Silkie thread!

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote: Polish have 4 toes; sultans and houdans have 5

 

[AKanimalLover]

Thats defiantly not a Silkie, it doesn't have feathered feet or an extra toe..I don't know what you have! Maybe a young meat bird?? IDK sorry

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

I have a blue rooster with five toes on one foot and four on the other. I had not noticed when I bought him. Is he a purebred Silkie or could he be a crossbreed? He has to have a high percentage if he is a crossbreed but I am not sure how his toes are effected unless he had an injury and lost a toe. He has large spurs like my partridge rooster and I have wondered about that being a Silkie trait. Someone told me the hens can have spurs too since the person I got the partridge from thought it was a hen (not the same person who told me the hens can have spurs) but to me the spurs made it obviously a rooster. These birds were rescued from an overcrowding situation so I have no knowledge about them from the original owner. I bought five Silkies, three hens and two roosters, for $20 because I want to use them as incubators / brooders but I am currenty using incubators to hatch eggs because only one is hanging out in a nest box for part of the day while the others are out in the yard. My blue rooster hangs out in the nest box the most!

With two roosters they are crowing back and forth and occasionally fighting but not too aggressively. What surprises me most is that they will crow and then do a loud hen cackling sound. They make other strange noises as well that sound more like a cat. I am worried the neighbors will complain if they make too much noise. I had not expected Silkies to be so loud.

I have young Easter Eggers that were raised together so they hang out in a group away from the Silkies, although they share the same coop. The EE rooster is still young and has not started crowing yet but I am wondering if I will be able to keep him when he matures because I don't want him breeding with the Silkies. I don't think the Silkie roosters can catch up with the EE hens because they move so much faster. Is it true that birds of a feather flock together? If I end up with Silkie crosses, will it be obvious when they hatch?

Polydactyly (extra toes) is very subject to expression, your 5x4 toed bird has it, just not what you want for exhibition. Incubation temperatures during the first few days of incubation can affect the espression. If the bird has silkie feathers, it is a silkie (unless it also has ALL traits of a different breed). Yes, hens can have spurs, bust silkie hens usually do not (I am not aware of a case where they have had them), No chicken goes broody on YOUR schedule, only on their own. In my experience, they need to build up their clutch of eggs, and then if it is inconvenient for them to go broody, THAT is when they will. If you WANT them to, it is less likely. Murphy's Law rules. Chickens are chickens; they do not understand "breeds" as we do. If it is a sexy hen/rooster, they will be attracted, and just like humans and other animals, what makes one individual "sexy" is a matter of opinion that not all share. Yes, you will get crossbreeds. Silkie crosses will have dark skin, 5 toes and a crest. They will not have silkie feathering.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote: Second generation means he was a project bird for some new variety; you might have gotten rid of a valuable bird. Unless a sex-link, a bird has to be quite a few years old to have low production. Silkies are low producers ONLY because they are VERY apt to go broody--twice or three times per year.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

How old do Silkies need to be to sex? I really think I have 2 Roos, and I would like to re-home them before they get much bigger. I've already re-home 6 Roos this year, bad luck, I know, and it seems the younger they are the easier it is to find them a home. If not sex, can anyone tell me what color they are, I'm sure I have a Splash and a Partridge, but the other 2 I have no idea.

These cuties are 6 weeks old today. I know, I know, I should have moved them out into the sun light for photos. #1 & 2 I'm thinking are my Roos, just by behavior. They square each other up all day long, and are always play fighting, plus they are double the size of the Partridge, and then the light cream color is smaller as well.

#1




#2




#3




#4

TYTT! Chick behavior is NO indication of gender! FWIW, my silkie hens tend to be MUCH more aggressive than are my boys

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

First time silkie owner.. I was told she was a 5 mo. old partridge but clearly not. Maybe a blue partridge?? there's a little hint of tan on the edges of her wing feathers and some slight barring.
Also, I put her with a dominique and polish chick I got the same day. Seems like she immediately took to them and I'm wondering why she is trying to cover herself up with pine shavings and why she never wants to get up? Thanks in advance!

She is not a blue partridge, and she is brooding the chicks. Silkies are usually good mamas

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Painted feathers, Oh

Well, i have no problem with making so called "mean" animals nice, as in taming them. I have a goose i raised, and everyone was saying not to get one cause they were mean. I proved those people wrong

And i think its the same with rooster's, they just need some extra attention and love.

Two of my geese are sweet; one a bit less, so, but it is definitely a breed trait, and depends on whether they are brooding or not. Sebastapols are really sweet, chinese, not so much.

 

[Jharper]

I like pens/coops that are tall enough to stand up in.

Yeah.

 

[Sanna]

Sanna checken obsessed, If some of them are males, you don't have to worry about them being mean or aggressive, Silkie roosters are the nicest breed of male chicken you can get! They are the sweetest thing

Oh, I know Silkie roosters are very nice. I have plenty of my own. I love my roosters. One of them is the biggest wimp.

That statement isn't ENTIRELY true

... There are some real NASTY silkie roosters. Many are very laid back though, like my little man.

Painted feathers, Oh

Well, i have no problem with making so called "mean" animals nice, as in taming them. I have a goose i raised, and everyone was saying not to get one cause they were mean. I proved those people wrong

And i think its the same with rooster's, they just need some extra attention and love.

I agree with PaintedFeathers, they're not all nice. When I moved to this farm, the farm had a Silkie rooster and he was not a very nice guy. I think the problem was that he was just terrified, he had never been handled. So every time I went to catch him, he'd defend himself by jumping at me with his spurs. That was the only time he tried to "attack" me, when I was catching him. Other than that, he never bothered him. So, he really wasn't mean, he was just scared. I think that's a good example of a rooster some people might consider a nasty/mean one, but in reality, the poor guy was just trying to protect himself. Now that he's been handled a lot more, he just runs away screaming like a little girl instead of fighting back.

And once I catch him, he instantly settles down.

 

[PsycoPeep]

Yes, it's a polish. a paint.