Silkie bantam, is it a Rooster or Hen?

[Kessel23]

TL is 10 months old, I wish he/she would reveal if he/she was a he or a she

 

[Rstine]

Looks like a hen to me. I have one silkie hen and one roo. Mine is just at a year old and has only been laying for a few weeks.

 

[Crazy for Chickens!]

I think it's a hen. A rooster would have a much bigger comb and wattles at this age, ad well as a spiky, hair like crest. I hope she has more room than a plastic tote?

 

[Kessel23]

I think it's a hen. A rooster would have a much bigger comb and wattles at this age, ad well as a spiky, hair like crest. I hope she has more room than a plastic tote?

Yes, TL stays in a rather small plastic tote at night but she is moved to my rabbit hutch during the day, and once it warms up around here I will let TL move back out to her old coop where she lived with other bantams in the spring & summer. I heard Silkies are very cold hardy but I am not sure if that goes for Silkie bantams to, i'm sure someone here knows though. I had to move TL from her other coop because the weather dropped below 0*F and her coop was not insulated, also she often gets her crest wet when drinking and it would freeze, which i'm sure can't be good for any Silkie. My rabbit hutch is insulated but it can still drop below 0 at night if it is really cold out. Currently it has been around 15* F out but it will drop to 0 or below at night. The rabbit hutch reaches around 35* during the day. The winters are always a problem for me, I lost only 2 birds this whole year to predators, 5 young birds from illness in the summer and so far I have lost 3 birds from the cold, I try to only pick cold hardy birds and 3 is not bad, this year has been pretty good for me. I obviously can't bring the whole flock in for the winter and my main coop is insulated but TL's small coop just housed TL, and another bantam Silkie and was not insulated, so I decided it would be best to give her some special care.

 

[Kessel23]

Update on TL: Okay so it has been a little while since you guys have seen TL, and sense then he/she has started to grow long skinny feathers out of his/her crest. Does this mean TL is a rooster?

There is not that many little feathers shooting out but they have appeared very quickly only 2 or 3 days ago. TL has always had problems with his/her crest, I have to trim it at least once a month, at one point it got so big that it completely covered his/her eyes, he/she could not even eat. I only trim the front sides of his/her crest and a little of his/her tuff so that he/she can see and eat. I have not messed with these spike things and they seem to only be coming out of the back of his/her crest. Does this mean TL is a rooster? If so I think I will need to get him some lady friends from the fur & feathers this year. Also, if this does mean TL is for sure a he then that is good because I can stop saying he/she and just say HE

 

[Mylied]

If they were streamers, they would have shown up a while ago. I'm sticking with pullet.

 

[Hazelbunny]

She's a hen

 

[AlleysChicks]

I like to think that silkie roosters have mullets. Business in the front, party in the back(streamers) lol

 

[Kessel23]

If they were streamers, they would have shown up a while ago. I'm sticking with pullet.

Ok, I still would much prefer TL to be a pullet, thanks for the quick response! TL sure is taking her time

Also, I got TL on April 15 last year, she was 2 weeks old when I got her and likely hatched around April 1st. This makes TL around 10 months and 17 days old, it shocks me that she has not laid an egg yet or tried to crow yet, if TL is a rooster. Although, I am not an expert on silkies or bantams so I don't really know what I am talking about in this situation
That is why I need you guys

 

[Kessel23]

Thanks everyone