HELLO EVERYONE! Greetings from Helmand Province, SW Afghanistan! I'm Chad - I'm a U.S. Air Force Captain deployed on a Marine Base in the middle of the desert.
I bought my first two chickens ever from a breeder up here in Northern California specializing in Silkies and Sizzles (January of this year). I was totally taken aback by Martha Stewart's Easter Special Show in 2010, where she showcased Murray McMurray and all these AWESOME looking chickens I have never seen before!
(I think you could still find that show on youtube)
When I saw this HUGE WHITE SILKIE I knew I had to have one!!
I kinda felt the same away about the Polish on the show too... but a bird with "rabbit" fur?! C'MON!!
While I was with the breeder, she told me of this similar bird she had been developing into a standard breed (but not yet accepted - a "S""s"izzle). Her Sizzles were 8th generations - so she's been working with them for a while - she has also won a few awards and such with other different birds in her flock.
So I took home a 6 month old White Silkie Cockerel and a 7 month old Blue "s"izzle (lower case "s" for smooth fethering) pullet. I ended up going back to her and bought a 5 month old Black Laced "S"izzle (upper case "S" for frizzled feathering). I think I made a good purchase first go around. Breeder Quality birds. ALL BEARDED. Got the Blue gene, got a black frizzle, and a white roo!
Here's the BLUE GALLINA and GALLO (when I first got them):
Below is the BLACK GALLINA and a side view of the Blue Gallina (you can see why she is BQ vs SQ because of the colour bleeding in her primary flight feather):
Remember that other bird from the show I just couldn't get over? HERE'S BOWIE!! Silver Laced Bearded Polish Rooster:
They tell me he looks like a Muppet Drummer 
I picked up three more hens just to help appease my neighbors, in comes the 2 EE and the Leghorn mix. We get 14 eggs a week from those three - in Green, Blue, and Brown!
My plan is to breed Bowie (SL Polish) X the "S""s"izzle Hens. And line breed him back to his acceptable F1 daughters, then to F2, etc. Can you imagine the nomenclature?! LoL!
But then I got activated and deployed to Afghanistan in May... I can't wait to get back home to my flock in November!! But until then, I will have to live vicariously through all of you.
Thank you all for your expertise, guidance, and GREAT PHOTOS! I'll post new ones of my flock when I get back... I can only imagine how BIG and FEATHERED everyone will have gotten by then!!
::CHAD::
My Intro (with pictures!): http://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=573990&p=1
White Silkie Roster, Silver Laced Bearded Polish Rooster, Blue sizzle Hen, Black Sizzle Hen, White Ameraucana Hen (blue eggs), and Colombian EE Hen (green eggs), & 2 Wheaton Malay Pullets (courtesy of Mr. Ronnie Profitt)
My Intro (with pictures!): http://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=573990&p=1
White Silkie Roster, Silver Laced Bearded Polish Rooster, Blue sizzle Hen, Black Sizzle Hen, White Ameraucana Hen (blue eggs), and Colombian EE Hen (green eggs), & 2 Wheaton Malay Pullets (courtesy of Mr. Ronnie Profitt)
from WA. glad you joined us 
- that is some invaluable information.
