Dumb Q... I think

[jacmiln]

I have one silkie rooster among Dominique and amerucauna laying hens. The hens aren't quite laying age yet (probably in Feb). Would a silkie fertilize these hens' eggs? Or should I even let them hatch? Sorry, dumb question but I'm a newbie.

 

[ChickNanny13]

Yup, your Silkie would be able to fertilize your hens Depending on what you're after, you could let them hatch, they'll be crosses & probably turn out interesting looking chicks/chickens.....Just my thoughts. I'm have chickens as pets, not serious about eggs or breeding so I maybe wrong but this is the place for answers....Love this site!

 

[Ridgerunner]

Since you asked it’s not a dumb question. If you don’t know the answer and it has value for you, not asking would be dumb. We all have to start somewhere.

Breeds are a manmade thing, nothing natural about them. Chickens don’t care about breed. Any rooster will try to mate any hen. If your Silkie is a bantam he may have trouble doing everything right and hitting the target, but most bantams manage quite well, thank you, even on full sized hens.

The gene that gives the Silkie type feathers is a recessive gene. That means it will not show up in the first generation. But things like that head shape could show up, at least in part. You could get some interesting chicks.

I don’t know what your goals are for those chicks. Chicken genetics can get pretty messy when you start crosses like that, you don’t always know exactly what you will get. But traits like behavior and egg laying are pretty much inherited. You should get chicks that are somewhere between your hens and the rooster. The traits might be closer to one parent than the other but should be somewhere in between.

 

[jacmiln]

Since you asked it’s not a dumb question. If you don’t know the answer and it has value for you, not asking would be dumb. We all have to start somewhere.

Breeds are a manmade thing, nothing natural about them. Chickens don’t care about breed. Any rooster will try to mate any hen. If your Silkie is a bantam he may have trouble doing everything right and hitting the target, but most bantams manage quite well, thank you, even on full sized hens.

The gene that gives the Silkie type feathers is a recessive gene. That means it will not show up in the first generation. But things like that head shape could show up, at least in part. You could get some interesting chicks.

I don’t know what your goals are for those chicks. Chicken genetics can get pretty messy when you start crosses like that, you don’t always know exactly what you will get. But traits like behavior and egg laying are pretty much inherited. You should get chicks that are somewhere between your hens and the rooster. The traits might be closer to one parent than the other but should be somewhere in between.

 

[jacmiln]

Thanks!!!

 

[donrae]

Lots of folks like silkie mixes. They're cute, usually have some crest and maybe a beard, feathered feet and often 5 toes with the black skin. Being not full silkie, though, they fit in a little better with a mixed flock.

 

[Teila]

Hi there

I have a couple of Silkie mixes and yep, they are mutts, but I think they are very cute mutts

Sorry that I do not know if the Silkie was the mum or Dad but these two are Silkie mixes with 5 toes.

I agree with donrae that they appear to fit in a little better with a mixed flock. I kept two Silkies hatched here and while they were good together, they were bottom on the pecking order, I lost one of them to illness and the other one was definitely bottom of the pecking order and didn’t really have any friends

These two, however, also hatched here, fit in just fine: