Really, That's interesting I always thought the pekin was a more petite and upright breed similar to the Cochin, in one of my chicken books it said pekins are a different breed well in every one of my chickens books they say one thing and the other one said the complete opposite


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## boskelli1571 (Oct 30, 2017)

Steinwand said:


> Really, That's interesting I always thought the pekin was a more petite and upright breed similar to the Cochin, in one of my chicken books it said pekins are a different breed well in every one of my chickens books they say one thing and the other one said the complete opposite


I blog for a chicken site so I do a lot of research. As it happens one of the breeds I was asked to research was Cochins.... The confusion with names started back in the 1800s' when so many birds were being brought in from China and the Far East. Cochin was the original name but some people got to calling them Pekins after Peking city in China....your useless trivia tidbit for the night


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## Steinwand (Sep 23, 2017)

It's not useles I can pass that on to someone else


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## KaderTheAnt (Jan 4, 2018)

Honestly I bought them as Pekins and everyone I’ve dealt with in the process of buying them called them pekins as well so that’s what I stuck with.


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

I knew my Cochins were Asian but didn't know they had another name.I kinda like Peking better.Thanks for that tidbit of info.


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## boskelli1571 (Oct 30, 2017)

chickenqueen said:


> I knew my Cochins were Asian but didn't know they had another name.I kinda like Peking better.Thanks for that tidbit of info.


You're welcome! Back in the 1800s' when all these birds were being seen for the first time, many different breeds got confused with each other - for instance Shanghae birds....I haven't really been able to sort out which original bird that really is - could be one of a number of birds.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

Wow. Is that Pekin young or not as "fluffy" as a Cochin?


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