Silkie thread!

[ChickenLover WI]

girl to me so far

 

[shadow rabbit10]

Thanks. She was from a hatchery (My Pet Chicken). She was born around May 21st. And, she looks much darker in person. The camera gives her strange colors. If you saw her, she really is solid black. The grey is her under color. I don't know if this helps, but here is a pic of her at a few weeks old: Also, the person who ordered her said she ordered blacks. Could they have given blues instead?

 

[Basel]

OK, so I have an Ideal hatchery blue silkie, about 3 months old, who is not so attractive, but is of course the sweetest hatchery silkie I have. He just loves people and loves to be held.

Being a hatchery chick, he obviously does not have good breeding at all so his crest [amongst other things] is rather pitiful. He also still has some pin feathers on his neck and such, so all of his feathering is still coming in.

My question is this: Is he a pitiful bearded or is he non-bearded?
I am confused as to what non-bearded is --> does it have feathers under the beak and sticking out on the cheeks? He has these, tho not full and fluffy like a good quality chick. Or do non-beardeds have feathering in these places too?

Just curious. I don't really care, just wondering how to label him. I have some wonderful bearded silkies that I hatched from two great breeders so I am not worried about this blue [except for trying to find him a good pet home].




Below, when he was younger and cuter....

 

[Sweetpeeps]

I just want to say thank you to all of the people who share their precious knowledge with us newbies! It is so invaluable, and helps make it less scary

I second that!!!!!

 

[ScaredOfShadows]

Thanks. She was from a hatchery (My Pet Chicken). She was born around May 21st. And, she looks much darker in person. The camera gives her strange colors. If you saw her, she really is solid black. The grey is her under color. I don't know if this helps, but here is a pic of her at a few weeks old: Also, the person who ordered her said she ordered blacks. Could they have given blues instead?

definitely a Blue, not black

 

[Hawkeye95]

Thanks. She was from a hatchery (My Pet Chicken). She was born around May 21st. And, she looks much darker in person. The camera gives her strange colors. If you saw her, she really is solid black. The grey is her under color. I don't know if this helps, but here is a pic of her at a few weeks old: Also, the person who ordered her said she ordered blacks. Could they have given blues instead?

If the under fluff is grey, you have a Blue. I have several Blues right now that look black! For example---- this is MY Blue bird... but she is very, very, very dark. But she is NOT black. There would be no point in it-- but I could post 3 more like her of mine that are just as dark, and yet Blue. I think your bird will just be on the small side, which is actually good! It just really looks like a young chick in the first pictures you posted. Good thing you are keeping track of those dates!

OK, so I have an Ideal hatchery blue silkie, about 3 months old, who is not so attractive, but is of course the sweetest hatchery silkie I have. He just loves people and loves to be held.

Being a hatchery chick, he obviously does not have good breeding at all so his crest [amongst other things] is rather pitiful. He also still has some pin feathers on his neck and such, so all of his feathering is still coming in.

My question is this: Is he a pitiful bearded or is he non-bearded?
I am confused as to what non-bearded is --> does it have feathers under the beak and sticking out on the cheeks? He has these, tho not full and fluffy like a good quality chick. Or do non-beardeds have feathering in these places too?

Just curious. I don't really care, just wondering how to label him. I have some wonderful bearded silkies that I hatched from two great breeders so I am not worried about this blue [except for trying to find him a good pet home].




Below, when he was younger and cuter....

Oh he has a great expression!! So funny!! Well.... he *looks* like a non bearded.

I'll show you how much and drastically they change-- my chick went from this:

To this:

She was very hot and droopy in that picture-- BUT, you can still see how the beard came in nice and full under and around her beak.

 

[ScaredOfShadows]

OK, so I have an Ideal hatchery blue silkie, about 3 months old, who is not so attractive, but is of course the sweetest hatchery silkie I have. He just loves people and loves to be held.

Being a hatchery chick, he obviously does not have good breeding at all so his crest [amongst other things] is rather pitiful. He also still has some pin feathers on his neck and such, so all of his feathering is still coming in.

My question is this: Is he a pitiful bearded or is he non-bearded?
I am confused as to what non-bearded is --> does it have feathers under the beak and sticking out on the cheeks? He has these, tho not full and fluffy like a good quality chick. Or do non-beardeds have feathering in these places too?

Just curious. I don't really care, just wondering how to label him. I have some wonderful bearded silkies that I hatched from two great breeders so I am not worried about this blue [except for trying to find him a good pet home].




Below, when he was younger and cuter....

he has a 'half and half' beard - incomplete bearded/nonbearded. a bearded should have very very small to no wattles visible and a really full beard (even the hatchery ones I had could have it) a NB (non bearded) is completely clean under the neck, and have large wattles like a 'regular' chicken does.

hope that helps

 

[shadow rabbit10]

Hmmm. I wonder how I ended up with a blue then!?

 

[Sanna]

My one and only, the single porcelain egg I got from Catdance, has a crack in it!!!!!

More like a hole of 4 millimeters wide. I found five hens trying to sit on the eggs...looked like an awful lot of hens. I'm thinking they were all trying to fight over who gets to sit and someone probably punctured a hole in the egg. There's no way of saving this chick, is there? I have no idea how long ago this happened, so the chances are probably slim to none, right? I really, really, really, REALLY wanted a porcelain and just about died of happines when I got this egg with all the other colors! I'm so sad..

I went and took three of the hens with the eggs and put them in the barn. Those three girls are getting along so nicely, and I believe they have enough eggs for everyone, so they won't have to fight. Of course they try to steal all eggs available if someone gets up. lol But the girls did such a fine job hatching our first batch of eggs this year that I felt comfortable leaving the three together.

I never knew hatching was so stressful! lol Especially now that I have some money invested in good eggs. Before, I used to just let the hens hatch a random number of eggs and I was excited with any chick we got. We have PQ birds, so it was no big deal. Now I'm DYING to see these what comes out of my Catdance eggs! lol
8 more days to go.

 

[Hawkeye95]

Hmmm. I wonder how I ended up with a blue then!?

you ordered from a hatchery. Black are VERY hard to breed good blacks. Blues are so much easier! Some blues look black-- like mine. Hatcheries outsource their eggs from other local chicken breeders. They can't be sure that those breeders aren't using dark blue birds (like mine) and thinking they are black. Any number of things could happen there.

My one and only, the single porcelain egg I got from Catdance, has a crack in it!!!!!

More like a hole of 4 millimeters wide. I found five hens trying to sit on the eggs...looked like an awful lot of hens. I'm thinking they were all trying to fight over who gets to sit and someone probably punctured a hole in the egg. There's no way of saving this chick, is there? I have no idea how long ago this happened, so the chances are probably slim to none, right? I really, really, really, REALLY wanted a porcelain and just about died of happines when I got this egg with all the other colors! I'm so sad..

I went and took three of the hens with the eggs and put them in the barn. Those three girls are getting along so nicely, and I believe they have enough eggs for everyone, so they won't have to fight. Of course they try to steal all eggs available if someone gets up. lol But the girls did such a fine job hatching our first batch of eggs this year that I felt comfortable leaving the three together.

I never knew hatching was so stressful! lol Especially now that I have some money invested in good eggs. Before, I used to just let the hens hatch a random number of eggs and I was excited with any chick we got. We have PQ birds, so it was no big deal. Now I'm DYING to see these what comes out of my Catdance eggs! lol
8 more days to go.

oh no! So sorry! I'd put some tape over that hole fast! Candle it and see if it's still alive. If it is, be sure there is tape that covers all the cracks. When I used a broody (and I have an incubator...) but figured it would be fun to use a broody, I put her in a kennel all by herself. I didn't want to risk another bird coming in and messing with her nest.

I just put her and her nest/eggs in a wire dog kennel all by herself.... safe and sound!! No one to mess with her. And easier that way, I think, too.

Oh--- but I did tape up the sides with newspaper so the chicks could not climb out or fall out of the cage.