I have a lot of silkies and have had a few cochins. I really can't tell the difference in egg size or colour, laying frequency or crowing between the breeds. I will say that crowing is a very individual thing--some boys crow constantly; others only occasionally. The strangled sounding gargle crowing is usually a teenager just learning.
Keeping the boys in complete darkness helps deter crowing until they see light/hear a disturbance. Another trick is to put them in something with a very low lid/roof, so that they can't really stand up--that also deters crowing. When I have one inside overnight, I generally put them in a very short cage/basket, and cover it with a towel or blanket.
Any roo can fertilize any hen, however you should easily be able to tell the difference between pure and cross bred chicks. With eggs there won't really be any way to tell for sure.
You could keep the girls in separate cages/pens to tell who laid what, or another trick I've heard works well,but haven't tried is putting a drop of food colouring in the vent. Is should last for several days, putting a streak of whatever colour (don't use red--it looks like blood) on the egg; use different colours for different hens.
With the two breeds, and specifically with only a very few birds, individual personality will be more apparent than general breed personality. They will probably have a lot more human interaction than birds in a large flock.
Chicken diapers are a good idea for birds who are inside regularly (www.chickendiapers.com). That would be another way to identify who laid which egg--there is an egg pouch on the diaper--just be sure to keep the diaper clean--if a hen lays her egg in the diaper and it is already "loaded," the egg will get dirty.
A highly digestible quality diet will reduce the amount and keep the poop firm. Rice, oats and wheat are good grains; corn is less nutrious and less digestible.
Keeping the boys in complete darkness helps deter crowing until they see light/hear a disturbance. Another trick is to put them in something with a very low lid/roof, so that they can't really stand up--that also deters crowing. When I have one inside overnight, I generally put them in a very short cage/basket, and cover it with a towel or blanket.
Any roo can fertilize any hen, however you should easily be able to tell the difference between pure and cross bred chicks. With eggs there won't really be any way to tell for sure.
You could keep the girls in separate cages/pens to tell who laid what, or another trick I've heard works well,but haven't tried is putting a drop of food colouring in the vent. Is should last for several days, putting a streak of whatever colour (don't use red--it looks like blood) on the egg; use different colours for different hens.
With the two breeds, and specifically with only a very few birds, individual personality will be more apparent than general breed personality. They will probably have a lot more human interaction than birds in a large flock.
Chicken diapers are a good idea for birds who are inside regularly (www.chickendiapers.com). That would be another way to identify who laid which egg--there is an egg pouch on the diaper--just be sure to keep the diaper clean--if a hen lays her egg in the diaper and it is already "loaded," the egg will get dirty.
A highly digestible quality diet will reduce the amount and keep the poop firm. Rice, oats and wheat are good grains; corn is less nutrious and less digestible.
