Dapper Dan the wonder paint with Fuzzbucket (partridge) and Shreek (lavender) hunting bugs on the wood pile. Hatched from Catdance eggs Feb. 2013. They gave me thirteen chicks this week and eighteen left in the incubator ready to hatch in the next few days.
Four paint, five lavender, two...
Thank you. Truly. I've lived and farmed here for twenty five years.
Because of nocturnal predators, They all go into their respective pens for the night. I keep grow out kids, adult silkies, and adult LF in their separate runs for three days and nights straight to train them. After that I...
I found this in a google search. It explains what's going on in the feather mutation better than I could.
"The Frizzle gene (F) is incompletely dominant, with exhibition quality Frizzles usually with one dose only of the Frizzle gene (F/f+).
But there is a frizzle modifying gene (mf) which is...
If male and female both carry the smooth (barbed) feather gene, a smooth feathered chick would occur on occasion for sure. I think she looks like a silkie crossed with a White Sultan because of her mulberry comb and wattles. Her smooth feathers looks like she is a cross to my eyes. Phenotype if...
They look like half silkie first generation to me. Bred back to a pure silkie will give silkie feathers and better crests and feet. I happen to love half breed silkie colors. They can be really surprising and often stunning but not standard colors. Pretty though. One of my half breed silkies has...
Many of the top breeders of silkies will tell you that "show quality" means a bird was shown at a sanctioned event and placed. To be entered in a show does not necessarily mean a bird is "show quality". Neither does a bird bred from show quality pen. Chicks with DQ points can come from any...
I think the most recent American Standard came out in 2011. http://www.purelypoultry.com/bantam-standard-p-697.html
Edited to add: It is very worth while to join the ASBC. Yearly publications and breeders list plus lots of information about breeding, owning, and showing silkies to the SOP...
I found my old 1992 American Bantam Standard and thought folks might be interested in seeing how Silkies have changed over the last couple decades. This used to be considered the perfect ideal for white silkies when I started raising them.
No copyright infringement intended. This is from my...
You are very kind Suzierd. I've always thought so.
Here are update pic's of my grow out chicks. Ages nine through seven weeks. I'm crazy about them and want to test breed all of them.
My adult chickens run together separate from the grow out silkies. Some white silkie chicks are in this...
Thank you Suz.
I haven't re-homed or sold any birds yet this year. I've hatched out eight batches since late spring and now have a total of 52 chicks under the age of three months. I'm growing them all out to at least six months before choosing breeding females or males. Some that turn out...
Thank you Suz! I love this little red girl. I've got plans for her in my Red Silkie project. She came from a recessive white silkie male on a bantam Rhode Island Red hen. I've tried the cross with my Paint male on the red hens but only get paints so far. He's the only silkie male I have of...
Last night I took my final walk around the pens making a head count and thought it funny the way one grow out pen settles down to sleep for the night. The broody hen hatched them in an old nest box (not meant for silkies) I removed her at four weeks old. They still try to pile into that same...
All of the solid white chicks he has sired have gotten spots so far. I crossed him to bantam RIR hens and all those chicks have spots too. It's crazy spotty goodness around here.
I've heard of paints x with blues getting splash paints with dark blue and black spots. I would be thrilled if one...
Thank you.
Every egg that hatches from my paint boy is like opening a special gift wrapped present. I never know what I'm going to get. He is filled with unexpected genes. If these lav babies developed spots, I wouldn't be surprised. If they darken, no worries. They will still be split to...
I crossed my paint male to my lavender (self blue) hen and this was the result.
Two beautiful self blue chicks! I want more now. Eggs due again in ten days.
I free range silkies and heritage Rhode Island Reds. Always have for many years. There is plenty of room for every one to stay out of the way of the dominate hens. Recently I started penning the separate breeds in their own pens at night. Every one has more room to roost or pile in peace now...