When I ordered my silkies from cackle hatchery, I searched the internet for HOURS trying to find pictures of silkies from there. I came across many articles saying don’t buy from a hatchery because the quality is horrible and the breeds are mixed. I was a nervous wreck thinking I made a huge mistake. I told myself that I would take pics of my birds when they arrived and post them so the next new chicken mama ordering from cackle would have an idea of what they are getting. My birds are now 3 months old. They were received all alive with Brahmas and all live together fine. One had splay leg but it corrected itself in about 3 days. I did lose 2 to a snake when they were moved into the coop. He was too small to eat them but he did kill 2. We set up some plastic mesh, trapped the snake and he will no longer be a problem. So, here is my Cackle Hatchery silkie experience.This will be my first post with photos so hopefully I get it right. I have pics from when I first got them to age 3 months. Hope this helps someone. All of the silkies have five toes, black skin, blue ears, black comb, and feathering continues down the middle toe. The ones that I suspect are males have a narrow crest and the ones I suspect to be females are developing a more rounded crest. Overall, I am pleased with the quality. I was nervous about the foot feathering at first. Some of them had what appeared to be standard chicken feathers on the feet, but as time goes by these feathers are beginning to be replaced with the silkie feathering. The dark silkies have black beaks whereas the white ones have an off colored beak so far. I am watching the beak coloring to see if that changes.
This is a great idea. Buying "blind" from a hatchery can be scary, as we don't get to see the parent stock. This is a great idea for letting others know what to expect from a particular hatchery's stock. Thank you!
