Hello

[tlnichols]

Hello i am new to BYC and to raising Chikens. Our neighbor gave my 7 year old son 6 laying hens and my mother decided he needed more. So we spent a day at the sale barns where we got 8 young poulets (they said should lay in 2 more months). And due to my sons tears and confusion on why we couldnt get baby chicks we left with two baby silkies and no clue if they are male or female or age. So i found BYC while googling information on silkies.

 

[Chicken Girl1]

Welcome to BYC! When they Silkies are around 2 months old I would post in the What breed or gender forum (they are really hard to sex!).

 

[tlnichols]

I am unsure how old they are.

 

[drumstick diva]

Silkies are one of the most difficult breeds to sex before 4-5 mos. of age, and sometimes not till they crow or lay. It's always a major gamble to buy baby chicks. Hatchery birds look even less like a proper silkie, so that complicates things even more.

If someone tells you they guarantee a young chick is a pullet or roo, they have a 50% chance of being right/wrong. As Clint Eastwood would say "Do you feel lucky?" The way around this is to buy older pullets at point of lay, or actual laying hens

 

[tlnichols]

Oh i understand, we did not plan to buy chicks but my seven year old say all the babies auctioned off and began to cry and asked why everyone else got to have them. So last auction of chicks was 2 baby silkies and we won then at $4.25 each.