Silkie thread!

[Llovesherchics]

Hi everyone. I'm new to the thread and to Silkies for that matter. I got my first pair a little over a month ago. I've been looking and reading trying to see for myself but I thought I would just go ahead a post my question. Hope no one minds. One of my Silkies had these strange little feathers growing on it's wings. I used to always try to pick them off because I thought he had little tiny pieces of fuzz or paper on him or something. They look like little white spots that are just stuck on him but they are some type of feathers that are long and thin as thread except for the tips. The tips are wide odd shaped white ends. So, sounds strange? I hope not. Strange to me because I've never seen feathers like that on a chicken. Oh and I spent the last week trying to get pictures that would show them but that has been more than difficult. lol

 

[fluffyfeathers]

I have opened my incubator when chicks have pipped. Almost every time they hatch fine by themselves. Just keep the humidity up

Help Guys! I need some quick advice! Today is day 18 of incubation for my Catdance babies. I just took them off the turner. However, I did not notice that 3 had already started to pip! The incubator was open for about 5 minutes! Are they going to be shrink wrapped, what do I do?? I have waited so long for these! Please advise! Thanks!

 

[RustyHen]

I wish I could help more

I hope she gets better soon

Paintedfeathers The only help I know to tell you is what I used on tiny little Green singing finches. I held them directly over a steaming tea kettle spout aimed directly at her vent, very warm just short of burning my fingers as I held her there. Sometimes I would have to do it several times in a row waiting in between to see if she could pass it, I never let her get to cold. once she did prolapse slightly and I used the old farmers trick of sprinkling it with white sugar, it will make it shrink.
Oh no I just saw that this is the wrong quote, I hope that you read this one anyway.

 

[PaintedFeathers]

Paintedfeathers The only help I know to tell you is what I used on tiny little Green singing finches. I held them directly over a steaming tea kettle spout aimed directly at her vent, very warm just short of burning my fingers as I held her there. Sometimes I would have to do it several times in a row waiting in between to see if she could pass it, I never let her get to cold. once she did prolapse slightly and I used the old farmers trick of sprinkling it with white sugar, it will make it shrink.
Oh no I just saw that this is the wrong quote, I hope that you read this one anyway.

Thanks, I was soaking in in a bath of very warm water, I don't have a tea kettle but if I did I would probably try that because she gets soaked in her bath. I used some preperation H cream to soothe the swelling, Peter Brown is going to give me a call today to see if we can work together to manually remove it over the phone, I was having a difficult time yesterday not knowing chicken anatomy very well.

 

[Sanna]

Hi everyone. I'm new to the thread and to Silkies for that matter. I got my first pair a little over a month ago. I've been looking and reading trying to see for myself but I thought I would just go ahead a post my question. Hope no one minds. One of my Silkies had these strange little feathers growing on it's wings. I used to always try to pick them off because I thought he had little tiny pieces of fuzz or paper on him or something. They look like little white spots that are just stuck on him but they are some type of feathers that are long and thin as thread except for the tips. The tips are wide odd shaped white ends. So, sounds strange? I hope not. Strange to me because I've never seen feathers like that on a chicken. Oh and I spent the last week trying to get pictures that would show them but that has been more than difficult. lol

You're saying that the little feathers are fuzzy? Silkies are supposed to have fuzzy feathers.

They don't have normal feathering.
I'm assuming your Silkie is not all white colored if the "funny feathers" are white? How old are your Silkies?
It's really hard to say what those feathers are without seeing the bird. Is it possible for someone to hold the bird and for you to take a picture?

 

[Llovesherchics]

You're saying that the little feathers are fuzzy? Silkies are supposed to have fuzzy feathers.

They don't have normal feathering.
I'm assuming your Silkie is not all white colored if the "funny feathers" are white? How old are your Silkies?
It's really hard to say what those feathers are without seeing the bird. Is it possible for someone to hold the bird and for you to take a picture?

Oh yes. They are fuzzy. I think they are between 7 and 8 weeks. I had to guess how old they were when I first got them after doing much reading and looking at pictures. These funky feathers I spotted on his wings. I did a little more searching last night and I think they are filoplume feathers? It says they are hairlike and they grow around the base of contour or down feathers. I guess I can't see them on the other Silkie because they blend in on her. His coloring is a mix of browns, oranges, black and greyish blueish I guess. lol And yes, it popped into my head last night that I should get help trying to photograph him.
These are my first Silkies. I got them because my daughter wanted them so bad. She thinks they are the cutest things ever. They have grown on me for sure and I love them.

 

[chickery-do]

I'm new to Silkies also, and I was wondering if I should make a new coop just for my silkies? Their so small and my Americana's and RIR's are so big would they hurt them or leave them the scraps (so to speak) to eat? Their 1 1/2 months old now and less than a foot, they just sit on my lap or arm so patiently I can't believe they would get out of the way, and get knocked down all the time. Especially when their nouveau hat comes in!

 

[K Epp]

Could my Silkies be telling me their gender. I sit and watch my birds every chance I get. It seems that 3 of my 2+ month old silkies are trying to establish a pecking order. They will stand up real strait and bump chest sometimes peck at each other and anything smaller in the coop. 2 of them are at it more so than the others. It they are all 3 roos how do I decide which to keep. Probable roos are 1 Chocolate colored partridge, 1 partridge with lots of gold/red. and a blue. The two I believe are hens is 1 blue partridge and 1 blue. I'm getting a white frizzle from a friend, but a 3 to 3 roo/hen ration is high isn't it?

 

[blipit007]

K Epp, sounds a lot like my bird play that I was worried about too. I actually caught it on video. I thought it was rooster sparring (they were only 2 weeks old at the time) but many people here said it was normal chick play. Now just so you know, they were Black Sex Link and Barred Rock, not a Silkie. My silkie stays out of the rough housing lol. Hopefully it is just playing around like mine. And you can keep those beauties. Sounds like a fun flock of colors!

Also, what colors do you breed for a Calico? Just saw one on a site, beautiful! Does anyone here have some Calico photos?

 

[Llovesherchics]

I've also seen all my girls engage in chick play. Sometimes they are the ones in charge too. But about the Silkies...My two are at the top of the pecking order. And they're not too keen on being held anymore more when I held them all the time from the time they were tiny chicks.