Finding show quality silkies.

[cfarmhouse]

This is my first post and Im just starting out. I have waited forever to have my own chickens and I've always wanted to have silkies since spending time with my grandfather's chickens as he had them. Where is the best place to get beautiful silkies. I'm not interested in showing, But if I can only have a handful of chickens I would really like some beauties! Any advice on any other breeds that would go well with them and have different colored eggs or look really unique. They will be pets. I live in New Mexico. Any help would be much appreciated as well as any advice on where I should purchase my 1st coop.thank you Jennifer

 

[diamondsilkies]

Welcome to BYC!! Silkies are a wonderful breed and get along with most other chickens. If you raise them as chicks together with other breeds you should have no problems, but can integrate them into existing flocks pretty easily too.

If you are truly looking for show quality silkies, some of the big breeders I know of are Harvest Breeze Farm, Magnolia Silkies, Bobbi Porto of Indigo Egg, and SnoCo Silkies. Swanky Silkies on Instagram also has some beautiful birds. However, they can be a bit on the expensive side, especially if you are not planning on breeding.

Hatchery wise, I ended up with some pretty birds from Cackle Hatchery that were much cheaper. This was about 6 years ago, though, when I was first getting into silkies. One of the roosters I got from them ended up winning best of breed at our county fair. My Pet Chicken also has some really gorgeous silkies in their pictures, and they apparently source their silkies from an independent breeder, so you could try that route. I've never gotten the chance to buy birds from them, so I can't vouch for how they actually turn out, but it could be something to look into.

Coop wise, I've always built my coops, so I don't have much advice for you there. But when building/purchasing coops, it is always a good idea to get a sense of the type of predators found in your area. From there, you can learn about their methods of hunting and secure your coop to prevent that. For example, I have lots of bobcats here, which have been known to tunnel, so I built a 2 ft deep foundation for my coop.

Best of luck to you and let us know if you have any more questions! I'm sure you'll find that this is a wonderful community full of friendly, knowledgable people.

 

[diamondsilkies]

Here are some juveniles I got from Indigo Egg last year...I think they are about 3 months old in this picture.

This is a hen of mine, bred by SnoCo Silkies.

Here is the rooster I had from Cackle Hatchery, that won best of breed. I bred quite a few pretty birds from him, including the rooster pictured below.

Hope this helps a little!

 

[cfarmhouse]

View attachment 2099927
Here are some juveniles I got from Indigo Egg last year...I think they are about 3 months old in this picture.

View attachment 2099934
This is a hen of mine, bred by SnoCo Silkies.

View attachment 2099942
Here is the rooster I had from Cackle Hatchery, that won best of breed. I bred quite a few pretty birds from him, including the rooster pictured below.

View attachment 2099943

Hope this helps a little!

Thank you! That is exactly what I want. Do your chickens take a lot if time?

 

[diamondsilkies]

Thank you! That is exactly what I want. Do your chickens take a lot if time?

It depends on the size of your flock and your commitment to them. Personally, I don't feel like they take up a lot of my time, but I enjoy spending my time with them. An established backyard flock doesn't usually require a ton of work.

I spend about 20 minutes a day doing necessary chores (filling up feeders, refreshing water, collecting eggs). This takes about 40 minutes in the summer, as there are extra things I have to do here in AZ to keep them from overheating. I clean the coop once a week, which usually takes me about 2 hours by myself (I have three pens to clean). During this time I also do health maintenance (checking for external parasites, making sure their droppings are normal, trimming nails/feathers if needed). Where I live, I can't let them free range without supervision, so I do spend a good chunk of my free time outside with them while they forage (they have a big enough coop where this isn't necessary, just a nice bonus for them).

But a big part of chicken care is spending time with them and observing them. It's important to understand the hierarchy of the flock and the 'normal' for each bird. It then becomes much easier to realize if something is off. I also get a lot of joy out of spending time with my birds, so I spend more time with them then is technically needed. Then again, why have pets that you don't enjoy to some level?

However, all of this will vary based on your situation. Flock size, coop size, flock age, flock health, their purpose (breeding, eggs, meat, enjoyment), and much more will all change how much time you spend taking care of them. From time to time, chickens will get sick or old. It's just part of keeping them. Sick birds will require much more maintenance and time. Baby chicks also take up a little more time, and the time you spend with babies will have a direct correlation to how friendly they will be as adults. When you introduce birds, you will need to check on them much more often to make sure no one is fighting.

Every situation and every flock is a little different. But that's the advantage of having communities like this, so you can ask questions and check-in anytime you need.

 

[cfarmhouse]

It depends on the size of your flock and your commitment to them. Personally, I don't feel like they take up a lot of my time, but I enjoy spending my time with them. An established backyard flock doesn't usually require a ton of work.

I spend about 20 minutes a day doing necessary chores (filling up feeders, refreshing water, collecting eggs). This takes about 40 minutes in the summer, as there are extra things I have to do here in AZ to keep them from overheating. I clean the coop once a week, which usually takes me about 2 hours by myself (I have three pens to clean). During this time I also do health maintenance (checking for external parasites, making sure their droppings are normal, trimming nails/feathers if needed). Where I live, I can't let them free range without supervision, so I do spend a good chunk of my free time outside with them while they forage (they have a big enough coop where this isn't necessary, just a nice bonus for them).

But a big part of chicken care is spending time with them and observing them. It's important to understand the hierarchy of the flock and the 'normal' for each bird. It then becomes much easier to realize if something is off. I also get a lot of joy out of spending time with my birds, so I spend more time with them then is technically needed. Then again, why have pets that you don't enjoy to some level?

However, all of this will vary based on your situation. Flock size, coop size, flock age, flock health, their purpose (breeding, eggs, meat, enjoyment), and much more will all change how much time you spend taking care of them. From time to time, chickens will get sick or old. It's just part of keeping them. Sick birds will require much more maintenance and time. Baby chicks also take up a little more time, and the time you spend with babies will have a direct correlation to how friendly they will be as adults. When you introduce birds, you will need to check on them much more often to make sure no one is fighting.

Every situation and every flock is a little different. But that's the advantage of having communities like this, so you can ask questions and check-in anytime you need.

 

[cfarmhouse]

Your silkies are gorgeous...these little guys would be my pets. I'm afraid I would want to be snuggling with them all the time!