Silkies fighting! Help!

[Chickedychick98]

I don't know what three weeks from POL means. That would be useful information. Is it age or physical appearance?

I've seen pullets flare neck feathers and fight, but most of the time when I see that behavior at least one of them is male. You don't get guarantees with behaviors, especially during adolescence. You can see about anything but my gut feel is that at least one is male.

Im purely basing it on age as they’re 15 weeks now, but obviously I could be wrong. My brown hens are 17 weeks old and look like they are ready.

 

[Folly's place]

I think that the white bird is a cockerel. Not sure about the gray chick. Try posting on the Silkie thread, and see if both are boys?
That coop doesn't look well enough ventilated, and what are the dimensions?
Mary

 

[Chickedychick98]

The whites appear to be Cockerel...

Oh dear!

 

[chickens really]

Im purely basing it on age as they’re 15 weeks now, but obviously I could be wrong. My brown hens are 17 weeks old and look like they are ready.

Ready to do what? Silkie don't lay early...

 

[Chickedychick98]

As a general note I know the photos don’t really show very well, but the white one is physically a lot smaller under all that fluff. The grey chick is much bigger? Don’t know if that helps.

 

[chickens really]

They both have streamers and getting red combs. Cockerels I'm almost certain. Plus the behaviour..

 

[Chickedychick98]

Ready to do what? Silkie don't lay early...

Oh yes I’m sorry of course they don’t I don’t know what I’m thinking. What I meant to say was because the brown hens are supposedly a week away from POL will that affect the silkies behaviour if they are male? As in will they pick up on it and start fighting over the females. Not that they are a few weeks away from laying eggs I don’t know what I was talking about more like a few months!!

 

[Folly's place]

Cockerels mature earlier than pullets of the same breed, so they could be sparring for that reason alone.

 

[HuffleClaw]

Hello everyone!


Firstly, thank you all so much for your responses I wasn’t expecting so many, so quick! So thank you!


I will post some pictures below.


My coop is the Omlet eglu cube with the 3M run. Within their coop they do have a sand bath and chicken perch. I’ve taken the sand bath out currently however to give them a bit of extra space and so I can give it a good clean. The silkies are now 15 weeks old. Brown hens are 17 weeks. I appreciate that silkies are very hard to sex which I didn’t realise before purchasing, which was my own fault. This is my first ever flock so everything’s new to me. I just wish the seller would have been more honest before letting me travel over an hour there to pick them up!


Both chooks thankfully seem fine and I can’t see any injuries although the white silkie has a very red sore comb from fighting . I’ve been advised to put Sudocrem on her/his comb so I have been (hence why it looks slightly white). I’ve also been putting anti- peck on both chicks but obviously if they want to fight they still will. The fighting isn’t constant, most of the time I look out and they’re all very happy! Purely from observing them it seems to be the white silkie initiating the fights?

All photos have been taken today except from the last one which is of my flock all together. Hopefully they help? I can take different ones if they don’t. I can also talk more about their personality’s? The photo of the coop below is the exact size/model/colour as mine but the one in the photo is not mine.

Thank you all again.

Boys... all pictured are boys.

 

[chickens really]

Oh yes I’m sorry of course they don’t I don’t know what I’m thinking. What I meant to say was because the brown hens are supposedly a week away from POL will that affect the silkies behaviour if they are male? As in will they pick up on it and start fighting over the females. Not that they are a few weeks away from laying eggs I don’t know what I was talking about more like a few months!!

Well not really the Cockerels are just maturing and young Cockerels are terrible sometimes with figuring out who is top in the flock. Sounds like you have two dominant Cockerels.