Silkie thread!

[Fancychooklady]

Hi, I have three Silkies and I was wondering if anyone could tell their gender. They're 9 weeks, and another thing, do you think the buff one is a full Silkie?

I would say that the last one is the only pullet.

 

[mystonedgarden]

I would say that the last one is the only pullet.

x2

 

[Kelsykin]

I have 5 silkies on the way home from the East coast

 

[Patti Naquin]

Theses are my babies

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[Firestar2003]

Those are cute birds

 

[Patti Naquin]

Those are cute birds

Thank you

 

[Kelsykin]

I can't wait for them to get here.

 

[Firestar2003]

Those are cute birds!

And your welcome Patti Naquin!

 

[Sylvester017]

I split an order of 25 (quarter box) with another person. She got 11 bantam chicks (4 varieties) while I kept 14 (8 NHR pullets, 2 BR pullets, and 4 white Silkies). The website for Ideal Poultry lists additional charges for small orders and for breed/type orders of less than a quarter box. If less than 25 are ordered, they reserve the right to include extra male chicks for warmth (whatever varieties they have extras of). On the BYC thread for Ideal Poultry, I have seen these referred to as "packing peanuts" and read that rarely one or two turn out to be pullets. On my order, Ideal charged me for the small order but did not charge for the multiple varieties. I lost one BR chick to coccidosis (my fault) but all the other chicks are doing great.

I ordered the Silkies because none of my older hens (NHR, BR, and EE) will go broody. Last year I had a local farmer hatch some of my hen's eggs. I am hoping that at least one of the Silkie chicks will grow up to be a good broody. I ordered 4 to increase that chance and also to have enough in case I needed to separate the bantams from the pullets they are growing up with. Our main coop is split into two coop sections and an entry area used for storage, brooder, and isolation as necessary. We have two separate pens attached to the coop and 4 additional pen with small coops inside the pens. We are setting up a fifth large pen with a small coop inside that should be ready by the time the chicks outgrow the brooder. Those extra pens currently have bachelor roosters, mostly from the hatch last year.

That sounds like a cool setup. I hope you get Silkie pullets out of your order. Some Silkies brood as late as 18 months (like our Partridge) or brood as early as 7 or 8 months (like our Black Silkie) but I understand the younger Silkies might not be as attentive as broodies as the older Silkies. Guess you'll find out in time LOL !!! Those Silkies can't help themselves to be broody. It's not easy to break a Silkie broody like other breeds. Both my girls are determined to ride out their broody time in the nestbox even without eggs to sit on. One Silkie tried to brood a cucumber slice - that's how determined she was to hatch something.

 

[tacopaco]