Silkie

What sweet birds! I just got my second silkie, and I am loving her! Such sass and silliness in one bird, it’s straight out of a doctor suess book! I highly recommend them, it’s so fun to have one in your yard. They really make great pets! I highly recommend giving them lengthy aristocratic names, it seems quite important due to their looks and personality. Mine, for example, is named Mona Lisa le poulet de Egglantine (an eglantine is a type of rose). Seriously, there is so much fun to be had with these fuzz muffins.

TEMPERAMENT: The most docile breed overall. Even the roosters are very kind and patient with hens, children, and other pets. Temperament-wise, you couldn't ask for a better bird.

They also are extremely broody. Not only do they make great incubators, but great mothers as well. they will sometimes even adopt chicks from another chicken's nest that have already hatched. They have been known to try and hatch golf balls, giant fowl eggs, and even feces.

HEALTH & PROPER CARE: - Silkies have many health problems. vaulted skull, cross-beak, in some cases crest inhibits proper vision. Their fluffy feathers cannot protect them against cold if the feathers get wet. Silkies require access to a shelter at all times. They are most fragile when they're very young.

EGG PRODUCTION: Lays smaller type eggs. when they're not broody, they typically lay with great consistency. however, since they tend to go broody quite often, don't expect your hens to lay many eggs/ year in comparison to other breeds. this breed is best used for natural incubators and mothering young, rather than high egg production.

HISTORY: with those fluffy feathers, what's not to love? one might think the silkie was created simply for enjoyment alongside it's docile nature. however, this breed was actually NOT created to be a pet. Originally, they were bred for meat. Breeders wished to create a bald chicken, therefor removing the feather-plucking step in processing the meat. one of their first steps towards a bald bird was the Silkie. This beautiful accident, however, quickly caught on and thus overtime, the silkie was bred for ornamental use more than consumption. Over time, selective breeding decreased the silkie's overall stature,& is technically considered a bantam.

Silkies are great chickens to have. Every chicken owner should get one!

one of the best bird and pet I've ever own highly addictive!!!

I cannot tell you how much I love my precious little floof princess.



She is the biggest snuggle bug I have ever owned. She loves snuggling more than she loves to eat or poop! (She honestly hasn't pooped on me in ages *knocks vigorously on wood*.) She's also the only chicken I've ever owned who actually likes to be pet. I can put her to sleep so fast by simply cuddling with her and stroking her fluffy little afro.
She's also sooo hilarious. She loves her dirt baths so much, she doesn't notice when she's throwing dirt into her best friend's face.

She can be a little stinker, though. She'll pick fights with all of our other chickens except for our smallest hen - her best friend - so we have to keep her and her friend separated from the regular hens.

This could just be specific to my silkie, but she's not too keen on heights. This could prove as a benefit, though. Silkies may be small, but their wings are not made for flying, so they can't jump very high.
They also can't see very well. Their afros - and beards if you have a bearded one - get into their eyes a lot. I do my best to keep them out, but I don't have much luck (though she does like when I stroke her cheeks to get her beard out of her eyes). Most people will tie their silkies' afros up, but I honestly have no idea how as my silkie loathes any accessories. She pecks at them all.

Their plumage is adorable and soft but do keep in mind that it's a lot like cat fur. Thick cat fur. It gets everywhere and can get very dirty very easily. I still haven't figured out how to bathe her correctly, but once I do, I'll definitely start bathing her regularly. (Although it's not entirely required.)

My biggest complaint, however, is their broodiness. My silkie is going through her extremely stubborn and extremely broody phase. I love my silkie to death but this is definitely a problem. Breaking a broody silkie is like breaking an iron bar with your bear hands. It can't be done! The irony is that they don't lay very well. Their eggs are definitely adorable and small, but if you're looking for an egg layer, this isn't the breed to go for. If you're looking for a mother hen, then absolutely 100% get silkies!!! They love cuddling and they love mothering (my silkie started mothering her best friend at 1 month old!). They get even more cuddly when they're broody, so that could also be good. While I would like my silkie to play around, get exercise and sustenance, I do love a good silkie hug!

All in all, silkies are great. They are literally the best pet chicken ever. So loving, not very skittish at all, very comical, and just super adorable. They're not good egg layers, but they're eggs are still fun. They're extremely broody, but if you want a mother hen (or more snuggles) then that's perfect. They're not even very poopy! At least mine isn't. If you're looking for a pet chicken, then silkie it is!!!

I have a whole flock of frizzles and absolutely adore these chickens. They are so fun to watch, super friendly, and happy to see me when I come out to visit. My kids often have chicks sitting with them while they read a book or are playing outside. They have been terrific mothers and have raised 20 chicks successfully! I love their sassy "good looks"! If you just want to enjoy chickens for the pure love of looking at them and interacting with them...these are the chickens for you!

These birds are the best breed i've had so far. I highly recommend them. Once I got my first batch I was hooked and made a business in breeding them. Great moms and very sweet. The only thing I have to say is that the buff silkies are a little crazy.

I dispute the idea that silkies are good layers. I inherited mine. When they were in a small coop, which is how I got them, they each layed about 3 eggs a week. Now they have the run of a very secure back yard, apart from a fenced off vegie patch, they are prolific layers, often 2 a day. If something is wrong, they come to the back door and call me, so I know to check. Even if I leave the door open, they never enter the house but they enjoy watching us through the glass sliding doors. They have a sheltered spot where they sit and watch the action, a bit like us watching tv.
Also, they were digging up the garden around my fountain, so for about a week, every time I caught them digging there I shut them in a fenced off piece of the yard. After a week they stopped digging in the illegal spot. These are the smartest, best layers you could imagine and loving too. They come for pats, squatting down and spreading their little wings to give good patting space. They never fight and love my grandchildren. I cannot hear a single negative about silkies without getting upset. I have made them a hill to climb, a wood pile for finding delicious bugs and plenty of bushes to hide in. I think with a spacious, entertaining environment, silkies are very productive.

It was a while before we tried this breed. However, after we did we ended up giving away all of our other chickens and going with only silkies. We love them that much! We couldn’t keep them with other chickens because they are completely defenseless and don’t seem to understand the pecking order. I have met one or two mean silkies. However all of the others that I have ever known and all of the ones we have ever had have been total sweethearts. Including the roosters. We completely love them. Also, they’re pretty good little egg layers.

I've been in the chicken business for a while now, and we originally started by purchasing some chicks from Atwoods. We would randomly grab whatever we thought was cute and amongst those were some Silkies. We have branched into purebred Silkies since then and though they have their good qualities, I feel that the bad ones outweigh them.
I'm always seeing how Silkies are the friendliest, sweetest birds you have ever met. True--I've discovered that my most human-friendly birds were Silkies. Unfortunately, most of them are not like that. I didn't socialize with mine as much when they were chicks, so they ended up being a little skittish, but when I did they still weren't the greatest.

I loved my silkies. My black silkie pullet would lay a small tinted egg almost every day and she was so sweet. My black silkie cockerel was great at alerting the flock to potential predators and he was never human aggressive. I would recommend silkies to anyone who has young children, someone with limited space, someone who isn’t picky about the amount or size of eggs, or just as a breed to have. Silkies are great little lovable bundles of joy. A word of caution though: I have heard of people keeping large fowl and bantams together without incident, but I personally didn’t and when I would let both of my small flocks out one of my leghorn pullets would challenge my black silkie cockerel. Also silkies have a vaulted skull and if they get pecked on the head it can cause problems.

I think of slikies as "pet chickens", as they aren't excellent layers, they lay small eggs, they are too small to use for meat, and they are so unique looking and soft. I had a few, and they just weren't very friendly even tho I gave them the same attention as my other hand raised birds. It may have been just the kind of silkie, im not sure. My orpingtons were much friendlier, and docile. Id recommend them any day as a pet chicken over silkies. Just my 2c

I got my first silkie over a year ago and we won't be buying another after her. She's had an ongoing problem with scaly leg mites and her fluffy legs are difficult to treat. I've also noticed she stays dirtier than our chickens with regular feathers and needs more bathing. Because of their facial fuzz it's also easy for them to get eye infections that you'll have trouble noticing. Can become essentially "blind" if you don't keep their head fuzz trimmed away from the eyes and will have trouble finding food, because of the fluff.

Could just be our silkie, but they seem like loners, almost like a different species of bird, and the other chickens aren't very friendly towards her. She roosts alone and on cold nights we have to pick her up to put her in the warm coop with the other hens. Just a very weird bird that needs a ton of upkeep, and not really my favorite.

Overall an excellent choice. I have small children and they are able to hold my silkies and pet them. They make the perfect pet. My roo, Romeo, sleeps with my cat, Jasmine, in our garage every night. If you're looking for a fun, fluffy, cute, friendly pet or if you need a broody hen to hatch your eggs, no matter what breed, then you've got to get a silkie!!!

I haven't actually met many of the "bantam" Silkies as most of the ones I've had were of the "meat type" which actually does exist, surprisingly enough. Most of my Silkies have been comparable in mass to Leghorns (technically a large fowl at 4 pounds) or even Plymouth Rocks and other dual-purpose breeds. My heaviest rooster right now is probably one of the Silkie guys even though I've got a half-Marans head rooster (probably 7 lbs but he might surprise me if I actually weighed him). All of mine were purchased as "bantams" from various feed stores.

I've never had a Silkie hen go broody. I'm possibly the only person who's never experienced the famed broodiness of Silkies, but I'm sure my current lone pullet will rear her broody head this spring. However, for now, the Silkie pullet is actually my best layer and gives me one tinted (little darker than cream colored) medium sized egg almost every day. She's a darling, quiet bird who gets picked on by my old-timers and more assertive birds, and this has been typical of all Silkies I've met--regardless of size or gender.

Crests can impair vision and cause the bird to not notice threats or to become startled easily. Crests also serve as a hotbed for lice, so check them often. My Silkies have all been fastidious groomers and love dustbaths, so I've yet to have any problems with lice on them, but others aren't so lucky.

Their feathered legs can make treating for mites more difficult, and may cause mud and water to freeze on them and cause frostbite. Try to keep their ground as dry and clean as possible.

Roosters can be surprisingly gentle with chicks in my experience. All of mine have been dolls with chicks. I've yet to meet a mean one, even though I've heard of a couple out there. All of mine have been at worst skittish creatures who are afraid of being picked on, but they've universally responded very well to gentle handling and treats. Children love meeting Silkies, which are about the most interesting and adorable chicken breed one can find.

Silkie crosses with normally feathered birds typically yield birds with very soft feathers and dark skin. Polydactyly is often a dominant trait (depends on what causes it) so expect extra toes to crop up in offspring.

Overall, Silkies are a good chicken to have if you hold no incubators, those incubators are busy, or if you need a friendly chicken to enjoy.
I also give this review to just share some general information for future Silkie farmers.

The roosters' temperament is very docile, them attacking things have often originated from the normal rooster response to defend the hens, or to check on the flock every now and again.

They are not very flighty, and their feathers do not trap heat, keep heat out, or shed water. Due to that, they do not do well in extreme climates, both cold or hot.

I believe that the Silkie hens are of most use if you want to raise other birds for it to take care of. They are VERY broody, often regarded as one of the broodiest breeds of chickens, and are often foster mothers for other eggs from other hens. They are eggselent mothers! The roosters are great too, as they normally do not cause many problems within the flock.

I have two amazing silkies that are so sweet and docile And amazing at show I highly recommend them. They are also extremely easy to take care of.