Not so silky silkies???? Silkie chicks growing normal feathers

[Hrairoo]

I have 12 silkie chicks along with 31 RIR and 3 khaki campbell X ducklings. The chicks are all 2 weeks old, and have lots and lots of feathers. Chicks are from a hatchery, so they should not be crossed!

Two of my silkies are growing 'normal' feathers, much like the RIRs... However the feathers are much softer and really thin, actually somewhat transparent! What's the deal with that, eh?? You can also see that the wingtips are somewhat frayed....

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

What color are the chicks legs/skin and how many toes do they have? This will factor into whether they were completely misidentified or are mixes.

 

[Hrairoo]

5 toes, grey/black skin. Crosses can still have these features. I bought these guys from a hatchery and I am emailing them right now. I was told I would be getting 3 different colours of silkies, but they are all white....

 

[Hrairoo]

 

[Duckee]

I'm new to raising chickens. I have 6 white silky chicks about 3-4 weeks old and they all have had fur/feathers on their legs and feet since day 1. I noticed yours doesn't. Could that be a sign they are mixed or not silkies?

 

[Hrairoo]

Yes, about half have no feathers on their feet, and half since day one.... They are also the same size as my RIR chicks, shouldn't they be smaller, as they are a smaller breed???

 

[BrandiC2009]

This is my 6 week old silkie. She(he) is all fluff! Looks like maybe a mix you have there... Any word from hatchery?

 

[Hrairoo]

Yea, thinking a cross.... I'm guessing maybe a third of them have single combs too. I just emailed. Hopefully I will get an email back, I'm scared they will ignore my email!! I have a couple silkie chicks that do look to be the right size, smaller than the RIRs, was concerned about them before due to their size, but this would all make sense if they're crosses.

 

[Noodlez]

Bummer! Yeah, and what is with that....?!

Same here.... All 6 of my silkies from TSC chick days have straight combs.


What hatchery was this?

 

[Hrairoo]

I hear that a very small amount of single combs is normal, but the walnut comb is the dominant gene, so there should only be a small amount of single combs. (Someone, correct me if I'm wrong.)
Ah that sucks, sorry about that!
I got my chicks from Reliable Poultry Service on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada.