Silkie thread!

[blessedchick]

Oh he is not mine. It is up for sale and the breeder sent me this picture of him. I am going to pass on this one though. She does have nice birds. I am working on picking some up.. How am I going to explain that to my DH. He is already complaining.

...you found them on the way to the grocery????

 

[Nikkipar]

Quote:
I got eggs from Kelar, and they are beautiful!

 

[ScaredOfShadows]

Hello everyone! I am about to get some Silkie hatching eggs so I figure I should educate myself. My main questions right now are:
How do you tell boys from girls with all the fluff?
What age do the boys tend to start crowing?
Are there any special considerations that need to be made for Silkie babies? Mine are going under a broody bantam brahma.
Thanks all!

Silkies - with breeder/show lines you can't tell on most colors until they are 4+ months old (some lines are extremely hard to tell because the boys are very girly - and it can take 6+ months) The fool proof method, wait for an egg or a crow lol but no seriously, around 4 months old you'll see the boys getting bigger combs, streamers (extra long fluff) start to stick out in the back of the crests on boys... Boys tend to stand taller, than girls who are usually short, round, and to the ground (you can start spotting this at an early age)
Some colors like grey, silver partridge, and gold partridge you can color sex around 2-3 months old, the females and males have different color patterns.

Boys can start to crow as early as 3 months (not common though) or take as long as 8-12 months before they crow...Girls can start to lay eggs as early as 5 months or as late as a year.

Silkies don't need much special consideration except when it comes to cold rain, and then the heat...cold weather, silkies do well with a coop (many don't roost, or roost very low to the ground so they don't do well cooped with other birds that roost up cause they'll get covered in poop) in hot weather they need plenty of cool water, shade, etc. I don't do nothing fancy with my silkies, they free range with my LF and other birds when i don't have them penned for breeding. But they sleep in their own seperate coops. However do know that free ranging can be dangerous for silkies especially with their crests, they can't see well and are easy pickings for prey. mine all stay around my dogs, their pens, and the sheds...Otherwise I'd be iffy to let them out all day this time of year (its so hot I know its better on them to be able to get under the sheds, and other areas where its nice and cool)

 

[Nikkipar]

what does BQ mean? Thanks.... showing my newbie-ness

 

[KMHunter]

what does BQ mean? Thanks.... showing my newbie-ness

Breeder Quality

 

[Hawkeye95]

Here is some pics of my Columbian Cockerel.





Below is Sunny who is playing Pirate ParrotChickenFace Arrrrrr matey...... Yes he likes to just sit on my shoulder so I have learned tonight and groom me.... ugh lol.

Your grey isn't a Columbian, but he's really, really cute! But he looks kind of close. I had a turkey that was the sweetest thing ever and she would groom my hair. So cute when they do that.

SO, I am very sad tonight... I recieved some silkies eggs from two lovely woman in the egg swap room, and I have had them in the bator for 7 days... i just candled and had to get rid of the whole batch... over half were duds, and the rest had the blood ring... They arrived with detached air cells but I was hoping for at least 1 or 2 to do something!! Very upset... I know most of you show your birds and they are beautiful, I fell in love with the breed and wanted some to add to my small flock as pets for my kids... I don't know if I should even try it again!!

Yeah, I had shipped eggs arrive and nothing happened. It was cool out, too, so they were not cooked before they got here. Thinking it was rough handling. It's a gamble for sure. I just keep at it. But the upside is that if you had blood rings, at least you know they were fertile and starters. So the breeder was doing their job. Oh, and detached air cells doesn't mean they won't grow and hatch. I still do alright on those eggs.

I have one that is this light - I call it silver, because that's what it reminds me of, and she/he has gold (?) leakage around the hackles.

Is that blue partridge?

It does look silver. BUT.. I am seeing the gold come in... it will be interesting to see how this bird develops. My blue is darker, but is also obviously blue and not silver. I really like the silver color-- but it will look sort of "frosted" if it is indeed a silver. But here's the kicker--- from what I understand of the silver partridge, their base color is silver over partridge ground, so the leakage should be silver. And if this is gold, then it's likely a blue partridge and not silver. If I'm wrong-- hopefully Peep or SOS can correct me! ANyway-- here is a picture of a Silver Partridge (no gold):

Hello everyone! I am about to get some Silkie hatching eggs so I figure I should educate myself. My main questions right now are:
How do you tell boys from girls with all the fluff?
What age do the boys tend to start crowing?
Are there any special considerations that need to be made for Silkie babies? Mine are going under a broody bantam brahma.
Thanks all!

You will be able to start to determine gender right about 4-5 months sometimes. They can start crowing around then too, but sometimes much later. I don't let mine get wet in the rain-- even as adults. They are all under covered runs. They are more susceptible to the heat, so I have misters in their pen and they are in the shade full time. If they have vaulted skulls, don't run them with other non crested breeds. They are better off by themselves. But you could safely run adults with large fowl, just keep an eye on them. I personally would not do that, but I know others do.

 

[Chick_In_The_Burbs]

Thank you all for the info! I will have them in with two bantam brahmas (including 'momma') and a bantam Cochin. I will be selling all but one, so I will keep the one that gets along best with the rest. And doesnt crow. I live in city limits, but if I find a quiet enough boy I may try to fudge it til the year mark at least.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

...
Mahogany and autosomal red can add red to the feathering, and/or a male can carry a copy of gold as well as one of silver. IMO, the bird looks grey, but with added mahogany or autosomal red. Blue MAY also be present; you would have to look at the "black" feathering and see if it looks diluted or not.

Blue partridge should have NO silver, only red/gold.

 

[peepblessed]

Thanks. I love the self-blues too.

That's the same hen that gave me this self-blue chick.
I'm thinking of letting her breed with Micah too.

I just love that chick!!! I can't wait to see my lavender chicks. They were 6 weeks old when they went out side and they are 10 weeks now. I hope to be able to get out there to see them next week!

 

[peepblessed]

I have one that is this light - I call it silver, because that's what it reminds me of, and she/he has gold (?) leakage around the hackles.

Is that blue partridge?

Your chick is grey (silver partridge) and will likely get a lot more autosomal red. Project color Tortoiseshell or possibly Calico. See picture a couple of pages back.