Illinois...

Malthus · May 6, 2020

Hard say the age but they aren't laying yet. I'm building the coop now and it should be done in a few days.

WhyDoILikeChickens · May 6, 2020

All the severe hot and cold swings we had I was worried my lilacs wouldn't bloom. Got about half so far whew.

WhyDoILikeChickens · May 6, 2020

Malthus said:
Hard say the age but they aren't laying yet. I'm building the coop now and it should be done in a few days.

I think @Faraday40 and homeschooling momma are more versed on the silkies. Typically these little buggers are tougher than we give credit for. Have any pictures of them? Might help.
Here is most my my birds I bothered while they were sleeping

Molpet · May 6, 2020

Faraday40 said:
I will add that they are very fresh & fertile. I got 100% hatch.

How many white ones did you get?
The 2 hens that were due today brought the poults out. Mama had both eggs hatch and both are brown. Her daughter has 4 brown poults. Another brown pipped and quit....2 other eggs were late quiters, one was an old bait egg that I didn't expect to develop at all. I didn't know how how many eggs she had. I was trying for 2 or 3 eggs a hen....11 more hens are sitting and 2 still laying.

Still have eggs if anyone wants to incubate

homeschoolin momma · May 6, 2020

@Malthus silkies are actually quite hardy. They do fine here in Illinois winter as long as they have a draft free place to escape to. A well draining run with mulch or sand is good for a run as they do need a way to keep their feet clean as they have those silkie feathers on them.

Silkies primary function in life is to
A. Be a mother. If it peeps, they want to mother it. A lot of people have at least one silkie hen to help raise chicks. They are good at brooding and raising their young.

B. Being loved. Snuggled. Held. Groomed. Pampered. Tv time with you. Its who they are.

It sounds like these two are pretty young if they were Easter gift chicks. Silkies are notoriously difficult to sex, usually around 15-16 weeks, but occasionally sooner.

This is my silkie -serama Phoenix. Her momma is a full silkie and her dad a full serama. She looks like a miniature silkie. Not the prettiest thing in my flock, but one of the sweetest.
@Faraday40 has her mom and dad.

Faraday40 · May 6, 2020

Phoe's mom (@homeschoolin momma 's cuddly little hen) is our splash silkie - named Xansie.
Xansie is beyond spoiled. She has traveled with us, gets "spa days" where she may end up with painted nails or dyed pink, goes to the park, and has been in a few parades. She also visits schools, so most of the kids in town know her by name.

Speaking of spoiled. DD's silkie (& her little serama rooster) are both in the house at the moment. The serama rooster always sleeps in DD's room but when the weather is above freezing, he goes outside to visit the bantam hens.

If you have a female silkie, she will have a very rounded crest like this:

Males get 'streamers' (longer hairlike crest) and may have darker shoulders. They stand more upright while females have a more rounded stance.

My silkies can stand the cold but they have Orpingtons to keep them warm.

Malthus · May 6, 2020

Faraday40 said:
Phoe's mom (@homeschoolin momma 's cuddly little hen) is our splash silkie - named Xansie.
Xansie is beyond spoiled. She has traveled with us, gets "spa days" where she may end up with painted nails or dyed pink, goes to the park, and has been in a few parades. She also visits schools, so most of the kids in town know her by name.

Speaking of spoiled. DD's silkie (& her little serama rooster) are both in the house at the moment. The serama rooster always sleeps in DD's room but when the weather is above freezing, he goes outside to visit the bantam hens.

If you have a female silkie, she will have a very rounded crest like this:
View attachment 2126365

Males get 'streamers' (longer hairlike crest) and may have darker shoulders. They stand more upright while females have a more rounded stance.

My silkies can stand the cold but they have Orpingtons to keep them warm.

What a cutie!

Justso · May 6, 2020

Malthus said:
Hard say the age but they aren't laying yet. I'm building the coop now and it should be done in a few days.

Welcome Malthus! :frow

I suggest building a big coop, you'll soon learn chicken math.
I think soon there will be quite a few of us who will be ready to shift chickens to someone needing more.

BReeder! · May 7, 2020

Faraday40 said:
How old are the chicks? The 2 I gave you are 5 weeks. They're old enough to go outside if you can give them a heating pad. It might be worth the extension cord to get them out of the house. (Garage brooder? Another option to get them out) By 6 weeks, they should be OK with a huddle house. Basically a box in which they may cuddle & hold a bit of body heat.

Culling is hard. (Well perhaps A'hole won't be too hard for you.) There is probably a decent market right now for people wanting hens. A new home might be better for the hens as well as your fingers and conscience. Part of the reason I like selling chicks is seeing how happy families are with their new birds and then getting updates as they grow up. Many people want guaranteed females but having a hen already laying and in good health will give eggs right away without the 6-9 month wait.

If you don't mind collecting more quail eggs, I'd be happy to slip you a turkey. The quail are laying 0-2 eggs per day. The lonely only quail chick died, so I set another 9 eggs. Only 3 developed. They will go into lockdown today.

I'll start collecting quail eggs. Next Sunday, May 17, is likely the best day for me to meet. I should have a good amount of eggs by then. I'll try to keep them in the best conditions I can. I might have some quail egg foam laying around to keep them upright. I'll keep them in the den where it's slightly cooler (mid-60s) and a bit humid thanks to the aquarium.

As for the chicks, it's less of a matter of getting them out of the house and more of an issue of brooder space. We have electric in the shed coop. I'm want to get our large dog crate setup as a brooder again (did this twice before to transition chicks as well as to brood ducks). DS loves having the birds in the house where he can see them and help care for them easily. That's the only reason I might keep the younger (from you) two inside a bit longer.

BReeder! · May 7, 2020

Now I need to address the culling I mentioned and some of you have commented on. DW changed her mind about the chickens (doesn't seem to even recall having the notion to cull the older hens now :confused:

). The quail are still alive, too. I didn't have the time and energy to process them. I did managed to get the two extra drakes processed though this evening. It took about 2.5 hours all together. That includes setting up, slaughtering, plucking, cleaning, cleaning some more, packing, and then cleaning the mess.

Be warned, graphic pics of processing two drakes: