Silkie thread!

[chickieluver26]

Check to see if she is eggbound. 

Some of mine do that too.  The Polish are worse!  They stop one they are totally dry, if that's the reason.  Hope that's it!

Silkiesforever nope just doing that until she was dry like bucknbark saidYep bucknbark now she is dry and fine I was worried had never washed a chicken it's my first show I was so worried I had hurt her

 

[SilkiesForEver]

Quote: Good to hear! Good luck at your show!

 

[chickieluver26]

Good to hear! Good luck at your show!

Thanks I can't wait it's on the 15th and I will keep y'all updated

 

[Sylvester017]

You make me want to spy on these little baby eggs! I wonder if they get used to handling when you candle with a gentle hand and they can feel the routine. When they hatch, they feel your hand picking them up similar to the motion of when they were in the egg? Maybe that's where imprinting can really go, if people take it there? They say baby humans have senses before they are born, why not animals before they hatch? Maybe part of the reason that some people (maybe not hatcheries, but they have it down to a science...regular old job's don't have that, but they do have the compassion in their hearts to really show these animals that you are having a physical contact between you an it, give it something to remember from when it felt safe inside the egg.

Am I possibly onto something here? What ever we lack in nature's brooding as an anatomical phenomena, we make up for in love and compassion and nurturing of other things.

Take a look at call ducks. People pay close attention, they realize they probably made mistakes, and realize it's up to them to assist in whatever way you can because you made a promise to that little life when you chose to put it into the incubator. Home hatchets are definitely not top of the line technology, but they are 110% heart and that will get you very far.

Now I recognize that there are some people out there that ain't got no time fa dat, and that's okay, you have chosen different priorities, but that doesn't make you any better or worse than me. Different have different agendas and different goals with all of this, but we are still on the same side here. We all want what's best for the birds, no matter what the agenda.

I've never incubated eggs. However the momma hen chortles to her eggs to imprint before they hatch and sometimes the developed chicks in the egg peep back, She's always moving and gently rotating the eggs around so the unhatched chicks should be accustomed to movement.

 

[Sylvester017]

Some of mine do that too. The Polish are worse! They stop one they are totally dry, if that's the reason. Hope that's it!

HaHa - thanks for the Polish input. I was just considering getting a Silver Polish next year to add to the Silkie flock. I want a white egg layer and ruled out the small Breda because their eggs are not always white but sometimes cream or tinted. Are Polish as weird or "dumb" as people report and do they lay a truly white medium egg? How's your experience been mixing them with Silkies? For their crest vision problem I've read that hair tape holds their feathers out of their eyes but don't know if it has to be removed every day at roost? Crested birds are so spooked and I'd hate to get a stressed-out breed to add to the flock.

 

[chickieluver26]

HaHa - thanks for the Polish input. I was just considering getting a Silver Polish next year to add to the Silkie flock. I want a white egg layer and ruled out the small Breda because their eggs are not always white but sometimes cream or tinted. Are Polish as weird or "dumb" as people report and do they lay a truly white medium egg? How's your experience been mixing them with Silkies? For their crest vision problem I've read that hair tape holds their feathers out of their eyes but don't know if it has to be removed every day at roost? Crested birds are so spooked and I'd hate to get a stressed-out breed to add to the flock.

You were not asking me but I will answer my buff laced polish Harriet is very dumb don't tell her I said that but she forgets how to get in and out of the coop she gets along great with the silkies and snuggles with then every night I don't know about the hair tape because I don't use it. She does lay medium white eggs and surprisingly it's one every day and she is not spooked easily but does squeak very loudly when you come in I hope if you get a polish you enjoy her too!!!

 

[Sylvester017]

I had no idea about not being able to sex bantam chicks the same way. Make sense... I have so much to learn ! I have read this site for over a year now. Read a book and just went to a class yesterday. I guess we are as ready as we will be LOL

I had asked a home-breeder of incubated Silkie eggs to let me have two pullets. I got to see two chicks on their hatch date and she said there was no way to tell what the sexes would be. Anyway, a friend of mine took my two chicks along with 6 LF chicks she chose. She raised my Partridge Silkies along with her 6 LF chicks because we were remodeling our house completely inside and out and our schedule was in flux. At 6 months old we had a coop setup to take the two Partridges home. Unfortunately by that age I suspected one was a roo. Since only one started laying it pretty much confirmed the other was a boy. He obviously had shiny tail and head hard-feathers protruding unlike the soft fluffy-feathered round female. He also had developed a bigger walnut comb. He was beautiful but didn't know how to shut-up about his crowing and mounting his sister at least a dozen times a day. At that first mounting day, I arranged to have him re-homed. Hardest thing I ever did as we adored him.

After getting the 2 Silkie babies I used the next 6 months to read and research all I could about chickens before bringing them home from my friend. It wasn't enough studying. I think putting into practice what little you know after you get chickens is more informative than actual research. Every flock is different and not all advice will fit your particular situation. So I had to pick and choose what info was pertinent for my situation and what info might come in handy at a later date. One suggestion I wish I had heeded was not to mix Silkies with heavy LF. We had a 7-lb Marans that was ok for 6 months and then went suddenly ballistic on our SQ Black Silkie. I don't interfere with flock politics but a 2-lb Silkie doesn't have a chance to defend herself from a 7-lb vicious bully and that Marans was re-homed that very day! From that point we never added any fowl over 5-lb to the mixed flock. We had 2 Leghorns, and an APA Ameraucana who were normally gentle. However the White Leg alpha came out of a long hard moult being aggressive to her flockmates and she was re-homed to my friend's egg laying flock. She was great for 3 years but because the flock dynamics changed with the addition of another Leghorn Buff and an Ameraucana pullet, she felt she had to show who was boss. Nope - I won't jeopardize the peace of the flock with aggressive behavior toward the Silkies.

The 2 Silkies are now the older hens with the 3-year-old Partridge being the alpha and the 2 larger fowl submit to her. I like it when the littlest hen is the leader so she doesn't get bullied. I tell you - the more I learn, the less I know about chickens!

 

[Sylvester017]

You were not asking me but I will answer my buff laced polish Harriet is very dumb don't tell her I said that but she forgets how to get in and out of the coop she gets along great with the silkies and snuggles with then every night I don't know about the hair tape because I don't use it. She does lay medium white eggs and surprisingly it's one every day and she is not spooked easily but does squeak very loudly when you come in I hope if you get a polish you enjoy her too!!!

Thx for the input! I know certain people love certain breeds for certain reasons. The Marans owners LUV their birds, Bielefelder owners SWEAR by their breed, Sabelpoot owners ADORE theirs, etc. Since Silkies were the first breed we started with 3 years ago, my need is to plan everything in the flock around Silkies by necessity and not by choice. There are so many breeds I would have loved but it turns out that a chicken is not like all other chickens and I had to be selective about how to mix breeds within a small backyard flock.

It is best the flock have the same type temperaments and weight. I should have heeded recommendations from my research not to mix Silkies with heavier LF breeds. We had a 7-lb Marans that was absolutely fine for 6 months and then decided to viciously attack one of our Silkie pullets. I don't interfere with flock politics but the 2-lb Silkie didn't have a chance against the 7-lb bully being pinned to the ground and cruelly clawed and pecked - it was not rooish behavior as some hens do when they mount other hens - but an actual attack. Thank goodness I witnessed it as it happened from the back door before damage was done. The bully was re-homed to an egg seller that same day! Now we realize no matter how gentle-tempered a LF breed is reported to be, there is always the temptation to bully something smaller. No more heavy breeds for our flock as long as the Silkies are around.

Currently we have 2 Silkies, a 4.5-lb Buff Leghorn and a 5-lb APA Ameraucana. We want to add a white egg layer to the mix and were considering smaller Breda until research revealed they don't always lay white but can lay cream to tinted. Our Silkies already lay off-white and tinted, the Buff Leg lays pink tan, and the Amer lays blue. Since losing our White Leg I wanted to get another white egg layer but in a smaller LF breed and Polish seemed to meet the criteria (lightweight, gentle, and under 5-lb). I think Polish are adorable but I'm not going for looks but more for temperament and under 5-lb. So the new Polish won't get picked on I may have to get another new chick with her (maybe a gentle Dominique) for safety in numbers before putting them into the flock. I have had a Dom before and know they are a good lightweight gentle breed but lay brown eggs. If mixed as youngsters together the Polish and Dom should do well together. This will be in the next year or two so I have time to think about it and probably STILL will make the wrong decision - ha!

 

[Sylvester017]

You were not asking me but I will answer my buff laced polish Harriet is very dumb don't tell her I said that but she forgets how to get in and out of the coop she gets along great with the silkies and snuggles with then every night I don't know about the hair tape because I don't use it. She does lay medium white eggs and surprisingly it's one every day and she is not spooked easily but does squeak very loudly when you come in I hope if you get a polish you enjoy her too!!!

I should go back to the Polish thread as I think there was a post there about hair tape - someone else had used nylon knee-hi's to tie up the crest. Wish I had bookmarked it! Tape is sold in beauty supply stores and not necessarily in actual beauty salons. If I find it I'll let you know. I have so many crested and fluffy footed birds I hate to have to deal with a Polish crest too - especially since it can look so lovely - but it does help the birds to see their surroundings to have clear viewing and I'll have to think about getting a Polish.

 

[Sylvester017]

I should go back to the Polish thread as I think there was a post there about hair tape - someone else had used nylon knee-hi's to tie up the crest. Wish I had bookmarked it! Tape is sold in beauty supply stores and not necessarily in actual beauty salons. If I find it I'll let you know. I have so many crested and fluffy footed birds I hate to have to deal with a Polish crest too - especially since it can look so lovely - but it does help the birds to see their surroundings to have clear viewing and I'll have to think about getting a Polish.

I should go back to the Polish thread as I think there was a post there about hair tape - someone else had used nylon knee-hi's to tie up the crest. Wish I had bookmarked it! Tape is sold in beauty supply stores and not necessarily in actual beauty salons. If I find it I'll let you know. I have so many crested and fluffy footed birds I hate to have to deal with a Polish crest too - especially since it can look so lovely - but it does help the birds to see their surroundings to have clear viewing and I'll have to think about getting a Polish.

You were not asking me but I will answer my buff laced polish Harriet is very dumb don't tell her I said that but she forgets how to get in and out of the coop she gets along great with the silkies and snuggles with then every night I don't know about the hair tape because I don't use it. She does lay medium white eggs and surprisingly it's one every day and she is not spooked easily but does squeak very loudly when you come in I hope if you get a polish you enjoy her too!!!

I went to the Polish thread and the Pink Hair Tape threads but couldn't find the info or pics I had seen before. The pics are probably on another internet Polish website but since I didn't bookmark, can't find it now. Apparently from the Polish and Hair Tape threads on BYC people use all sorts of methods to enable their Polish birds to see. I PMd a Polish owner to find out if the tape/bands were left on permanently or till they fell off or whether they removed them every night.

Vision seems to be more of a problem with Polish crests than Silkie crests/beards. Just before shows some Silkie owners tape up the Silkie crests to keep them nice.

Some owners trim the Polish feathers above the eyes but complain it only lasts a day before the back feathers start to fall forward and the problem is not solved - or else there's danger of cutting too much and causing feather shafts to bleed. Others use blue paint tape, pink hair tape, nylon stocking strips, little girl's cloth-covered ponytail bands, horsebraid rubber bands (ouch!) and a bevy of other suggestions to hold up the crests. Some have complained that the other chickens will pick the hair bands/tape off a banded Polish crest. Yuch - this is not sounding good to me. I mean I think the Polish temperament is ideal for my gentle flock but I don't have the inclination to monitor a blind-view chicken unfortunately - it sounds like more than I'm willing to take on since my flock free-ranges all day and the Polish will be blind most of that time whereas my current Silkies don't have that problem of hard-feathered crests.