Silkie thread!

[Colie <3]

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Just in case you didn't already think of this. Try just sitting down in the mist of them with some food in a small dish. Sprinkle it in around you and wait

Just takes one to get the nerve and then the rest will follow. After awhile when they get used to you being around them you could move on to picking them up. Mine are 7 weeks old and are ok with being picked up if they have no choice. Nobody seems to happy about the idea of the "giant" coming up to them and grabbing them though.

btw my dh just figured out I have plans to hatch some eggs... I didn't tell him I'm expecting about 3 dozen eggs in the mail haha! He's gonna freakin' kill me! Still waiting for him to warm up to the silkies, he says he doesn't hate them, but "they're chickens" so I guess that means he doesn't see the point.

He said "why are you gonna hatch eggs for? I thought you got chickens to have eggs to eat?"
I'm like "uhhhh what part of I want to get into showing and breeding my own potential show stock did you not understand?"

This is me ~~~>>>

 

[Colie <3]

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ohhh yeah roo!

 

[reereechickens]

Colie <3 :

Quote:
Just in case you didn't already think of this. Try just sitting down in the mist of them with some food in a small dish. Sprinkle it in around you and wait

Just takes one to get the nerve and then the rest will follow. After awhile when they get used to you being around them you could move on to picking them up. Mine are 7 weeks old and are ok with being picked up if they have no choice. Nobody seems to happy about the idea of the "giant" coming up to them and grabbing them though.

btw my dh just figured out I have plans to hatch some eggs... I didn't tell him I'm expecting about 3 dozen eggs in the mail haha! He's gonna freakin' kill me! Still waiting for him to warm up to the silkies, he says he doesn't hate them, but "they're chickens" so I guess that means he doesn't see the point.

He said "why are you gonna hatch eggs for? I thought you got chickens to have eggs to eat?"
I'm like "uhhhh what part of I want to get into showing and breeding my own potential show stock did you not understand?"

This is me ~~~>>>

Chicken math is so funny! Thanks!

 

[MyKidLuvsGreenEgz]

Just wonderng... we have all of these baby silkies and bantam eggers (2 weeks old) in a bedroom box-maze brooder right now. But we're going to start building their coops in another week or two. Wondering about size of coop.

I have one for them to grow out in but when they are old enough to separate to breed, there will be only three per coop: one boy and 2 girls. So once they are in their Trio Pens will this be enough room: 4w x 4d x 2tall housing with a run 4x8. And the house will be 2 feet of the ground for shade under the house because summers get very hot. Ramp up to pop door. Roost towards front of house (forgot to add to pic).

Thanks.

ETA: Door at back (right in pic) swings open, and latches in the middle. That's that blue line.

Soffit / air vent (small) above food and water.

Sloping roof (slope towards back or side) with metal/tin roofing, with large overhang in front to prevent snow, wind and rain from coming in.

 

[kfchickenlady]

cool, thats what Im planning now, would like to hear responses on this from experienced silkie breeders. I want the side door to swing open for easy cleaning, etc. too. Nice plan!

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

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Plenty of room for a trio of silkies; nice plans. That said, every coop or pen I build, is altered a bit as I continually find things to improve or try out.

 

[Cindilou]

So do all silkie roos end up with that kind of comb? I'm trying to figure out if mine is a roo or hen. It's about 11 weeks old or so. It's buddy that we got with it is about 10 weeks old and it still hasn't grown hardly. I don't think the little one is going to do so well. Cleaned up her lice infestation when we got her and she still has barely opened her eyes in over a month.

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[Colie <3]

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Edit to say: If this is a plan for a trio then I then it's spectacular!

Size wise IMO the coop and run would fit 8 max of bantams. The run would be 4 sq ft per bantam and the coop area would give you 2 sq ft per. I've heard about people using 1.5 sq ft of coop space per bantam but unless you're run was over sized or they would be spending a lot of time free around your yard I wouldn't even try more than 8. Just my .02

 

[Tanichca]

Moving all the "show" babies to the personal cages tomorrow, with lots of shavings and plenty of time to grow their feathers (im pulling a few tonight) I hope they will all be good alone...
Plus, i have permission to start building a new coop (big enough to fit 12 more birds

) after fair! More silkies, and some dutch, will be coming in over the summer, you can bet on it!

 

[Colie <3]

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I think all roos end up with a walnut comb sort of similar to the one pictured. I pretty sure the standard calls for a darker color of mulberry instead of bright red. At 11 weeks it's hard to tell on a lot of silkies who's a pullet and who's a cockerel. I have 7 week olds and one for sure is a pullet, on for sure is a hen the rest I have no idea!
Does your little one have mites or bloody stool? Have you wormed them? Just guessing here. My Peepers (lav ameruacana) was pretty sick for awhile. I wormed her and gave her a round of antibiotics and she perked back up.