Fluffy footed birds/silkies in the Pacific North West

[LilMissChick]

hi folks!

I live in the Pacific Northwest (Vancouver Island) and anyone who has come up to Seattle, or across the border into Vancouver or been to Vancouver island knows it’s a damp and green place. As someone who is building their coop and researching what kind of chickens to get for their flock I have lots of questions/worries that might not be a thing

My question is, living where there is a lot of rain, should I stay away from fluffy footed birds or silkies? They will have a fully covered chicken run and coop, but that won’t mean it won’t get damp in the run. It’s going to start on grass, but I assume the chickens will take that down to bare earth pretty quickly as it’s a stationary run I’m making.

I was originally thinking that might be good to not get fluffy footed birds because it’s harder to see mites etc., but I’ve been falling in love with so many of the fluffy foot birds, like Cochins, Brahmas, Faverolles, and Silkies. I didn’t intend to even look at fluffy footers, lol, but there is so much cuteness in all these breeds.

Is this something I should really be worried about?

Thanks so much everyone!

 

[Cyprus]

I've had a couple feather footed breeds in my time (D'Uccle, Cochin bantam and LF Brahma). The only one to ever have issues was the Brahma. He got really bad scaly leg mites and lost most of his foot feathers.

So out of personal experience I would suggest sticking with bantam booted breeds. I've never had Silkies, but I know that their feather type makes them harder to care for by default. They are not well suited for cold winters.

 

[Acre4Me]

Since you know what to watch for (leg mites), no reason not to get them. Buy what you are interested in, then adjust accordingly. Birds preen themselves, so unless they are in actual mud, shouldn’t be noticeably dirty. Ours sometimes have globs of fresh poo between their toes, so that’s common among all chickens (so, always pick up the chickens in “chore clothes” or pay attention to their feet before snuggling).

You’re rather temperate where you are (usually not too cold), right? So silkies could be fine - just need to ensure they are warm enough in colder weather, and have a draft-free coop. This may require a heat source in winter, so electrical connection of some sort usually.

Good luck!

 

[rosemarythyme]

I only have one feather footed bird but haven't had any particular problems because of it. I was worried that maybe it wasn't the best idea in a rainy climate with an uncovered run but my feed store has quite a few in their display flock and they all seem to do fine.