Do Silkies need extra care in winter?have you had success with corid?

[SilkieTime]

Yes, a heat lamp over the waterer is fine. Last year I used dog heated bowls, and one heat lamp hanging in the middle of the coop (not to close). I only had to do this for two or three weeks, but this is when all my silkies were young.

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

If you have electricity in the coop, those heated dog bowls are awesome! Sadly, I have no power outside, so I just lug a lot of hot water in the winter.

 

[Silkie-Feet]

thanks so much other comments are welcome

 

[Silkie-Feet]

i just found out my silkies poop had blood in it and called the vet( he is a close friend). he gave me 10cc's of cordin ( i think thats how u spell it)an said 1cc per gallon. i have done this for 5 days and still no bloody poop, will someone pls tell me the side-effects and when to stop treatment. only 2 of my trio were pooping blood.

 

[Chickenmaven]

I cannot comment on the Cordon, except to say that you are smart to involve a vet.

I do not believe that Silkies require special babying. I live in Michigan. Our winter, two years ago, was brutal. We had many days of below zero temps. My silkies lived in my unheated coop with the rest of the birds. I use a plug-in waterer to avoid freezing. No heat lamp... The silkies fared quite well. In fact, the only health issue we had was a standard continental rooster with slight frostbite on his comb. My silkies are the first to go out on blustery days and the most likely to hang out in the run during a miserable 45 degree rain shower. They are TOUGH.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Perhaps you mean Corrid? Not sure how long to treat; I use sulmet as it is most readily available to me. For that treatment is about a week.

Silkies are native to China, a VERY cold country. They will do fine in cold weather (will be much happier than in hot weather), but need to be kept dry. Also, never suddenly shift an animal's temperature. If you have a bird who has been raised in mild weatehr, don't put it out in extreme weather; it needs time to adjust gradually.

The concern about using heat lamps to heat the coop is related. You don't want an etreme difference. So, if you heat the coop to keep it from dropping below freezing, that is significantly different than using one to keep it a pleasant 75 degrees. If your birds stay inside all winter, then you can set it at whatever temperature you are comfortable at--just take into account the electric bill

 

[Suzie]

Hi,

I live in mid France and it gets extremely cold here in the Winter - my Silkies will always go outside (of their own choice) even when it is raining - they don't tend to go outside in the snow but none of my other chickens do either and none have ever died due to weather conditions being bad - good luck with your sick one... hope your Vet can cure the problem

Suzie

 

[Silkie-Feet]

thanks so muck for the help. the reason i was wondering if silkies need extra care in winter is that someone told me there feathers don't hold heat(witch makes since). also i wasent going to use a heat lamp to warm the chickens i was wondering if i could use it to keep my automatic waters thawed. so will it work? also around how many chicks hatch in a batch under a hen?how many eggs will they sit on?

 

[Silkie-Feet]

pls message on chicken breeds and genders i need help on a blog