Silkie thread!

[kellyloveschad]

Thank you so much I was worried my silkies where broken! Lol I dry them off with a towel and they slip out again and act like its funny!!!

 

[kellyloveschad]

Every chicken needs a dry place they can go into if they want shelter. Otherwise, it may depend on where you live and how healthy your  birds are.   I live in TN with fairly mild winters and I own siklies as well as several normal feathered breeds. I've had my siklies for over two years and they and my other chickens don't seem mind being out in the rain. (we are as likely to get rain in January as snow). They have a pretty good sized outdoor dry area and sometimes they congregate there when it rains but often they are out splashing in puddles. Silkies do get soaked to the skin in a heavy rain but I've never had an issue with it. They have a dry house and a sheltered dry area of the chicken yard and there are several silkies that can cuddle together. My oldest hen is 3 and all are healthy, so maybe sick birds or old ones are different but mine have always seemed fine and healthy and enjoy some rain now and then. This spring all my new babies were broody raised and the moms keep the babies  dry and warm. I brooded them outdoors (with a dry place to go into of course)  and broody mammas decided if their  chicks could go out in the rain or not   I did not lose a single  silkie baby out of 3 hatches. I originally tried closing them up in inclement weather and they hated it. So now I don't  bother except in the absolute worst weather. Mine don't even seem to mind a little snow. (we are more likely to have an inch of snow than a foot). Your results may vary. 

Thank you so much I was worried my silkies where broken! Lol I dry them off with a towel and they slip out again and act like its funny!

 

[jas humbert]

You are welcome, Kelly. I think ti just depends. If your birds don't seem uncomfortable or sickly, do what feels right to you. I used to worry a lot more in the beginning than I do now. My girls are healthy and don't act like they are uncomfortable. Yes, they looked like drowned rats much of this summer as wet as it has been but they seem happy and are the first to greet me and beg treats when I come out in the yard. I spend time watching them every day and I never noticed any of them acting cold, lethargic or or uncomfortable. in any way. It has been my experience silkies are a lot tougher than I first expected. They seem to do fine with cold too. The huge amount of fluff and minimal combs keep them more comfortable than some breeds in winter. A dry coop and a lot of friends to cuddle with seem to be enough for our southern winters.

 

[kellyloveschad]

You are welcome, Kelly. I think ti just depends. If your birds don't seem uncomfortable or sickly, do what feels right to you. I used to worry a lot more  in the beginning than I do now. My girls are healthy and don't act like they are uncomfortable. Yes, they looked like drowned rats much of this summer as wet as it has been but they seem happy and are the first to greet me and beg treats when I come out in the yard. I spend time watching them  every day and I never noticed any of them acting cold, lethargic or or uncomfortable. in any way. It has been my experience silkies are a lot tougher than I first expected.  They seem to do fine with cold too. The huge amount of fluff and minimal combs keep them more comfortable than some breeds in winter. A dry coop and a lot of friends to cuddle with seem to be enough for our southern winters. 

idk if that you work in south bend Indiana it gets really cold! But the day they where playing in the rain with humidity it was like 120! Can you tell if the grey one is a hen or rooster? I am 90% sure the black ones a hen because my frizzle rooster wont shut up it my daughter brings her in the house...

 

[Duck Drover]

See Anatolians were originally bred in Turkey to protect their livestock from wolves, and actually they would not give their dogs a metal spiked collar to protect them UNTIL they've killed a large predator such as a wolf, so if the dog got killed they figured it wasn't a good enough dog, which was kind of harsh but "survival of the fittest" was their tradition and the Anatolians were never kept as pets originally and were't socialized at all. I socialize my puppies so that they are better with people. I've just noticed that the Pyrs are more "stranger people" friendly, what I mean is I can take "strangers" in with my Pyr with no problem ( I don't have to worry about the dog harming them) But my Anatolians are a little different, some are ok with strangers as long as they don't bother me or family, but some don't want the " strangers" anywhere near. So, basically they are VERY similar in personality but Anatolians are a little more "aware" and the Pyrs have to be shaved and a Pyr can't hold it's own as well as a Anatolian against larger predators but all around they are both great dogs, and I love both breeds. All of my dogs go ballistic when anything is outside but they settle down, actually my property is a "no fly zone" for buzzards and such the dogs hate them And they are supposed to be slimmer my biggest Anatolian is 125, but they range around 110-130Lbs. The Pyr is a bit smaller. And yes, Pyrs are more "Friendly" to other people, but my Anatolians are the sweetest dogs ever to me and my family they just don't like other people. And  no problem about the questions I love informing people about my dogs, especially when people know what they are!  

We have an Anatolian in the house as a pet since she is retired from her job as a goatherder. She is such a sweetheart but now that she lives inside she does not want to be left outside. She is nearly always by my side inside and she sleeps in my bedroom doorway when I am sleeping. I am not sure if she would protect me because she seems like such a coward with loud noises but she makes a calm companion. I think my Australian Shepherd / Border Collie cross is far more aggressive if it came to protecting me.

I am shocked at how much hair our Anatolian has and she seems to shed non-stop. Her undercoat comes off in piles when I brush her so she must be able to withstand some severe climates. She looks so skinny at 106 pounds but she eats fine so it is just her build that makes me want her to fatten up a bit.

I would love to get another Anatolian when she passes. It would be nice to start with a puppy since our older dog took some time to warm up to us before she stayed by my side. She came a long distance from the breeder so I assume they are hard to find. We took her with her goat family but then retired her when we sold her goats. She will stay with us the rest of her life because she is our only dog that can be with the birds. She is not distructive in any way and she stays out of trouble. She will not eat food if we walk away from it unless we hand it to her and tell her it is okay. She does not know tricks and she does not always come when called but she has such an easygoing personality that we love her.

I tend to like big dogs and she is much better than the Great Danes I have had in the past. The hardest part about big dogs is they have shorter lifespans and that is heartbreaking. It will be hard when she is gone even though we got her as an adult past her prime years.

 

[jhopp6]

N

Thank you Fancychooklady . She's getting lighter every week, and I was stumped. She's in my "not sure what I'm going to do with you" pen.

Question: I think she's really cute, but I don't want to pursue this color if it's "undesirable", and there's no real interest from others. Thoughts anyone?

 

[sasafras4u2]

I just got back from Panama! I can't believe how much my babies grew in just 2 weeks!

 

[SOHC-FTW]

Here's our elsa

 

[Sylvester017]

If anyone loves dogs and hummingbirds, this news video is a must see. We're on a hummingbird migration route so we feed them year-round. I've rescued a couple of them over the years but they were too far gone to survive but I brought them inside to die in peace -- other hummies are so territorial and brutal to one another and will throttle another injured hummie to death! This video is a happier story:

 

[abbevilleoz]

If anyone loves dogs and hummingbirds, this news video is a must see.  We're on a hummingbird migration route so we feed them year-round.  I've rescued a couple of them over the years but they were too far gone to survive but I brought them inside to die in peace -- other hummies are so territorial and brutal to one another and will throttle another injured hummie to death!  This video is a happier story:

Wow what a neat story!