Is there a way to tell about what age a silkie is?

[mandamay28]

I bought a pair of silkies. The breeder said they are both under 11 months old. I don't know a lot about silkies... except they are totally adorable and were a complete impulse buy! They both had been standing in poo and the hen was quite dirty. I bathed her as soon as we got home and noticed her breathing was gurgled. Started her on Tylan and she is doing much better now! She has not laid an eggs... I'm assuming its from the stress of the illness coupled with a new home. I'm just wondering if she's old enough to n=be laying yet....

TIA

 

[Venevee]

Hello!

They look pretty close to a year old. The rooster can easily be identified as a roo, which I found is hard to distinguish with this particular breed at a young age. I had two black silkies before, and for the longest time I thought one of them was a hen. He took forever to start crowing, and once he did, he was about 8-9 months at the time! And he still kinda looked like a hen at the time. I would say they are close to 9-10 months.