Sillies without head tufts?

[gypsyroseplus6]

I have 4 sickies but none of them have head tufts....is that normal?? Are they not pure silkie?

 

[Wyandottes7]

Did you get them from a hatchery or feed store, or from a breeder? Silkies are supposed to have crests on their heads; this is a breed characteristic. However, hatcheries tend to breed more for quantity than for how well birds represent their breeds. Birds from hatcheries often look "kind of" like a pure breed, but they can sometimes lack certain traits. Many hatchery Silkies lack the head crests or have only small ones. They may not be mixed breeds, but they haven't been selected to have the head tuft trait.

 

[donrae]

I have two birds from Ideal that don't have crests. Well, much of one, anyway. Or beards. They're otherwise pure silkie, just not very good quality.

Here's Beth...



and her honey, Glen.

 

[Michael OShay]

I'm sorry to say that hatchery quality Silkies often fall short of SOP standards including such defects as single combs rather than walnut combs, stiff feathers where they should only have silky feathers, and very little in the way of a crest (like yours and the ones in donrae's pics). There is nothing wrong with these Silkies; they are perfectly fine chickens to own, but don't plan on entering them in any poultry shows.