Okay Silkie people... what exactly am I looking for?

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CityGirlintheCountry

CityGirlintheCountry

Green Eggs and Hamlet
12 Years
Jul 7, 2007
6,950
145
311
Middle TN
I have the hardest time sexing silkies. I'm just not sure what to look for.
My lot are 5 months old or so. I think I have at least one roo in the lot. But, since I don't know what I'm looking for I could have all roos in the lot. I know you can't really sex them until about 6 months or so, but I should maybe have some hints about now, yes?

Here are the contenders-
IMG_5377.jpg


In my head, the one in the center back is a girl. Her poof is really round and she has a minimal comb. Plus, she just seems hen-ish to me (yes, a totally arbitrary thing...). Most of them look like that.

This guy is option two. A couple have this upswept look to their poofs. They also have bigger combs. It all leads me to believe that they are roos. No one is crowing yet (we just started making grown up noises recently).
IMG_5361.jpg

IMG_5368.jpg

IMG_5405.jpg


I know the males get streamers, but at what point do those develop? Should I already be seeing something more defined? What should I be looking for at this point? Inquiring minds want to know!
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I am having the same problem... my silkies are going on 5 months...I know for sure one is a roo9 has huge wattle and comb and also crows)
 
Sorry I cant help out any at all..my silkies are still in the BATOR!!!(LOL) So that's my experience with Silkies thus far!
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BUT...somewhere on here was a post at one point in time that said you could sex them by comparing the length of their toes? Some silkie show people used the technique and supposedly it works? Don't remember all of the specifics but if I find the post(which I should do for my own benefit too) then I will post on here and share with you. You have BEAUTIFUL Silkies! Blessings, Keri

Ok...took me a minute..but here is the post:
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PS. Let us know whatcha got!!!
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Check the toes. Pinch the 1st and 3rd toes together (just under the middle toe) and if the toes are the same length, girl, if different lengths(outer toe will probably be the longer of the two) its a boy. Its a know Pigeon sexing trick. It is NOT 100% accurate, but pretty accurate. I have been doing it with silkies a lot, and just recently taught this trick to people at a show, who were then grabbing Adult cochins to see if they followed the rules too and they mostly did. The biggest problem with some silkies I have noticed is that sometimes, one of the toes isnt a full toe, like missing a toenail even so is just a stubby toe. It does not work too well then obviously.big_smile

Exhibition birds in Dutch Bantams, Bearded Silkies
http://www.silverpulletpoultry.net
Colorado Poultry Association
www.freewebs.com/coloradopoultryassociation
 
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Going thru the same thing myself! LOL!
This is what Sonoran Silkies has to say about it
and I read everything I can about what
she has to say because she is VERY VERY silkie smart!

Combs are larger on males (or should be--some breeders try for a comb that is too small). Wattles are not a decisive trait--bearded silkies should all have small to non-existant wattles, on non-bearded silkies, even the hens can have farily good sized wattles. Stance is different, and males have streamers on their crest and hackles.

Good luck!!
 
Those are some very nice looking buffs. Its hard to get them that nice and clear and still have the mulberry skin color. The ones in the pics by themselves look to be cockerels for sure. Bigger, more upright stance, larger comb, sweptback crest, etc.

I will say to give them more time. I've been raising silkies for just about 9 years now and still have some that fool me. Last fall I kept back 5 of my young buffs. I could have swore that there were 2 cockerels and 3 pullets. I now have 4 pullets and 1 cockerel. I also showed an 8 month old black 'pullet' last fall under one of the top silkie judges in the US. It took that bird til about 10-11 months to develop streamers and start crowing. I wondered where the heck this extra cockerel came from, double checked band numbers, and sure enough this was the 'pullet' I showed in October. The higher quality you get, the longer takes for them to mature and show their true colors. Huge crests, small combs, rounded cushions, etc on the boys too.
 

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