Partridge Silkies - Nothing else

She looks similar in colouring to my smutty buff girl (or buff partridge...? still not sure) was at that age.

_MG_3714.jpg



Wow yours really darkened up didn't she, they change so much! Gorgeous girl!

She does look very similar doesn't she. Holding on to hope its a girl then lol. Im noticing that mine seems to have a lot less fluffy head at the same age as a lot of others, ie yours at 6 weeks has lot more than mine at 8 weeks. Does that all sort out in the end or does it mean mine is likely to not get the full fluffy head? Not that I mind as she will never be show bird, she got personality not looks lol, its more a curiosity thing as we've no experience with silkies before this.
 
Wow yours really darkened up didn't she, they change so much! Gorgeous girl! She does look very similar doesn't she. Holding on to hope its a girl then lol. Im noticing that mine seems to have a lot less fluffy head at the same age as a lot of others, ie yours at 6 weeks has lot more than mine at 8 weeks. Does that all sort out in the end or does it mean mine is likely to not get the full fluffy head? Not that I mind as she will never be show bird, she got personality not looks lol, its more a curiosity thing as we've no experience with silkies before this.
Thank you :) Yes everyone kept saying "she's very pale" but really she never was. The images washed her out before now for some reason :idunno Right now we call her Steve Jr. because she reminds me of her father.
_MG_5824.jpg
The age in the picture you are quoting is older than your little one. Some silkies take longer to get their crests. I find that the case in a few batches.
_MG_5697.jpg
For example, this one here is 7 weeks old in the picture.
_MG_2276.jpg
As is this one (but this one is a boy for sure)
_MG_5738.jpg
Here is the same one now @ 18 weeks.
 
Thank you!!

Firstly, hope Ive got it right and this is a Partridge Silkie? I was told the markings on its frizzly siblings made them Partridge so guessing this one is the same.

Ive got a couple of photos from when she (Penny for now) was 7 weeks, the head is a little puffier and more noticably darker than the rest now though.



and just cause I couldnt resist :)


She/He is more of a golden colour where its brightest than red. Just too darn cute whatever it is LOL but would appreciate your opinion. We already have one suspected Roo so crossing fingers Penny stays a girl.

Shes what I call 'washed out' - its more common with the Wheaton based partridge than the asiatic partridge... they can be harder to sex than the asiatics....however I am willing to bet shes a girl :)
 
...
yes partridge is a sexable color, the males and females are colored differently and by the time they feather in completely you should know if you have a boy or girl. Males tend to be brighter, but only the males will have the rusty orange/red colors on them - females may have shades of orange or red, but not that rusty tone to the shoulders/back like a male...Males will have little penciling, where females can get a lot of penciling at an early age all over the body.

The girls can carry that colouring just as well as the boys, and the better coloured ones should. It will show in their ground colouring of penciled feathers and on their breasts, hackles and heads. It will not show in male pattern areas (such as the shoulders you mention) as that is a male trait, regardless of whether the mahogany is present or not.
 
Last edited:
The girls can carry that colouring just as well as the boys, and the better coloured ones should. It will show in their ground colouring of penciled feathers and on their breasts, hackles and heads. It will not show in male pattern areas (such as the shoulders you mention) as that is a male trait, regardless of whether the mahogany is present or not.

yes females can have the mahogany/chestnut/bay coloring, but I disagree on it being able to be the same color as a roo. Females tend to be more even in the body, even if they are redder females... and yes they can have red heads or dark heads, so can roos. However males get the rusty coloring on the shoulders/wings/back area, have less penciling than females.

This isn't the best picture because they are in the shade but on the left is the roo (and father of the pullet) the pullet (girl) is on the right, shes very red in color, Jonah has that rusty red on his shoulders its a bolder than it appears in the picture here, but its a great example of red on shoulders for males...The female is a nice red girl, her body tone is red all over, slightly darker than the red of her hackles and crest but still a very even distribution of color.



Here is a red partridge cockerel, note the tone of reddish orange, i've hatched many red birds and never gotten a girl anywhere near as vibrant or bold in color as my roos.


 
Last edited:
I'm loving this color talk! I have a batch of darling partridge chicks, 36 in all (okay...a BIG batch) that are a wide variety of colors. Is there any place online or hardcopy that has detailed color charts for partridges? I would love to have something to hang in their coop to refer to until I get better at this male/female by color identification.

In the meantime, keep on posting these pics! What a great learning experience!!
 
So just wondering, does the partridge colour thing extend to mixed breeds too?

I have a partridge sizzle that is just golden all over with the brown marks on the feathers. Does being one colour with no reddish roo feathers increase its chances of being a girl or does all the mixing in it no longer make that a way to sex them?
 
Last edited:
So just wondering, does the partridge colour thing extend to mixed breeds too?

I have a partridge sizzle that is just golden all over with the brown marks on the feathers. Does being one colour with no reddish roo feathers increase its chances of being a girl or does all the mixing in it no longer make that a way to sex them?
Well, if you post a photo we can help you figure it out, but a partridge should have penciling; that is part of the description of partridge. On silkie feathers, you can see that a pattern is present, but you really cannot judge the quality of the pattern. On regular feathers the quality of the pattern is obvious, and is very important.
 
Well, if you post a photo we can help you figure it out, but a partridge should have penciling; that is part of the description of partridge.  On silkie feathers, you can see that a pattern is present, but you really cannot judge the quality of the pattern.  On regular feathers the quality of the pattern is obvious, and is very important. 


Sorry didn't want to break the nothing but partridge silkies pics rule :)

This is the thread where they said it was a partridge
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/712371/is-there-a-name-for-this-sort-of-colouring#post_9718715

So can photo there which will save me hijacking this thread too much. . As you will see not a sign of any chest or shoulder colour so wondered if that changes the sex guesses.

On another thread it was unanimously a boy but on that thread you (i think) referred to as a she so I'm wondering if its partridge colour trumps the comb shape that was making the guesses boy?
 
Last edited:

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom