Black Split Lav Silkie and Showgirl chicks! PU in PA.

[rilly10]

I have 6 Black Split to Lavender chicks available. They are week old chicks. Their father was my Lav SG Roo and thier mom was either of my two gorgeous black hens. I have PQ and BQ/SQ hopefuls available. They are $5 each for the BQ/SQ, or free for the two PQ chicks.

They are pick up ONLY in Pottstown, PA 19465.

The Two Possible Moms:

Their Dad:

 

[Sunne73]

Forgive my ignorance, but what is the difference between the PQ and the BQ/SQ chicks.

 

[rilly10]

Quote:
No problem! BQ/SQ= will hopefully turn out to be breeder/show quality, but they are so young it is too early to be sure. At this point they have no DQs (disqualifications). The PQ= Pet Quality. They have DQs or I do not think they will end up as breeder quality, or show prospects. In this case one of the chicks only has 9 toes (rather than 10), and the other does not have enough feathering on the middle toe which is why I have 2 as PQ.

Thanks for looking!

 

[Sunne73]

Oh, well show quality doesn't matter to me, we are just looking for pet chickens. However, I am more familiar with regular chickens, do these guys need anything additional to keep them happy? Should they be seperated from the regular flock or kept in a warmer coop in the winter? Pottstown is only about an hour away from us so the drive wouldn't be so bad, I just want to be prepared. How old are they now?

Thanks,
Camine

 

[rilly10]

I have my silkies separate from my layer flock because I breed them (want pure eggs) and also they do get picked on by some larger breeds. Because they have crests they do not see as well and other chickens seem to love to peck at their poofs! They also are not great free rangs since they can not see as well, so may not see hawks/owls. They do not roost, or at least do not roost very high off the ground since they do not fly (the shredded feathers can not catch air). They do not need anything special really, just a nice clean dry coop. Here is how I keep mine...

-In their own pens with pine shavings. I use the deep litter method in the winter (if you search it here there are tons of great threads).
-Low logs laid in pens for them to roost, although they usually just pile up in the corner to sleep in a big heap.
-I feed mine Purina Flock Raiser and supplement with Black Oil Sunflower Seeds. I also offer free choice grit and crushed oyster shell since mine do not free range.

I do not supplement with heat or anything special in the winter and they do fine! I do give scratch sprinkled in their coops too keep them occupied and give them some extra corn to stay warm. I do however give all my birds heated waterers.

Hope this helps! I would be glad to answer any other questions! Thanks!

 

[CrazyFowlFreak]

Oh man, I wish you'd ship! I hope you find them great homes

 

[Sunne73]

Thank you for the information, I wish I could take them but for now I only have one coop and I wouldn't want anyone getting picked on for their poof. They are adorable.

Camine

 

[Sunne73]

I read that you can improve their vision by trimming their freathers. Do you have experience with this?

 

[rilly10]

I do not trim crests. Mine are all in covered runs or coops which are predator proof so I do not worry. The crests on mine are nice sized in my opinion and balanced with the rest of the bird so they are not so big they need to be trimmed to find food, water, or see where they are going. Some people use hair clips or hair tape to tie up the crests if they can not see, but I have never had to do that.

 

[Sunne73]

The more I read about these guys and look at their pics, I really would like two of them. I suppose they would need to be inside a brooder for a few more weeks anyway...right? That would give me at least a month to build them a new coop.