Helllo from a Nubie...Need input from Silkie owners

[sweetpeasmom]

Welcome to the site. I have 1 silkie that roost. She lives in the barn in a rabbit hutch. She is petted to death and she freaks out when she is out with the other chicken. She hides and will not come out. She just does better in the barn. She does have a silkie/banty mix hen that lives with her most of the time, and she roost also. But that could be the banty in her. My oldest silkie rooster will roost on the side of a bread crate that is in the chicken house on the floor. The oldest hen sleeps on the floor in a part of the chicken house that was orginally divided off for the goats. The rest of the silkies sleep under the chicken house on the ground. I absolutely love my silkies, they are not very smart but they are very amusing. Good luck!!

 

[chickflick]

I also use a ladder cut down to size for the silkies to climb up to the first roost, and from there they go to the highest 5 ft roost. The ladder also helps the heavier breeds to get up and down.

 

[BayCityBabe]

I have one Silkie (a roo) that roosts 6' up with all the big girls. Another two Silkies roost on a 3' roost. I have four Silkies and three Showgirls that sleep in a pile in the corner. So much for my "plans" for their sleeping accomodations. They do whatever they please.

 

[ktsmom]

I don't have any silkies as of yet, so this is an interesting question! Thanks for asking, I'll keep following the replies!!
I have 10 full size chickens and 2 bantams, ones that are supposed to roost...but only a few of them do so...the rest pile on top of each other in a corner on the floor of their "house". As for the bantams, I am glad they sleep under the big girls, cause winter's coming, and they are japanese bantys, and not quite as "winter hardy" as my full size varieties. I have only one girl I am going to worry about as it gets colder...she sleeps away from the others, at the highest point in there, and is a leghorn, so she's much lighter and thinner than all of the other birds...hope she can keep herself warm, as i don't have electric out there. Keeping their water from freezing has not been easy!! Had to buy more waterers, and had to train everyone else at home to take out fresh water every few hours!! So far, it seems to be working...if only I could keep the ducks from splashing all the chickens' water out of the waterers!!(In "non-freezing" weather, the ducks have a pool to swim in and splash in, so they leave the waterers alone!!) As it got colder here, the ducks even pile into the chicken pile in the "hen-house".
I hope to get a few silkies in the spring...IF i can get my turkey pen/house and an additional chicken coop/pen built before spring!! Sure wish I could buy "sexed" silkies though!! I really don't want a bunch of roosters!!! I have one and he's fine, but if I had more, they would surely bother the neighbors!! (as if the ducks are not noisy enough!! But I do love them a bunch!!)

 

[maplesky7]

I'm in IL. and I run an extension cord...ok, 2 extension cords together for length from the garage, out to the coop so I can have an electric water dish plugged in. So much nicer than all the trips with the water and the frozen bowls....

Just thought I'd share.


me,
g


apparently you haven't seen purple chickens "silkies are evil" video as of yet....

you are in for a real treat....WELCOME!

 

[NightHeronFarm]

Hi O.C. Chick,

I live on Catalina Island and have 4 Silkies. I am planning on getting some silkie hatching eggs from Kentucky Silkies (he has lovely birds) within the next few months so let me know if you would like some babies in early spring. I have an Octagon 10 incubator and can set 12 Silkie eggs at a time and I'm usually only looking to get a couple pullets for myself out of a batch. At the moment I have a 5 month old sweet black Silkie Roo that is looking for a good home. If anyone is interested PM me!

I dearly love my Silkies and have found that while they do like to sleep huddled up in a Silkie pile on the ground, during the day they happily hop around on the two perches I have positioned about 18" and 30" off the ground and about a foot apart.

Your garden is beautiful and coop space looks great! Feel free to keep in touch, you are only a short hop across the channel!

-Kristen

 

[O.C.Chick]

Thank you all for the great information! I just love this forum!!!

By the way, there were just two articles in the L.A. Times yesterday about the growing popularity of keeping chickens in urban areas. Link below to anyone interested.

Take care!

http://www.latimes.com/features/home/la-hm-chickens6-2008dec06,0,6975632.story

 

[Dandelion007]

No Silkies but Welcome to BYC! I do aspire to someday have a few. My girls love them.

 

[Mrs MIA]

Hi there! I have silkies, and I keep the roosts down low, though I have one roo that likes to sleep in the nest box at 4'. They don't fly well, but they will use a ramp if you give them one.

The ABA (American Bantam Association) has good information and APA has book lists... basically, just be prepared to have your heart and soul taken over by these little cuddlebugs.

 

[silkiechicken]

Welcome!

I've always taught my silkies to roost, and they almost always have had the whole, jump to roost, settle, and sleep thing down by 5 months old. The standards usually have it down by 3 months old or so.