California-Southern

In the interest of adding more than one voice to the discussion, I'd like to reiterate, that not all large fowl are incompatible in a mixed breed setting - large fowl, bantam, docile, not-docile - individuals within a breed are just that. There are a number of factors which may or may not influence flock harmony.

While this forum is a useful way to share our own experience or what we may have observed in others flocks, there is no definitive experience.
 
In the interest of adding more than one voice to the discussion, I'd like to reiterate, that not all large fowl are incompatible in a mixed breed setting - large fowl, bantam, docile, not-docile - individuals within a breed are just that.  There are a number of factors which may or may not influence flock harmony.

While this forum is a useful way to share our own experience or what we may have observed in others flocks, there is no definitive experience.  


Amen! As a p.s. I believe you do have to be careful with Silkies and LFs as silkies arevery gentle and can't see well. Seramas and OEGB do well with thei
r BIG cousins
 
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For starters, Silkies are not sexable until about 3 or 4 months old so don't let anyone sell you a Silkie chick as a positive sexed chick. You can't tell until they are much older. Amber Waves Silkies in Norco has a wide assortment of colors in Silkies but they are quality and won't be cheap. Amber Waves has a website you can visit.

I have no idea what feed stores you have in Rancho but in El Monte at Wes's Pets and Feed you will find an excellent assortment of breeds. El Monte is a very poultry-oriented community and has an egg-packing industry so Wes carries a large variety of chicks and bantams - the bulk of which he orders from Privett Hatchery in NM. His phone is 626-442-0781. I suggest calling beforehand so he can tell you what breeds he still has available and when his next shipment is coming in. Do your homework to know what breeds you want and don't let him talk you into some other breed as not all breeds are compatible with each other. I got my Dominique pullet chick and my Silkie juvenile pullet (a private Silkie breeder brought in stock into Wes's for private sale) and Wes also has adult birds although most of them are cockerels and roosters. It's a tiny store location but chicks don't take that much room in a brooder in his store. Very nice assortment and he usually has chicks available into September but not much choice by then. He even carries hybrids/sexlink layers and broiler crosses but I only like heritage breeds.

If you want excellent layers and non-combative breeds I would suggest Easter Egger pullets (actual APA Ameraucanas are nice too but only available through private breeders and not found in online hatcheries or feed stores). Silkies are not sexable until about 3 or 4 months old which is when I bought my pullet at Wes's 2 years ago - he knows a private breeder who brings juvenile Silkies in sometimes.

Rather than BR I would suggest a smaller Dominique which will be easier on the feed bill. Wyandottes are a 50/50 chance of getting a non-dominant personality. If you want egg-layers the EEs lay as terrific and as often as White Leghorns and give you LG-XL colored eggs too and they're non-combative - a bit kooky spooky jittery types but sweet alert free-rangers and talkers. Ours crave human interraction and conversation and there's an array of feather colors. But don't mix Silkies, EEs, or Doms with LF that will weigh over 5-lbs as adults like RIR, BR, Wyan, Buff Orp, 'Lorp, NHR, White Rocks, Sussex, Chantecler, Java, Jersey Giant, Brahma, etc etc etc. Some of these LF are reported as docile or gentle but if they are around smaller breeds will still take the opportunity to bully smaller birds.

Good luck and I think you'll find Wes's a fun place to visit because of the variety of chicks - even though he's small he has variety. His chick prices range around $7 each - beats ordering from a mail order hatchery and chancing dead chicks by mail. Call ahead or visit. It's fun to see all the chicks.
Do you happen to know anyone in socal area that sells bantam cochin eggs to hatch? My girl is broody and I just received 6 Bantam Cochin eggs in the mail for her to hatch, but am a little worried about the whole mail thing and having a good hatch
hmm.png
I have never tried to hatch shipped eggs...so little worried!
 
I am rehoming some rooster boys to no kill/no eat homes so my kids still love me for anyone who might possibly be interested in any of my boys. I am in Riverside/Norco area but am willing to drive for good homes. I just have too much crowing going on & don't want to make neighbors mad. I feed organic Scratch & Peck feeds to all my chickens.

1- mille fleur bantam cochin/oliver egger mix rooster. 10 months old. Very family friendly. Medium size due to his bantam genes. I am breeder on this one. Parents both ate organic scratch and peck feeds as does he. Good with the girls.

2- 16 month old white Basque rooster. Not to be trusted but not vicious, just be aware kind of guy, my kids go out in the area all the time, occasionally he has threatened them but never fully attacked, normally he just watches them. Good with his girls. fed organic from hatch. breeder was Jules Anderson (Andersons Garden Chickens) of La Mesa

3- Three month old olive egger, blue copper marans & black/lavender split Ameracauna. He is super sweet so far.

4- Three month old silkie cross, super cool looking (will find out who the cross is)

5- Three month old Blue/black splash bantam cochin (not the silkie in right of picture)








Thanks,
Trish
www.thehappyhealthychicken.com
 
My friends in Frazier Park sell bantam cochin eggs & ship them & another friend in Ontario as well. Message me & i will send contact info
 
I do like amber wave's birds and they seem like nice people but I did go once about a month and a half ago and got two white silkie chicks that they were sure were white and paid the extra to leave them there until they were off the heat lamp, I went back four weeks later, they said it turns out they are splash and gave me them saying they don't use the lamp that much anymore and I shouldn't need it that much, but I should keep it on them occasionally.
I got home took pictures and posted them here and everyone said they were definitely not 4 weeks, much younger around 2 weeks maybe less.
So bottom line I think they have nice birds but you should try and avoid paying the extra as I think they accidentally sold mine to someone else and gave me other ones hoping I wouldn't notice, it was too far for me to go back and make the claim so I decided to keep them and they are growing up nice and healthy.
It was 40 for the 2 chicks by the way.

Because breeding cooperation from Silkies is not a science so much as the luck of the draw that they actually are breeding, fertile, and brooding, I think you got a deal. Amber Waves like any other breeder will usually get about 75% of what you asked for correct with the other 25% optional. We get a distinct idea in our own mind what we want but I discovered years ago to be flexible because the breeder's job is not easy. I was determined to get a 2nd Partridge Silkie and instead came home with a Black that was so fully crested and gorgeous I had to have her. Another time I was determined to bring home two Dom chicks but had to settle for only one since no more were going to be available until the following year Spring. Sometimes we've got to be flexible and I think you were great for understanding that. I truly believe Amber Waves and am not prone to believe they willingly deceived. They could never run a business on deception and have been around too many years.

The fact that you got two chicks for $40 is great since I've seen Amber's show birds go for more than $100. Silkie chicks are not big and can grow at different speeds depending on so many factors like diet, environment, genetics, etc. and their full coloring sometimes is not evident until they're grown. Even my grown Silkies' weights and body shapes fluctuate depending on whether they are moulting, laying, or brooding.

If I ever get more Silkies it will be through Amber Waves if Wes's Silkie breeder contact ever discontinues bringing in his juveniles (not chicks but sexed juveniles). Wes said it's not always for certain that his breeder ever has enough juvies to bring into the store and usually only around March each year.
 
In the interest of adding more than one voice to the discussion, I'd like to reiterate, that not all large fowl are incompatible in a mixed breed setting - large fowl, bantam, docile, not-docile - individuals within a breed are just that. There are a number of factors which may or may not influence flock harmony.

While this forum is a useful way to share our own experience or what we may have observed in others flocks, there is no definitive experience.

There is no definitive rule about mixing LF and bantams which is why this thread is good to get all kinds of feedback and experiences so that chickeneers can be forewarned and forearmed with ALL information.

Too often the reports are that all the breeds do well mixed together only to learn later that certain of the more assertive breeds start getting aggressive as they got older. We had a beautiful flock of 2 Silkies and 2 Leghorns and a Marans - all pullets. The following year the Marans attacked a Silkie viciously and later our 3-year-old gentle White Leghorn went on an assertive rampage to bully every other flockmate. We gave opportunities to settle down, isolation, etc but the 2-lb Silkies didn't have an equal pecking order chance against larger fowl that became injurious.

It's just good to have all the variables up front as I didn't heed earlier warnings to not mix gentle bantams or gentle LF with assertive LF or heavier dual-purpose birds.
 

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