Silkie breeding & questions

[wullus]

Ok, I've got three silkies in my chicken tractor - 2 hens and a rooster.
Firstly, when I bought them, the hens were $40 each, the rooster was only $5 (Aussie dollars)... why is there such a price difference in them?

One of the local farmers said that when he was younger, he used to breed silkies, but for every 10 eggs that hatched, only 2 of them would be hens, the rest would be roosters. Is this true? Is this why the roosters are so cheap? Or is the probability still 50%?

Also, I've been told that you have to trim the hair around their vent's so that the roo can deposit his semen or something? Would I really have to do this, or would it be right?

ALSO.. (sorry) they have laid two eggs so far, but the hen keeps scratching in the dirt and laying the egg under the roost instead of going into the nest (which, by the way has 1 fake egg and 2 golf balls in it). She kind of sat on them a bit, then went back down to the dirt, as hard into the corner as she could and laid it there. Mind you, the straight white egg she laid was quite small! Way smaller than the fake egg. I guess they are small animals and she has only just started laying... in the winter.

THNX

 

[groundpecker]

first question: Roosters crow and do not lay eggs, this makes them less desirable and therefor cheaper to buy.
An egg is 50/50 chance of either sex.

You can trim the hair around the vent, but i do not. I still get good fertility.
The secret to good fertility with silkies is one rooster for 2 hens.

Hens like to lay in a darkend area. Is the nestbox in a place where direct sunlight is shining on it?
Is the nestbox material soft? High traffic areas may deter a hen from laying in the nestbox.

 

[wullus]

Thank you for your reply. That's good, I have two silkies and a rooster (even though the rooster is still young and does not crow).

I have a small hutch and it is dark in the whole house... None of it is in the sunlight. I'll see how I go next time she tries to lay...

Thanks