Silkie breeding, genetics & showing

[Adoravachick]

Is your rooster molting by any chance? Roosters lose fertility during a molt I've heard.

I checked him over yesterday to see if he may have any buggies or check for molting, everything looked fine. I was told by an experienced local breeder that he may just need to rest away from the hens to get him back up and running. Everyone is due for worming, any suggestions on something good to use?

 

[aoxa]

I checked him over yesterday to see if he may have any buggies or check for molting, everything looked fine.  I was told by an experienced local breeder that he may just need to rest away from the hens to get him back up and running.  Everyone is due for worming, any suggestions on something good to use?

Pumpkins if they aren't infested with them! Really good at preventing intestinal parasites, plus it's an awesome treat

My 3 year old silkie rooster is a horn dog. Even if he is molting

 

[Hawkeye95]

What do you guys think about comb size in roosters? I was talking to a friend over the phone a few days back and we were pondering if it similar to a buck's antlers. Larger comb size=more aggression. I sat and watched my silkies interact and did notice that my boy with the biggest comb was indeed the roughest one of the group. Hmm. Then is it truly a desirable characteristic to make comb as small as possible?

Sonoran (and many others) have all said that the larger the combs, the more fertile they seem to be. You really don't want to breed down to a very small comb on boys, or you will wind up with a rooster that can't do his job. Here's an odd thing I've noticed in my group-- and not saying this is typical of anything other than MY birds. My blue boys are far more aggressive than my splash boys. I have one splash boy with a really big comb and even he is not as mean as my blue boys with half the size of comb. I have a bachelor pen and they are all in there together. They all get along with each other fine-- other than the odd scuffle here and there, but those blue boys-- yikes! I have 3 mature blues in there and 5 splash boys.

My poor baby is ashamed of losing her first show

She didn't even want to come out of her coop for a photoshoot

Poor dear...

VERY pretty splash girl! Is she out of Three Cedars?

I only the one breeding age rooster I have, isn't fertilizing the eggs. I don't know for sure how old he is, so it's very possible that he is just older. I was planning on hatching through the winter, but this certianly brings me to a screeching hault. Is it possible that he just needs a break from the hens or does he need to be put under lights? The hens are still laying, but this rooster is just acting completely disinterested. He isn't even strutting anymore. So, now, I am really in the market for a new rooster so I can continue to hatch through the winter. (wink wink)

Likely molting right now! With silkies, you aren't going to SEE bare spots or much evidence of molting. (at least, I don't on mine!) Mine are molting and look just as fluffy as ever-- but their pen looks like a feather pillow exploded in there! But to check over the birds, I can't tell that they are molting, I can just see the fluff everywhere on the ground, stuck in the fencing-- looks like snow! If he has the type, wings and feet you want, hang onto him. By bringing in another boy, you could be bringing in issues you already have worked out. Once molt is over, I'd just do AI with him. I don't even bother anymore with relying on natural breeding. It messes up my girls when I'm still trying to show, and I don't want to trim up my boys. When I'm breeding, I bring them all into my garage and put them in pens. I mark on eggs who is who, and what breedings I'm doing. Then when they hatch, I know who the parents are. I rotate my breeders out so I don't load my incubator up with lots of diff parents and then have chicks hatch and won't know who is who. I have a small incubator (Brinsea Octagon), so I don't have a cabinet that I can put them on different shelves to sort them like a lot of people do. I think next on my list is another Brinsea!

I checked him over yesterday to see if he may have any buggies or check for molting, everything looked fine. I was told by an experienced local breeder that he may just need to rest away from the hens to get him back up and running. Everyone is due for worming, any suggestions on something good to use?

I use Wazine in the water while they are molting. I just did my layers and silkies about 2 weeks ago when they started to molt.

 

[Adoravachick]

Likely molting right now! With silkies, you aren't going to SEE bare spots or much evidence of molting. (at least, I don't on mine!) Mine are molting and look just as fluffy as ever-- but their pen looks like a feather pillow exploded in there! But to check over the birds, I can't tell that they are molting, I can just see the fluff everywhere on the ground, stuck in the fencing-- looks like snow! If he has the type, wings and feet you want, hang onto him. By bringing in another boy, you could be bringing in issues you already have worked out. Once molt is over, I'd just do AI with him. I don't even bother anymore with relying on natural breeding. It messes up my girls when I'm still trying to show, and I don't want to trim up my boys. When I'm breeding, I bring them all into my garage and put them in pens. I mark on eggs who is who, and what breedings I'm doing. Then when they hatch, I know who the parents are. I rotate my breeders out so I don't load my incubator up with lots of diff parents and then have chicks hatch and won't know who is who. I have a small incubator (Brinsea Octagon), so I don't have a cabinet that I can put them on different shelves to sort them like a lot of people do. I think next on my list is another Brinsea!



I use Wazine in the water while they are molting. I just did my layers and silkies about 2 weeks ago when they started to molt.

I am really not crazy about him in general. He's a sweetheart, but lacking in three areas that do bug me. The crest, tail, and cushion. I do have a few nice up and coming boys, if they don't cut the mustard, they will have to find new homes.

If you had the choice, what would you keep for a breeding pen? AWESOME type with nice everything, expect a couple discolored feathers in the crest or a boy with also nice type, maybe a few hard feathers in the pen....but has horns in the comb?

 

[Hawkeye95]

I am really not crazy about him in general. He's a sweetheart, but lacking in three areas that do bug me. The crest, tail, and cushion. I do have a few nice up and coming boys, if they don't cut the mustard, they will have to find new homes.

If you had the choice, what would you keep for a breeding pen? AWESOME type with nice everything, expect a couple discolored feathers in the crest or a boy with also nice type, maybe a few hard feathers in the pen....but has horns in the comb?

I have super, super bad luck, so if you are talking about gold/silver leakage, that is a deal breaker for me. Maybe others can work around it or have a good plan of attack for that, but my luck just won't hold. LOL So I only use clear birds. I would take the type-- depending on what the faults were. The comb can be bred back out with good culling-- but that means never doing it again. I have a tough time myself deciding. I have 3 more boys that need to find pet homes. Their crests are just not big enough, and one has a slight wry to the tail. I doubt anyone else would spot it! Your crest, tail and cushion are really a big part of the type that you are wanting to breed for, so if he doesn't have those things, I would not use him. Set them up on a table or stool and get a couple of pictures of each and really go over their faults and what you can live with if it is passed on. If you really hate it, it's likely it will be passed on. (that's my luck, anyway)

 

[chickendales]

I have super, super bad luck, so if you are talking about gold/silver leakage, that is a deal breaker for me. Maybe others can work around it or have a good plan of attack for that, but my luck just won't hold. LOL So I only use clear birds. I would take the type-- depending on what the faults were. The comb can be bred back out with good culling-- but that means never doing it again. I have a tough time myself deciding. I have 3 more boys that need to find pet homes. Their crests are just not big enough, and one has a slight wry to the tail. I doubt anyone else would spot it! Your crest, tail and cushion are really a big part of the type that you are wanting to breed for, so if he doesn't have those things, I would not use him. Set them up on a table or stool and get a couple of pictures of each and really go over their faults and what you can live with if it is passed on. If you really hate it, it's likely it will be passed on. (that's my luck, anyway)

i only get leakage in my boys,but only once in a while but i try keep male with clear to very lil leakage now that dosent mean always because just got blue cock that my freind used all summer with some lovely results that im going use next year and he has some leakage

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

looking for showgirl\silkie breeders in texas for some looking get some birds let me know thanks

Bren Gambrel of Cozy Silkies.

 

[aoxa]

i only get leakage in my boys,but only once in a while but i try keep male with clear to very lil leakage now that dosent mean always because just got blue cock that my freind used all summer with some lovely results that im going use next year and he has some leakage 

With blues leakage is common in other breeds - in boys. I'd take the one with the very littlest leakage.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote: On the silkie club website we discussed blow drying versus drying under a heat lamp, and the overall consensus was that they get just as fluffy drying under a heat lamp as with a blow dryer. FWIW, I have also stuck a wet bird into an (cabinet) incubator to dry it.

 

[aoxa]

Baby got back. I am waiting for my cockerel to finish growing in his crest/hackles right now. He has a very nice black comb.

Until then he won't let me take his picture :/

Here's Phyllis this weekend though.