Silkie Sexing

[shishimarie]

Hi everyone,
I have a 10wk old silkie. I wondering if anyone can tell if it’s a girl or boy.
Thanks for any input
Jennifer

 

[MissRaychel91]

I'd say roo, but I'm no expert on silkies. Just from experience with mine and some of what I read it looks more like a cockerel.

 

[Plantiebee]

I am in the same boat as you...waiting and watching to see if mine are male or female! My guess is also that it's a roo but you never know till it lays an egg

 

[The_Miraculous_Pigmy_Owl]

This is a tough one as this breed is hard to sex at a young age but here are some tips that i find are helpful for sexing silkies:

1) Look at the feathers on the chick's head. Males tend to have feathers that stand upright and curve towards the back, while the female head feathers tend to form in a rounded feather puff.

2)Look at the comb when it develops within two to three weeks of the chick's birth. a male will have a larger comb than a female.

3) Males are significantly larger than females, and this can be obvious a few days after hatching. This isn't considered a certain method of sexing though because you may just have a large female or a small male. It's also a poor method if you are trying to compare chicks from two different genetic lines.

4) Listen for crowing. The chicks will start losing the fluffy baby feathers around four of five months. At that time a male silkie will start attempting to crow.

5) Look at the saddle feathers just before the tail and the hackle feathers on the neck. These feathers will be long and sharp on a male and gently rounded on a female

6) look for streamers coming out of the crest, these 99% of the time indicate a cockerel


this is not my advice and I do not take credit for it I just saved a draft for when I get silkies this advice is by hdowden you can go to learning center and the article should come up

 

[AlleysChicks]

Check those wattles out. I can see a clear shot of the comb but I bet you have a cockerel.

 

[Stacyoung13]

I agree, cockerel, but only by comparing it to mine. Here are a couple of pics, you can compare.
roo hen
They are almost 5 months old. Good luck !! Gorgeous bird

 

[The_Miraculous_Pigmy_Owl]

no matter what sex you get silkie are very calm and nice so it shouldn't matter if you get a rooster
I kinda looks more girlish though

 

[SGH]

This is a tough one as this breed is hard to sex at a young age but here are some tips that i find are helpful for sexing silkies:

1) Look at the feathers on the chick's head. Males tend to have feathers that stand upright and curve towards the back, while the female head feathers tend to form in a rounded feather puff.

2)Look at the comb when it develops within two to three weeks of the chick's birth. a male will have a larger comb than a female.

3) Males are significantly larger than females, and this can be obvious a few days after hatching. This isn't considered a certain method of sexing though because you may just have a large female or a small male. It's also a poor method if you are trying to compare chicks from two different genetic lines.

4) Listen for crowing. The chicks will start losing the fluffy baby feathers around four of five months. At that time a male silkie will start attempting to crow.

5) Look at the saddle feathers just before the tail and the hackle feathers on the neck. These feathers will be long and sharp on a male and gently rounded on a female

6) look for streamers coming out of the crest, these 99% of the time indicate a cockerel


this is not my advice and I do not take credit for it I just saved a draft for when I get silkies this advice is by hdowden you can go to learning center and the article should come up

#3... Well crap, my favorite Silkie chick is WAY bigger than the rest. And I have named her Peaches! It’s probably Peaches the Cockerel

 

[HillBilly64]

#3... Well crap, my favorite Silkie chick is WAY bigger than the rest. And I have named her Peaches! It’s probably Peaches the Cockerel

My rooster was the smallest for quite a while. Then all of a sudden he was twice the size of the others and crowing Her name was Spice - but it's stuck now he's a boy.