silkie roos and other breed hens

OpalRaven7

In the Brooder
8 Years
Apr 14, 2011
40
0
32
Poughkeepsie
I just got 4 silkie chicks, and am not sure who is going to be hens/roos. They are living at my friends house with other breeds of chickens. If they mate with her chickens when they grow up will they ruin her eggs? She has larger hens, cochin, rir, americuana, orpington and austrolorps... Or should I just keep the silkies separate from hers when they get older?
 
That depends what you mean by "ruin". If the eggs are to be eaten, it makes no difference at all which chickens are mating with which other chickens.

If she hatches her eggs for the purpose of more laying hens, then, she will bring down her laying average by introducing a more broody bloodline.
 
You mean offspring fathered by the Silkie rooster from her hens eggs? Yes, they will lay smaller eggs than their moms did.

Her current hens will be totally the same in their egg laying abilities no matter if there is a Jersey Giant rooster in there or a Silkie rooster in there with them. It is the genetic makeup of her current hens (plus living conditions such as food and cleanliness) that determine what size eggs and how many are laid.

Roosters only make a difference if there are too many of them and the hens are way stressed out. Stressed out hens do lay less eggs. Your Silkies aren't going to make a difference in her hens laying ability.
 
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