Silkie saga

[TwoCrows]

Gadget Tim it might stick. JetPack is a camera hog, but hard to get good photos of. He's always underfoot too. Little ham. With his big chest floof and chick down on his neck, he almost looks like a NN

A lot of my chickens have some form of dinosaur names, the silkies were supposed to be snow based names, thay worked for the white ones, but not sure about the current chicks well, it's already off course with JetPack and Gadget Tim, one of the partridge chicks my friend said it looked like a marshmallow, so I of course had to add maybe a marshmallow you had accidently dropped in the ashes when you went to roast it. Contemplating naming it Ashmallow, or Ashes, or something.
JetPack in his signature pose
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Gadget Tim ready to inspect!
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Ashes, or Lahar, or some equally sooty name
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Here's a painting I did around Christmas in 2020, it's by far the best painting I've ever done, lol. Not sure how that happened, because I'm really not a painter. If you look under the left tree you can see my original 7 chickens, Jersey, Thelma, Louise (3 BAs that I still have), Little Britches, Gladys, Aster, and Cosmos (4 GCs, only 1 remains).
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I've been trying to offer Fizzy some food in a relatively neutral place, so far he's been ignoring it and following me around as I do chores. He's only been kicking the shovel about once per chore time and not a full on attack like he had been. Progress? Maybe...

I also think you should get some drawings going and share photos! I love charcoal drawings! Can't do them, but I love how they look. I had done some graphite drawings in high school and the few years after, but it's hard to find enough time anymore, I'm always looking for quick little things I can squeeze in. When I was still doing leatherwork but was getting tight on time, I used to like making little keychains, cut out a 1 1/2 x 3" or so rectangle and tool a little something on it. Not a keychain, but here's a tooled picture I did of my friend's stud.
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And others...
Bridle and chinks I made
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Another bridle on my horse Red
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Self explanatory, and fun
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Good morning!

The chicks sure are growing well, and fast! JetPack really looks regal there, what a handsome guy! ❤ Gadget Tim is adorable and I love Ashes!!! Perfect name and her color is gorgeous! They really have turned out nice, SO pretty! Brought a huge smile to my face.

Holy Crow, you are INCREDIBLY talented!!!! For someone that's says they aren't a painter, you sure did a wonderful job on that painting, I love it!! ❤ And the leather burning and bridles, you really know your leather! Leather is tough stuff, the bridles had to be difficult to make? Anyway, wow, just wow, you are an artist!!!

Thanks for sharing all your photos and talents!

Labor Day weekend is quickly approaching, do you have Monday off? Hopefully you do. Have a great day today!

 

[Fluffy_Moth_With_Silkies]

They're so cute! I have a few silkies, and there's nothing cuter! These look like healthy (Though feisty) babies! I'm so excited to see growth later on.

 

[2ndTink]

They're so cute! I have a few silkies, and there's nothing cuter! These look like healthy (Though feisty) babies! I'm so excited to see growth later on.

There are a couple extra fiesty ones! I'm excited to see how they grow out too. I know I'm going to have a terribly hard time picking which ones I keep and which to give to me friend and then selling the others.

 

[2ndTink]

Good morning!

The chicks sure are growing well, and fast! JetPack really looks regal there, what a handsome guy! ❤ Gadget Tim is adorable and I love Ashes!!! Perfect name and her color is gorgeous! They really have turned out nice, SO pretty! Brought a huge smile to my face.

Holy Crow, you are INCREDIBLY talented!!!! For someone that's says they aren't a painter, you sure did a wonderful job on that painting, I love it!! ❤ And the leather burning and bridles, you really know your leather! Leather is tough stuff, the bridles had to be difficult to make? Anyway, wow, just wow, you are an artist!!!

Thanks for sharing all your photos and talents!

Labor Day weekend is quickly approaching, do you have Monday off? Hopefully you do. Have a great day today!

Aw shucks, thanks for the compliments. I mostly tinker, in a lot of things, lol, my moniker is Tink, I ride with a motorcycle ministry, hence the handle on here. I really enjoy making things, I love making gifts for people I love. Home made gifts for the holidays, it really is satisfying. Once you have the basics down, making bridles isn't hard, for me it was time consuming because I liked them to be as perfect as possible and I rarely did the same pattern twice so it was always developing a new pattern, cutting it out, tooling, dying, and burnishing edges. I was lucky to learn a bit from a guy while I was in high school, then just messed around with it for years and got my way of doing things down. I haven't done it in so long I'm super rusty now. I just refleece a saddle or two per year now.

I have Monday off, but I've been so swamped at work I haven't had time to get my 2024 budgets together for my three departments, so I'll be doing that this weekend. I know I say every week is bonkers, crazy, and stressful, somehow each week seems to find its own new level of stress and crazy. This past week was no exception. It would be great to have some slower weeks for awhile, but no chance of that, so thankfully there are cute chicks and chickens to come home too. Along with my amazing hubby too, he deserves huge credit! I have no clue what I'd do without him.

I'm hoping to paint more this weekend, I'll post photos if I get them done!

 

[Quail_]

First of all, I'm not sure how I ended up with bantam silkies. If any of you have seen the video clip going around where a lady says that she tripped near the chicks at TSC and she doesn't know how it happened but chicks just fell into a box, that fell into her cart, and onto the register, and then into her car. I completely understand, I am also clumsy at times and this completely explains how I came home from TSC last Saturday with 4 bantam chicks mysteriously in a box, on my lap, in the truck. Well, once they were in the truck of course I had to get then somewhere warm with food and water so into the brooder they went with the 7 other chicks that somehow ended up riding home with us 2 weeks prior. (This was a "no new chickens" year)

I made the little silkies a hide, they took to it right away, but one also took to trying to eat the comb off the head of a bigger chick, like full on beak clamped down thrashing its little body back and forth trying to rip the poor chicks single comb off its head. I was watching for signs of bullying from the bigger chicks on the little chicks which would mean I'd set up a second brooder, but I wasn't prepared to protect the big chicks from the little itty bitty poofs of silkie fury.

This is my first time with silkies, my current knowledge is limited to what I've read here and online over the past few years of having various other standard sized breeds.

My observations so far:
- holy mackerel they are CUTE!!!
‐ they are pretty quiet and not overly rambunctious
- they will pile in a corner and fight to have their beaks smooshed into the 90 deg bend of the brooder
- they vigorously pull each other's fluff, the one who's feathers are being pulled completely ignores the fact that they are trying to be eaten
- they try to eat the bigger chicks freshly grown feathers right off their bodies
- they happily peck at the side of the brooder to try and eat it
- they freak out over mash and then get zonked in a food coma

And, today I saw one opening its beak to breath in, not good! I picked it up and could hear it gasping for breath. I took it to better light to check it out ans finally found a little growth like thing in the corner of its beak. Using some tweezers I tried to touch it, the chick was trying to get away and seemed like me touching it was uncomfortable. I was able to grab the mystery growth a little ans the chick ripped its head sideways and I caught a glimpse of something flesh colored, had a moments panic that I just ripped its tongue out. Got a second hold on it and out popped a penny sized piece of shaving. Thankfully the chick immediately improved.

These little poofs are off to a good start, and I'm excited to see them grow and looking forward to all the entertainment they'll bring. They are straight run so also hoping there are mostly pullets... not sure I'll keep any more roos. We already have an EE roo and he is plenty.

Yay silkies!

I miss when my silkie was a tiny bby. He was so cute and more loving back then

 

[TwoCrows]

Aw shucks, thanks for the compliments. I mostly tinker, in a lot of things, lol, my moniker is Tink, I ride with a motorcycle ministry, hence the handle on here. I really enjoy making things, I love making gifts for people I love. Home made gifts for the holidays, it really is satisfying. Once you have the basics down, making bridles isn't hard, for me it was time consuming because I liked them to be as perfect as possible and I rarely did the same pattern twice so it was always developing a new pattern, cutting it out, tooling, dying, and burnishing edges. I was lucky to learn a bit from a guy while I was in high school, then just messed around with it for years and got my way of doing things down. I haven't done it in so long I'm super rusty now. I just refleece a saddle or two per year now.

I have Monday off, but I've been so swamped at work I haven't had time to get my 2024 budgets together for my three departments, so I'll be doing that this weekend. I know I say every week is bonkers, crazy, and stressful, somehow each week seems to find its own new level of stress and crazy. This past week was no exception. It would be great to have some slower weeks for awhile, but no chance of that, so thankfully there are cute chicks and chickens to come home too. Along with my amazing hubby too, he deserves huge credit! I have no clue what I'd do without him.

I'm hoping to paint more this weekend, I'll post photos if I get them done!

Tinkering with things can be good for you. I am a tinkerer too, it helps to satisfy our curiosity about stuff along with allowing us to learn. Also opens new doors that may have stayed shut! I find art and projects to be very meditative, you have to really shut your chattering mind off and concentrate on the task at hand, really calms the nerves.

Sounds like you have a lot on your plate these days! Hopefully things start to slow down for you soon. I can't juggle too much anymore, I'm running out of steam lately, low battery or something.

Well I hope you can find a few spare moments for yourself this weekend, give all your cutie pie babies some lovin' for me!

 

[2ndTink]

I miss when my silkie was a tiny bby. He was so cute and more loving back then

Then they turn into squirrel-y tweens before settling into being responsible adults

 

[2ndTink]

Tinkering with things can be good for you. I am a tinkerer too, it helps to satisfy our curiosity about stuff along with allowing us to learn. Also opens new doors that may have stayed shut! I find art and projects to be very meditative, you have to really shut your chattering mind off and concentrate on the task at hand, really calms the nerves.

Sounds like you have a lot on your plate these days! Hopefully things start to slow down for you soon. I can't juggle too much anymore, I'm running out of steam lately, low battery or something.

Well I hope you can find a few spare moments for yourself this weekend, give all your cutie pie babies some lovin' for me!

It's been a busy weekend, not a whole lot of time for the chickens, I did go hang with the silkie chicks after we got home last night, woke them up to give them some mash just to hear them do their cute chatter. I'm pretty sure that sound has healing power we went Friday to see our friend in the hospital, such a relief to see them doing ok, long road to go, but we were too close to losing them last weekend. Crazy horrible situation. It's the type of thing you see on 48 Hours or Dateline, not what happens to people you love and depend on. Plus more craziness at work, had to terminate one on my team for out of line behavior, and another one quit. The loss of knowledge is always regrettable, but the removal of bad behavior and bad attitudes from the team is a positive thing. Ugh, life is rough, thank God for cute chickens, good friends, and an amazing hubby.

I worked on the paintings again today, kinda got stuck, not sure what to do next, they aren't looking like I had envisioned, of course. My dad recommended just to stop, give them their eyes and beaks, maybe a few highlights and call it good.

I need to get new pictures of the satin with the partridge-ish feathers going on. Her head is coming in black and she looks really good!

I've been running on fumes and adrenaline for over a year and a half now, it's really wearing on me, but I'm determined to make it, lol. I may have a slight stubborn streak. I burned myself out at my last job, took a long time to accomplish that, went to a new company, loved my first position, but somehow just absorbed everyone's jobs as they left the company and now I've been dancing on the verge of burn out again for far too long. Anyway, this isn't chickens, so back on track.... we're about to head to get the weeks worth of feed for the flocks. They sure can put the grub away!

 

[2ndTink]

And, the hubby has decided he REALLY likes the paint cockerel too and would like to keep him. He is now named Chonkers because he's so stout. Chonkers does not like the flash

 

[TwoCrows]

It's been a busy weekend, not a whole lot of time for the chickens, I did go hang with the silkie chicks after we got home last night, woke them up to give them some mash just to hear them do their cute chatter. I'm pretty sure that sound has healing power we went Friday to see our friend in the hospital, such a relief to see them doing ok, long road to go, but we were too close to losing them last weekend. Crazy horrible situation. It's the type of thing you see on 48 Hours or Dateline, not what happens to people you love and depend on. Plus more craziness at work, had to terminate one on my team for out of line behavior, and another one quit. The loss of knowledge is always regrettable, but the removal of bad behavior and bad attitudes from the team is a positive thing. Ugh, life is rough, thank God for cute chickens, good friends, and an amazing hubby.

I worked on the paintings again today, kinda got stuck, not sure what to do next, they aren't looking like I had envisioned, of course. My dad recommended just to stop, give them their eyes and beaks, maybe a few highlights and call it good.

I need to get new pictures of the satin with the partridge-ish feathers going on. Her head is coming in black and she looks really good!

I've been running on fumes and adrenaline for over a year and a half now, it's really wearing on me, but I'm determined to make it, lol. I may have a slight stubborn streak. I burned myself out at my last job, took a long time to accomplish that, went to a new company, loved my first position, but somehow just absorbed everyone's jobs as they left the company and now I've been dancing on the verge of burn out again for far too long. Anyway, this isn't chickens, so back on track.... we're about to head to get the weeks worth of feed for the flocks. They sure can put the grub away!

Chickens DEFINITELY have healing powers, they have saved my life a few times. Sounds like you need a lot of hugs, life can definitely wear a person down. Glad your friend is ok, hopefully they heal soon and make a full recovery!! I recently lost my best friend to cancer and it definitely rips the heart out. Not easy to see them in the hospital, I know. Well, definitely make time for yourself this weekend before you go back to work, do get so burned out you get sick.

And, the hubby has decided he REALLY likes the paint cockerel too and would like to keep him. He is now named Chonkers because he's so stout. Chonkers does not like the flash

Awwww.... what a cutie pie!!! So darn cute!!! What a fun name, Chonkers, he is adorable, squinty eyes and all.

Well my dear, have a quiet restful evening!!