Silkie thread!

[kmatt87]

Recently a silkie breeder, that I know, had a chick hatch with part of its intestines protruding from the abdominal wall. Is it possible this may have happened with your chick and as the skin healed over the intestines it became a mass? The vent looking slit may have been part of the open abdomen at the time of hatch. If you did not have exposed intestines at the time of hatch, could this be something like a hernia?

i got her at a feed store and she was a day old. There were no exposed intestines at all. She is happy, active, and very.....vocal. lol. I probably wouldn't have noticed it if she weren't damp from a wipe down.
Can chickens even get hernias? What do you do about them if they do?

 

[kmatt87]

I would keep an eye on her, could have wry neck. if she keeps tilting her in a weird position that is what I would suspect.

What is wry neck? How do you treat it?

 

[City farm]

What is wry neck? How do you treat it?

I believe you can look up on another Fourm here.. It shows video.. Better to see than explain... Than you will know for sure..

 

[ChicksNherps]

i think the little spot that was bleeding is the belly button. It didn't last very long or bleed too much. i put some neosporin on it and will keep an eye on it as well. The mass thing is what i haven't been able to figure out

I would think they are able to get hernias, almost all animals can. Sounds like the mass is stil a hernia, the abdominal wall can sometimes have a hole that innards can pertrude from, that would cause a bump. Make sure the neosporin does not have a pain reliever in it, anything ending in caine or cane is toxic and possibly deadly to chickens.

What is wry neck? How do you treat it?

Wry neck can have a few causes, but I think the most common is a vitamin deficiency. My friend's chick has it right now and she is also on just non-medicated food and water.
This is what it looked like the other day when we started treatment (this is not the chick this is a duckling, it's just a picture showing what it looks like)

But they can also look up, look between their legs, and have their heads cocked to the side.

The treatment is gentle neck massages and poly-vi-sol WITHOUT iron, vitamin E oil drops, and selenium. We are giving her 3 week old chick 2-3 drops 4 times a day. We have been doing this for 2 full days and it seems to be getting better, but recovery time varies.

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

Quote: I had a Silkie that had it, she could only look downward. We did the Poly and Vit E for 2 weeks. I just mixed it in a container and dipped her beak in it morning and night and now she is normal. I am going to watch her chicks though closely once she starts laying this summer. If I have a high % with wry neck, then I will not use her in breeding.

 

[Outrun Acres]

I am so excited I just got the deal of the year. Brinsea had some of their demo models on their facebook page first come first serve. And I got an 20 Octagon Eco for only $109! My DH just gave me the go ahead to get another incubator the night before and I was getting ready to get another Mini Advance, but figured I'd put my name in for one of these, just in case. And I somehow got the last one! I feel so lucky! Now to find some Silkie eggs to fill it up when it gets here

That is amazing!

 

[Teresaann24]

Our new babies fingers crossed for a hen and roo...lol from good show stock so hoping they turn out real nice.

 

[honeyb]

i have standard size chickens and my dd wants white silkies. can i house them together or do i have to make another coop? allso i want the ones that are reallyfluffy with alot of fuff on their heads. do i have to buy "show girls"? or is all hatchery stock like that? what are some good breeders. im in east pa

 

[RockerHen]

i have standard size chickens and my dd wants white silkies. can i house them together or do i have to make another coop? allso i want the ones that are reallyfluffy with alot of fuff on their heads. do i have to buy "show girls"? or is all hatchery stock like that? what are some good breeders. im in east pa

It would be best to house them in a separate coop. Silkies are more fragile than most chickens and are prone to head injuries. The only time I would house silkies and lf together is if they were raised together. And to get the the maximum fluffiness and crest size, you would need to buy from a reputable breeder of quality stock. Hatchery silkies usually have little to no crests, 'fluff' or foot feathering.

 

[ChicksNherps]

i have standard size chickens and my dd wants white silkies. can i house them together or do i have to make another coop? allso i want the ones that are reallyfluffy with alot of fuff on their heads. do i have to buy "show girls"? or is all hatchery stock like that? what are some good breeders. im in east pa

1. You can if your standards are not too aggressive. You can try keeping the silkies in a crate in the run with your LF for a time so they get used to each other and when you let them out watch them closely and seperate any aggressor for a few days to "cool down". If they are attacking them constantly you will need to seperate them for good though, silkies tend to be fragile.
2. unless you want naked necks, you don't want showgirls

You want breeder stock, NOT hatchery stock. You can find good quality silkies typically on craigslist. I will look for some for you.

http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/grd/3541706505.html