Anyone know much about booted serama? How they came to be booted etc?...Two of the seven chicks I got are booted. I did a search but didn't learn anything other than they are rare.
I got one at a sale that had feathers on his legs and just thought he was a mixed breed! I do not know much about seramas just that they are tiny and friendly for the most part. I purchased a silkie one and named her Tadpole. She is the size of a dove.... Her mate is named Shrimp.... They came from a breeder out of Indianapolis In. Maybe some others on her could let you know and I am curious too whether they come feather footed......
I've sad news for you...if you got a booted Serama, you have one that is the result of being cross-bred with something. There is no such thing as a booted Serama. There are only two kinds of Serama -- normal feathered and Silkie. Edited to say...I have a Serama hen that hatched a couple of chicks that are the result of mating with a bantam Cochin. They both have feathered legs, but aren't what I would consider Serama at all. They're just mixed breed and not good for anything except pets.
Thanks all...After my question, I've been reading a dispute on a Yahoo Groups blog and one said that the booted and silkies both are results of crossbreeding down the line and that the only true Serama is straight feathered and clean legged. Then another disputes the fact that they can basically become a branch of the true breed after the original standards are made and accepted. Then I got to thinking that there are other "true breeds" of chickens that originated from crossbreeding. Then out of curiousity I looked again at Feathersite and found this in their description: This breed was developed in the Malaysian state of Kelantan, apparently "from crossing Japanese bantams and some local Malaysian bantams". The birds are tiny and must weigh less than 450 grams, under 350g being preferable. The breed was named after the Thai king Rama, because of its proud carriage: it carries itself erect, with an upright tail and protruding breast. So I still wonder if the booted may originate from the silkie gene as silkies have feathered legs and if it was crossed originally in America at some point or if it actually started in Malaysia? Sorry, I'm just really curious as well as fascinated with these little birds. I just think it's amazing that out of nowhere up pops a silkied or booted from otherwise normal feathered/clean legged breeders. It's interesting.
The silkied Serama do come from the original imports, so they weren't "created" here in the US, but I don't put it past some unscrupulous breeders to cross them with Silkies and pass them off as "silkied". (There are A LOT of these because they know they're hard to find.) You're going to find that there is still a big debate over which form of Serama is acceptable here (US standards vs. Malaysian standards). There are some breeders here in the US that have taken it upon themselves to alter the original Malaysian standards to create a bird that better suits their idea of what it should look like. There are others that are trying hard to preserve the original standards, because they feel that the Malaysian standards are what defines the breed. In actuality, Seramas aren't even an official breed yet anywhere, but are in what is called a 'landrace' until there is a definite and permanent set of standards. Strict selective breeding is still going on, so many of the birds that are available are usually culls. A good breeding Serama will be pretty expensive compared to other breeds if you can find one. Edited to say: There is one particular breeder who claims to have a lot of different things "pop up" in his breeding stock, but he's also well known as a shyster and does cross breed his birds. I would say anyone you are wanting to buy from for quality breeding stock, ask around about them before you invest a lot of money on these birds.
Thanks for the info Blisschick...I really appreciate the input...I am so in awe of these little beauties.