Silkie thread!

[lmathison41]

And does Thelma look like a roo????

 

[Naliez]

Does Louise look like a roo????

Yes. Lol

 

[lmathison41]

Awww heck....

 

[Naliez]

Awww heck....

Don't take my word as final though; I'm suspicious of all Silkies until they lay. Still trying to figure out my own.

 

[lmathison41]

I know....bless their hearts lol

 

[Frindizzle]

Quote:
How many roosters do you have?

 

[Ravynscroft]

After lots of breeding and culling, I am pleased my Silkies are improving greatly... just wanted to share a couple of my keepers this year...

Pair of pullets...

And a cockerel...

 

[Frindizzle]

After lots of breeding and culling, I am pleased my Silkies are improving greatly... just wanted to share a couple of my keepers this year...

Pair of pullets...


And a cockerel...

Cute!

 

[Ravynscroft]

Cute!

Thanks!

 

[Sylvester017]

I keep my Silkies separate with the exception of 3 Marans pullets that were hatched with the Silkies. They are great girls and good with the Silkie pullets- and it's VERY funny watching my big (not really) macho Partridge trying, usually unsuccessfully, to mate a big Marans. She'll squat and he'll try, and usually fall off.

I do have Araucanas though mostly they are older, and don't pay much attention to the "Hairy chickens" as my husband calls them. I keep largefowl Brahmas, Welsummers and Marans as well. The Silkies are generally housed separately, though everyone goes to pasture as a group, they keep to their separate "families" generally.

Your feedback is similar to other feedbacks I've received - best to house Silkies separately from LF and that breeds break off into their own little breed cliques when foraging.

Silkies IMO should not be kept with heavier LF because of the temptation to bully smaller or gentler flockmates. My first two Silkies were raised with my friend's 6 LF Marans, Ameraucana, Orp, and Leghorn chicks born on the same day and raised together. However the LF chicks in the same hatch grew larger and faster than the two little Silkies and the Silkies were harassed by the bigger chicks they hatched with. The Silkie juveniles spent their whole day hiding out from the LF juveniles. If the Silkies didn't eat real early in the morning or after the LF chicks went to roost the Silkies were not able to eat or drink at all during the day - the LF pullets were ok with the Silkies until they got big enough to really throttle the littler Silkies.

We had a calm Cuckoo Marans as a pullet around the Silkies and when she became a hen of 7-lbs she viciously attacked one of our 2-lb Silkie pullets. I've come to not trust heavier LF breeds around 2-lb Silkie hens. It's too much temptation to lord it over weaker docile breeds - it's a chicken thing!