Good Silkie Qualities?

Year of the Rooster

Sebright Savvy
11 Years
Jun 27, 2008
6,076
58
263
West Central Ohio
I have some white silkies and, even though they are hatchery quality, I would like to at least pick the best of what I got. I have two roos (both developed really fast for 8 weeks old) and one has more feathers on its feet. But the other one has a bigger comb and wattles. What other qualities do you look for? Oh and the silkie with a big comb and wattles also has a nice top knot
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I would go for the proper comb and larger top knot. You can always breed him to hens with better foot feathering and toe spacing. Those aren't that hard to get.
 
Bigger comb and Wattles is not a Plus for Silkies. With Bearded Silkies one should not see the wattles at all. The comb should be smooth looking and not have an abundance of spikes. It should look more like a wash board. A larger crest is good but most important is body type. A Silkie should have a short back and when it stand erect its head should almots touch its tail. This is not absolutely apparent in a young bird but you can get a good idea at about 3 months. I would wait till at least 3-4 months to decide.
 
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Ok, thank you. Just to give you an Idea what one of my roos looks like, here is a pic:

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As of now, he is 9 weeks old. That pic was taken at 8 weeks and his top knot is a little poofy-er

Bear in mind, I'm not breeding for show or trying to breed show quality silkies. I just want to pick the best of what I have.
 
Large comb and wattles are not desirable in silkies, especially bearded birds. Just by the sounds of it, you may want to keep the one with the heavier foot feathering. I noticed the one in the pic has nice dark eyes, does the other one have the same? Also, make sure they both have dark skin and have 5 toes on each foot. Can you post full body shots of each bird? If you're interested in breeding, your best bet would be to go to a breeder.
 
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I'm pretty sure they all have nice dark eyes but I could check just incase. They all have black skin that I know for sure and they all have five toes. But there is one that, unfortunately, has a single comb. This one I know I will not keep for breeding, but if I have to, I'll just keep it as a surrogate mother. I'll try to get picks of each one. I got them from Ideal so I know they won't be SQ. Nor am I trying to breed SQ, just the best of what I have. Need to make some extra money
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