Silkie thread!

[emvickrey]

Hi Cinm. Yes my silkies are very skinny and small and don't eat much. When I feel my girl's chest and a bit lower down (like towards the legs) I can feel the middle bone sticking out. But as long as they have food all the time they should be fine. In fact if you just feed them at set times they might eat more? Mine are free ranging so I think they eat a lot of grass and bugs and stuff during the day.

Mine have access to food and water 24/7 and most of mine are like that. Mine don't free range because of all the predators around here. I have some that are just fat. All my birds except for 3 are silkies too. I have a orp hen and she's "meaty" and some silver sebrights and they are a little bony too. I worm my birds regularly to. I first thought they were bony because they may be wormy so I worm them more often and they are still bony. I give them other foods besides their layer pellets as well. In the summer I plant them their own portion of the garden and they get fresh greens and veggies everyday. In the winter I have to go and buy it.

 

[silky smooth]

Mine have access to food and water 24/7 and most of mine are like that. Mine don't free range because of all the predators around here. I have some that are just fat. All my birds except for 3 are silkies too. I have a orp hen and she's "meaty" and some silver sebrights and they are a little bony too. I worm my birds regularly to. I first thought they were bony because they may be wormy so I worm them more often and they are still bony. I give them other foods besides their layer pellets as well. In the summer I plant them their own portion of the garden and they get fresh greens and veggies everyday. In the winter I have to go and buy it.

have you thought of doing a chicken tunnel? there are a bunch of options. some even have wheels.
this is just one very basic option.

if you put this around your garden?

 

[flockofbantams]

Ok here is my little mystery silkie, born 2/28/15. I still dont think I have a white, or a buff, I finally took some natural light pics and s(he) is feathering out some any new guesses would be great!

This is with a white piece of paper just as a color comparison

See how dark the head is compared to the light color body and wings??

This is a good pic of the blur/gtay/lavender dawn on s(he) chest.

Any ideas?

 

[silkiecuddles]

Ok I have a color question. The two chicks in the sides were born last night. The middle on is a month old. Same mama setter. Only the middle one is actually hers tho.
To the point, I have a buff hen, a white rooster, and a white hen, (all silkies) in one coop. They don't get out often, so I'd think they're all silkies. Does the left one look solid buff, and the middle one solid white? It almost has a bluish tint. I have no black or dark silkies, so why would the left one be black?

 

[Rowsdower]

Ok I have a color question. The two chicks in the sides were born last night. The middle on is a month old. Same mama setter. Only the middle one is actually hers tho.
To the point, I have a buff hen, a white rooster, and a white hen, (all silkies) in one coop. They don't get out often, so I'd think they're all silkies. Does the left one look solid buff, and the middle one solid white? It almost has a bluish tint. I have no black or dark silkies, so why would the left one be black?

Do the little ones have light skin? It's hard to tell from the pic, but they do not look like Silkies to me.

 

[silkiecuddles]

Do the little ones have light skin?  It's hard to tell from the pic, but they do not look like Silkies to me.[/quote]
[/quote]


I don't know. I'm on vacation right now and my neighbor who's taking care of the animals sent me that pic. My silkies are all hatchery-bought, so that could explain the flat head

 

[katatonic123]

Do these look like normal silkie feet? I'm just more concerned about the claw that looks like 2 grown together.

 

[silkiecuddles]

Here's another pic. You can see the mama's crest.

 

[silkiecuddles]

Do these look like normal silkie feet? I'm just more concerned about the claw that looks like 2 grown together.

It looks like she has too many toes. I wouldn't think it would be a problem unless you're showing her or she's limping.

 

[Rowsdower]

Here's another pic. You can see the mama's crest.

Mama looks pure. But the little guy in front of her is NOT a Silkie. It isn't possible that another hen laid in her nest, is it?