Silkie thread!

[Sylvester017]

Weighed a few 3 month olds. The littlest pullet who is a normal size weighs 13 oz. The largest pullet (LF project) weighs 1 lb 9.75 oz.

I was going to find a few silkies at the big swap in Oregon today to add new blood. I'm a bit paranoid since there was a couple flocks in in SW Washington that tested positive for avian influenza. The show later this month was cancelled as a precaution. I'll just wait and try at the late November show.
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Kinda nice to see that there are precautions about AI -- or any other known affliction in the general area. I think you've got quite a bit on your plate with your present flock -- which look healthy and gorgeous. Keep them safe with ultimate precautions.

 

[Sylvester017]

He doesn't have much red at all. His neck and chest feathers have come in straw coloured with a dark brown/black stripe in the middle. He still has the banded wing feathers. His underside ("bloomers") has turned pale grey.

This pic was taken about a week ago. He's pretty much the same now.
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May I take a guess at sexing? I say pullet also. Here is our 6-month old boy from 7 yrs ago -- Lots of SHINY and bright coloring in his feathering whereas his little sister had duller /muted feather colors -- seems to be a Partridge trait that the boys are much easier to ID much sooner than the girls -- and look at the larger comb on him:

 

[Hinotori]

How loud is a silkie's crow? Is it softer than "regular" cockerels? Just looking at those boys, they look so little compared to the heavy birds at the royal show.

Don't let the size fool you. They can be loud

 

[Sylvester017]

Don't let the size fool you. They can be loud

Sadly, the noise level of our dear little almost 6-month "Trumpet" (as we called him) made us seek re-homing him and he was such a dear boy -- but we are not zoned for roos in our little suburban yard and there's no way I'd use a No-Crow velcro collar on such a gorgeous fluffy neck as his!

 

[Hinotori]

The bachelor boys get along well with each other since none of them have access to hens. That is even with hens and a rooster in the next pen. Raditz over there intimidates them. He's the head honcho.

 

[User395221]

Don't let the size fool you. They can be loud

Thanks. It isn't surprising, I suppose, some of my bantams can do very loud "performances" of their egg song. I was just curious when I saw those cute looking boys, they look so different to the huge roosters at the show.

of our dear little almost 6-month "Trumpet" (as we called him)

His name says it all, really.

 

[moosie-boy]

Ok. I got a few pictures of the now 13 week olds for reference. I had thought I'd gotten rid of the gene for the black heads a couple years ago, but two chicks hatched with it this year.

Cockerels. You can see what I mean by red.

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Pullets. Once they are around 10 weeks or so they have the same coloring as adult hens. I hatch both the lighter and darker partridge as I haven't gotten that standardized yet even if I have pretty much gotten rid of the orange males.

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Based on color, can you guess the sex of these four partridges? They are 5 weeks old in this picture.

 

[Hinotori]

I feel stupid. I was removing the cable tie marker bands off the teenagers. The leaky dark pullet had a band. That means she came from the pen with the partridge x blue cross hen. So that is where the dark color came from. Other offspring from that hen have been normal partridge or nice blue partridge.

 

[Hinotori]

Based on color, can you guess the sex of these four partridges? They are 5 weeks old in this picture.

5 weeks is a little young. Wait a few weeks and post again. I can tell you that orange one is likely male though.

Even on mine where I know how the line develops, I can't tell on all of them until 10 weeks. Only the really obvious ones can I sex that early.

 

[Hinotori]

Based on color, can you guess the sex of these four partridges? They are 5 weeks old in this picture.

Oh and for the next set of pictures a closer side view along with a face/comb picture will help. Your lighting is good. Can see the color well. They just need to get more of the teen feathers in.