Silkie thread!

[Ahand]

@Adorkable They are looking good!! Love the updates!

Thanks, it's like watching flowers bloom!!

 

[silkiecuddles]

My new baby's, can't wait to see what they will look like when grown!

New pics!! A little over 4 weeks!!

Oh my I can't stand the cuteness!!

 

[Kisune]

But if it's fertile, wouldn't the hen stay sitting on it?

 

[dolly85]

But if it's fertile, wouldn't the hen stay sitting on it?

Chickens have no clue whether their eggs are fertile or not. A hen will go broody without ever seeing a roo if she is in the mood for mothering. In fact, they don't always sit on eggs, silkies are happy sitting on a pile of rocks!

 

[Fancychooklady]

But if it's fertile, wouldn't the hen stay sitting on it?

Chickens have no clue as to fertility. As previous post, once the hormones kick in they will sit on anything. I've had one try to hatch a corn cob.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Hello! This thread is old so I hope I get some replies.

I have 12 Silkie chicks that are about 5 weeks old. I thought with the very warm weather they were ready for pasture, so I put a large chicken wire coop with a roof and one side blocked inside my pasture next to me RIR girls so they could get acquainted safely.

It seemed like all was well for the first few days, but after a rain storm my husband went out and our favorite 3 were dead!

I was heartbroken and felt terrible so I brought them all back into the brooder, even though the others were fine.

The silkies seem more fragile than our other chicks we have raised, so I was curious when anyone with Silkie experience thought we could try again? The weather this week will be cooler than our first try with highs in upper 70's/mid80's and lows in the 47-58 range.

Thoughts? I'd hate to lose any more of my precious babies. Here are a few pics for size/feathering reference.

[/IMG]

Heartbreaking . Silkies don't have a feather shaft like other chickens and therefore lack the ability shed water . They do not tolerate being drenched to the bone and 5 weeks is a little young. It's best to gradually introduce them to the great outdoors. I start taking them out for a couple of hours a day from 3-4 weeks , so that by 6 weeks they are out all day , under cover. Once they are fully feathered in and the nights are mild I leave them in the coop, but I must admit to checking them after dark for the first week or so, just to be sure that everyone is where they should be.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Hello! This thread is old so I hope I get some replies.

I have 12 Silkie chicks that are about 5 weeks old. I thought with the very warm weather they were ready for pasture, so I put a large chicken wire coop with a roof and one side blocked inside my pasture next to me RIR girls so they could get acquainted safely.

It seemed like all was well for the first few days, but after a rain storm my husband went out and our favorite 3 were dead!

I was heartbroken and felt terrible so I brought them all back into the brooder, even though the others were fine.

The silkies seem more fragile than our other chicks we have raised, so I was curious when anyone with Silkie experience thought we could try again? The weather this week will be cooler than our first try with highs in upper 70's/mid80's and lows in the 47-58 range.

Thoughts? I'd hate to lose any more of my precious babies. Here are a few pics for size/feathering reference.

[/IMG]

beautiful chicks .

 

[Fancychooklady]

So my sweet girl ( blue silkie 13 weeks) has a cold again. Last time she did I bought some meds at tractor supply and put it in her vitamin water and brought her in the house with the heat lamp. She was great about 4 days later. So now she is sneezing again. The weather is getting chilly at night ( I live in northern Michigan). So my question is do I keep bringing her in? Thanks in advance!!!

Chickens don't actually get a cold. There are several causes for upper respiratory disease and depending on what your little hen has, she could relapse at any time. Dust, ammonia rising from droppings and stress are common triggers. if she is just sneezing and there are no other symptoms perhaps you need to look at the bedding.

 

[Sylvester017]

So my sweet girl ( blue silkie 13 weeks) has a cold again. Last time she did I bought some meds at tractor supply and put it in her vitamin water and brought her in the house with the heat lamp. She was great about 4 days later. So now she is sneezing again. The weather is getting chilly at night ( I live in northern Michigan). So my question is do I keep bringing her in? Thanks in advance!!!

I live in SoCalif where the weather never drops to freezing and the summer days are in the 100's and some months are very humid. Everyone has to assess their own situation and climate but here's what I do. Anytime I get shipped juveniles (I never get chicks because I have no room to deal with brooders, heat lamps, etc). I keep the juvies in-house in a 4x4 kennel and if they are very outgoing birds they get freedom of the kitchen to get socialized with us. I've had juvies anywhere from 9 to 16 weeks old shipped to me. I wait until they are at least 5 to 6 months old before I slowly introduce them to the outside flock/coop. By 6 months they are pretty much as big as the adult hens in the flock so have a better chance at blending in.

Our winters are mild but we do get some doozy rainstorms and on those days I found the Silkies need to be locked up in their protective coop or they will stupidly splash around in the cold mudholes with the LF and get soaked and cold to the skin. I have one littlest Silkie that gets respiratory issues on those kind of days and had to take her to the vet a couple times in one year where Baytril pulled her thru when I thought we were going to lose her because she was wheezing so-o-o heavily - so now she and the other Silkie, in fact ALL the breeds, are not let out of the coop on heavy rain days. If there's a light sprinkle that stops in an hour I might let them out to hunt worms/grubs but if there is sporadic rain all day, windy, and a lot of mudholes NO one goes out. Respiratory issues is high on the list of ailments with chickens. Your 4 days treatment of your Silkie may not have been long enough. Whenever I have to administer vet medicine to my girls it's never for less than 10 days regardless of whether the bird looks better or not. I'm not a self-medicating self-diagnosing chicken owner and prefer taking my girls to the vet but with only 4 chickens it's easier for me than guessing what medicine to administer.

 

[Adorkable]

Quote: They're beautiful! Is the one on the right smooth feathered? I think smooth feathered silkies and sizzles are super adorable!