Chicken Breed Focus - Silkie

[snhchick]

We had one very heavy rain day and both our Silkie hens got soaked to the skin - wet+cold wind - not good for Silkie "fur." So I paper towel dried them both and let them dry off walking around the kitchen floor before letting them outside again. If they get a little fur wet it's ok but wet to the skin is taking a big chance. I have one Silkie with CRD issues so I don't let her condition get a hold and monitor how wet our girls get. I especially don't let them go to roost while very wet. My two LF get wet to the skin but have the good sense to go into the coop to groom and dry off out of the cold rain, but our Silkies didn't seem to inherit that good sense.

I'll have to check on them the next time they get wet and see if they are really soaked. I'm new to chickens, but I'm used to having horses that mostly need to acclimate to the sometimes severe weather. I don't like to blanket my horses, and I haven't been coddling my chickens. That said, I certainly don't want them to get sick. Guess I still have a lot to learn!

 

[flutterbug]

It is unclear where in China the Silkies originated however China can have winters down to -20 in fact I saw this today. "Chinese residents embrace coldest winter in 30 years as temperatures drop to as low as-47.8C. China is bracing itself for a week-long cold wave that has seen temperatures drop well below freezing and in some cases as low as -47.8 degrees Celsius" for everyone that has to use a converter to figure out the Fahrenheit like myself that is about -52 degrees.

 

[flutterbug]

Oh and I have had the same experience with the girls getting soaked in warm rain in evening with below freezing temps over night. They did fine for me as well.

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

It's said Silkies originated in the Himalayas. I let mine out in the weather too, and they do just fine. When I first started raising them, and read that they shouldn't get wet because of their shredded feathers, I went outside the next time we had rain to check them. I picked one up, stuck my fingers down in between the feathers to the skin. Know what I found under there? The top of the feathers were completely soaked, but all the down was still bone dry. My conclusion, Silkies are still chickens. They spread oil over their feathers just like any other chicken would to help water proof themselves.

And so, I open the door regardless of what's going on weather wise. And they usually go out in it (they don't seem to care for the wind though, at least mine don't).

 

[Jujubara]

We bring our silkies in and dry them if they get really wet and it's going to be a cold night. Plus we don't want the extra moisture in the coop while it's below freezing. Sometimes we just put them in a crate if it's going to rain a lot, because they love walking around in it.. Lol

 

[Sylvester017]

I'll have to check on them the next time they get wet and see if they are really soaked. I'm new to chickens, but I'm used to having horses that mostly need to acclimate to the sometimes severe weather. I don't like to blanket my horses, and I haven't been coddling my chickens. That said, I certainly don't want them to get sick. Guess I still have a lot to learn!

I have a Silkie with CRD issues so I don't let them out in heavy downpours since they don't have the good sense to stay out of the rain. Our two LF girls got soaked to the underskin and had the good sense to go into the coop to groom and get dried off but our Silkies didn't. Our climate is always warm and never freezing so a sudden deluge and cold blowing wind is not what our girls are accustomed to. If they grew up in a cold climate and were accustomed to it then that would be a different story. But our girls are sunny warm SoCalif girls and downpours and cold wind are a shock to them.

 

[elmoflim]

So, Sylvester (or anyone that knows), do you think then that even Buff Orpingtons and Black Australorps are too assertive? I always hear how friendly and gentle they are. what about easter eggers? Cause we now have all those as you can probably read but I'd like Silkies eventually. Maybe they'll either have to wait or be kept separate. I can understand Barred Rocks though as I've heard they're more assertive or RIR but I always thought the Orps would be friendly. But I guess maybe they're only friendly to birds their own size.

This might be late, but I have a sweet buff Orpington with my silkies so it really depends on the Orpington hen. My Orpington sometimes cuddles with them or roosts haha.

 

[ShrekDawg]

This might be late, but I have a sweet buff Orpington with my silkies so it really depends on the Orpington hen. My Orpington sometimes cuddles with them or roosts haha.

Aww no it's not late! Mine seem pretty sweet, though some of them fight back if they get bullied and others just run so it may vary even in my own flock. But fortunately no one really gets bullied anymore and if they do it's mostly just a peck or two to say hey get out of here/this is my foraging spot go find your own, and over in seconds, so i think they'd likely be fine. Of course it would depend though. Maybe I could get another Orpington or Easter Egger to raise with them so they become friends ir at least a flock? Might go better than sticking a couple silkies in with much bigger birds. I do think eventually I'll try adding them though.

 

[elmoflim]

Aww no it's not late! Mine seem pretty sweet, though some of them fight back if they get bullied and others just run so it may vary even in my own flock. But fortunately no one really gets bullied anymore and if they do it's mostly just a peck or two to say hey get out of here/this is my foraging spot go find your own, and over in seconds, so i think they'd likely be fine. Of course it would depend though. Maybe I could get another Orpington or Easter Egger to raise with them so they become friends ir at least a flock? Might go better than sticking a couple silkies in with much bigger birds. I do think eventually I'll try adding them though.

mind was bullied badly by Easter Eggers who she was raised with. She got all her head feathers pulled out and beak and comb bloodied. So always the bullied ones haha if bullies not so good. She's the biggest of them all too so I don't know why. Now I have some cute silkie/buff Orpington cross babies from her with white silkies.

 

[ShrekDawg]

mind was bullied badly by Easter Eggers who she was raised with. She got all her head feathers pulled out and beak and comb bloodied. So always the bullied ones haha if bullies not so good. She's the biggest of them all too so I don't know why. Now I have some cute silkie/buff Orpington cross babies from her with white silkies.

Hmm, maybe Easter Eggers aren't a great idea then. Thankfully the bullying seems to have basically stopped. I'm not even sure if it's real bullying or just normal pecking order and I just hate seeing them be "mean" lol the Australorps used to jump the Orps and one mounted an Easter Egger last week but they stopped that. Now it's just mostly when free ranging they'll occasionally peck when someone comes into their spot. Maybe I'll get some Orpingtons and Silkies and raise them together. Worst case scenario I could seperate them into a different pen or give them away