Chick pics! Does anyone want to guess what colour they will turn out- Silkies/Pekins

[Willawong Hill]

Hi, just excited to share some pics my husband took of our chickens and wondering if anyone has any ideas about final colour. Silkies are two weeks old, others are three now. Silkies all came from a mixed pen so are probably just mixed colours. I brought 12 hatching pekin eggs shipped and unfortunately only 2 hatched, so I brought 4 just hatched silkies locally to keep them company. My aunt and uncle helpfully lent me the use of their brooder and put 9 of their own eggs in, but just the one hatched so not great rates here, but it is winter.
1. Phantom
I think probably white, though had a greyish tint, all feathers so far seem white. Feathering quite quickly so i'm hoping it's a pullet but that won't really work with silkies I don't think? She is pretty brave though so who knows for the next couple of months...

2. Obsidian
The only pure black chick, but I noticed she (again wishful thinking, fast featherer but adventurous) has some brownish feathers coming in at the top of her wings/shoulders. So i'm thinking Black with some sort of brown leakage?

3. Amelia/Earhart
Black, but with brown chipmunk stripes on the face but not the back, also brown wingtips. Has anyone had a partridge hatch this dark or is she likely to be black with partridge leakage? Much smaller than the other silkies and had quite a prominent umbilical bump, seems active and healthy otherwise so hopefully she's just a couple of days younger.

4. Cleo/Cletus
Similar to Amelia, but grey instead of brown, the quietest chick so i'm hoping for a hen, but i guess i'll have to wait for that and to see if she's breeding quality.

5. Camille/Monet
Pretty sure I have a Monet on my hands as she's feathering out slow and is the first one to the front of the brooder when you open up to protect her flock. Came from a splash egg, so pretty sure that's her colour.

6. Nora/Hans Heyson (named after Australian painters), really hoping Nora is a pullet (and she is feathering out much faster despite the same hatch date) as Camille appears to be a roo. Hatched out of a blue egg, but i 'm thinking she's also splash or has anyone else had a blue start off this light?

7. Marion
Also hoping this is a pullet, but the comb at three weeks is already starting to pinken and she has some serious legs (but is the only full sized chicken). She belongs to my aunt and uncle who lent the use of their incubator, i'm brooding her with the others and would like to give them a pullet back for their troubles. From a pen of mostly silver and one gold laced wyandotte, so this seems like an obvious SLW to me.

 

[Stipenvlerk]

You have a gorgeous group of chicks !

 

[AngBantamLuv]

Ill try guessing... have a few chicks of my own that ive watched color changes in, and studied plenty of others online while obsessing!!

Do you have previous silkie experience? Id like to pick your brain on one that i had thought was going to be a roo, but now thinking female.

Here are my thoughts on yours:
1. Buff, just light.
2. Black, looks EXACTLY like mine when it was a hatchling.. i'll post in a few.
3. Partridge, looks like its within a normal partridge color range.
4. Grey partridge!! Oh this would be nice if it is the case! Color is passed down from males, right?
5. And 6. Im guessing white... do you know if the roo had any blue in it? Was it a blue mille? Otherwise im thinking white.
7. I agree on silver laced. I like that color and might get either a silver laced cochin or silver sebright in the future.

 

[AngBantamLuv]

@Willawong Hill here is my little grey, then thought it was blue, now pretty sure black silkie it isn't as nice of a quality as yours, so not as poofy a crest. But it reminds me of yours w the very grey down.

Here is 3 days old:

1 week old:

One month old (far right)

Now 9.5 weeks. The light down is still making its way off, but the new feathers look pretty consistently black. Anddd, at 9.5 weeks, i thought streamers should be here already, and thought male based on MEAN behavior.. but having second thoughts based on the crest. If its a girl, ill name her Beauty, from the horse story, Black Beauty.

Can you update what your colors end up being? I usually have access to straight run batams, but i have to do my best at guessing whats what color and breed wise.

 

[Willawong Hill]

Thanks for your lovely comments @Stipenvlerk and @AngBantamLuv, I will update on these guys in another couple of weeks when everything is more obvious.
I'd love if 1 turns out to be a light buff, so far all the feathers look pretty white, but we'll see. I am hoping 2 ends up being all black, but I suspect it'll be a bit messy with some sort of gold/brown leakage judging by the feathers at the top of the wings, but maybe they'll go in a moult. Partridge and grey partridge would be cool, the wings are certainly brown and grey tinted respectively. 5 and 6 hatched from eggs marked blue and splash, they both have the occasional dark feather so i suspect splash is more likely than white. It's hard to find silver laced Pekins here, hope you have better luck!

It terms of your little silkie, I'm not great at telling gender early, but i'd have to say the comb does look more V than U so hopefully it's a hen. I don't think streamers come in til 12 weeks or so though so i'd love an update on yours too.

 

[AngBantamLuv]

Thanks for your lovely comments @Stipenvlerk and @AngBantamLuv, I will update on these guys in another couple of weeks when everything is more obvious.
I'd love if 1 turns out to be a light buff, so far all the feathers look pretty white, but we'll see. I am hoping 2 ends up being all black, but I suspect it'll be a bit messy with some sort of gold/brown leakage judging by the feathers at the top of the wings, but maybe they'll go in a moult. Partridge and grey partridge would be cool, the wings are certainly brown and grey tinted respectively. 5 and 6 hatched from eggs marked blue and splash, they both have the occasional dark feather so i suspect splash is more likely than white. It's hard to find silver laced Pekins here, hope you have better luck!

It terms of your little silkie, I'm not great at telling gender early, but i'd have to say the comb does look more V than U so hopefully it's a hen. I don't think streamers come in til 12 weeks or so though so i'd love an update on yours too.

Awesome, yes ill update. And i hope you're right!! I have pending DNA tests (threat are delayed), but ive successfully stayed unattached to this one, until this week. Now im trying to figure out how to keep a rooster (probably cant).

Can you keep roosters? If you could breed grey silkies, you'd have people clamoring for them!

 

[Willawong Hill]

Luckily I live out in a fairly rural area (we have 17 acres) and i have pretty tolerant neighbors (though i've never actually had any crowing here so that may test them). I wasn't planning on keeping any roosters but now that i'm getting attached and they're not actually illegal....can you see what's going to happen here? My husband's fave is the Pekin I think is a rooster though so hopefully he won't mind keeping some boys around. May be building more coop space though!

 

[AngBantamLuv]

Luckily I live out in a fairly rural area (we have 17 acres) and i have pretty tolerant neighbors (though i've never actually had any crowing here so that may test them). I wasn't planning on keeping any roosters but now that i'm getting attached and they're not actually illegal....can you see what's going to happen here? My husband's fave is the Pekin I think is a rooster though so hopefully he won't mind keeping some boys around. May be building more coop space though!

Yes, i can see that my dream is going to happen!! I don't think people care about crowing, so much as the noise entering their house loud enough to wake them. 17 acres, i doubt it would affect them one iota!! How exciting!!

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

Hi, just excited to share some pics my husband took of our chickens and wondering if anyone has any ideas about final colour. Silkies are two weeks old, others are three now. Silkies all came from a mixed pen so are probably just mixed colours. I brought 12 hatching pekin eggs shipped and unfortunately only 2 hatched, so I brought 4 just hatched silkies locally to keep them company. My aunt and uncle helpfully lent me the use of their brooder and put 9 of their own eggs in, but just the one hatched so not great rates here, but it is winter.
1. Phantom
I think probably white, though had a greyish tint, all feathers so far seem white. Feathering quite quickly so i'm hoping it's a pullet but that won't really work with silkies I don't think? She is pretty brave though so who knows for the next couple of months...
View attachment 2216215
2. Obsidian
The only pure black chick, but I noticed she (again wishful thinking, fast featherer but adventurous) has some brownish feathers coming in at the top of her wings/shoulders. So i'm thinking Black with some sort of brown leakage?
View attachment 2216217
3. Amelia/Earhart
Black, but with brown chipmunk stripes on the face but not the back, also brown wingtips. Has anyone had a partridge hatch this dark or is she likely to be black with partridge leakage? Much smaller than the other silkies and had quite a prominent umbilical bump, seems active and healthy otherwise so hopefully she's just a couple of days younger.
View attachment 2216219
4. Cleo/Cletus
Similar to Amelia, but grey instead of brown, the quietest chick so i'm hoping for a hen, but i guess i'll have to wait for that and to see if she's breeding quality.
View attachment 2216221
5. Camille/Monet
Pretty sure I have a Monet on my hands as she's feathering out slow and is the first one to the front of the brooder when you open up to protect her flock. Came from a splash egg, so pretty sure that's her colour.
View attachment 2216223
6. Nora/Hans Heyson (named after Australian painters), really hoping Nora is a pullet (and she is feathering out much faster despite the same hatch date) as Camille appears to be a roo. Hatched out of a blue egg, but i 'm thinking she's also splash or has anyone else had a blue start off this light?
View attachment 2216224
7. Marion
Also hoping this is a pullet, but the comb at three weeks is already starting to pinken and she has some serious legs (but is the only full sized chicken). She belongs to my aunt and uncle who lent the use of their incubator, i'm brooding her with the others and would like to give them a pullet back for their troubles. From a pen of mostly silver and one gold laced wyandotte, so this seems like an obvious SLW to me.
View attachment 2216225

Do you have updates?

 

[Willawong Hill]

Yes! But I've hatched a little egg of my own in the meantime (easy to tell this one will be a rooster, no waiting there). Grabbed a couple of shots at dinner time tonight though:

1. Phantom. Haven't heard a crow yet but 100% sure he is a cockerel. Definitely white.

2. Obsidian. The surprise packet, was completely black at day old when i picked him, but has heaps of leakage- ?partridge or can anyone guess whats under there? This boy has been crowing so another definite Roo.

3. Amelia. Appears to be a little lady. Despite having partridge chick down she's really just black with a bit of partridge leakage. Still the smallest.

4. Cleo. Also a pullet. Not sure what you'd call her colour. Gray? Silver partridge?

Amelia and Cleo roosting in a nestbox.

5. Camille. Was convinced she was a roo- by far the friendliest, way slower to feather than Nora but given that she hatched in early June and its now October i think i might be lucky there. Definitely splash.

6. Nora. Another splash from an egg labelled blue. Also another hen i think though slightly redder comb, but not very developed.

7. Marion. Another one I was convinced was a roo from her lack of tail feathers early on. Has some saddle feathers now but all rounded. I'm thinking pullet? Silver Laced Wyandotte.

Does anyone agree with me? Or can clarify the silkie colours?
Anyone else with more updates?