Silkies - They’re simply SPECTACULAR!

[Gammas Bearded Babies]

Update on the little Hanabi baby, now 11 days old and a little sweetie.
I guess “she” needs a name.
I sold the older one to a friend, so I should get updates on this one as well.
She is just like “her” mamma. So strange I am not seeing ANY Silkie in this one. Not even any sign of a crest coming in, though it could still come in a bit later.
Four toes on each foot. No beard.
Quite a bit smaller than the same age pure Silkie hatch mates.
I only have one rooster and he is paint, so he has to be the father, though I have never seen him mate Hanabi and she always runs away from him and can easily fly out of his reach.
I found some more red on the edges of the wing feathers. Interesting to see if this stays.
I’m having a hard time seeing if it has a Silkie comb or looks like it possibly may have a single comb or modified comb.View attachment 3037402View attachment 3037403View attachment 3037404View attachment 3037405View attachment 3037406View attachment 3037407
Mama Hanabi
View attachment 3037428

She's such a cutie!!! Can't wait to see her grow out!

 

[LynnaePB]

I've got my incubators loaded with a bunch of eggs for a local friend. They should be all or mostly all for her but it's still going to be a lot of fun to see what hatches. I'm excited for such a big hatch but I'm sure it'll be exhausting too. I put 42 eggs in and had 1 clear and two quitters so far at about a week along. They should hatch on the 8th of April.

The little chick that I was unsure whether it would be mottled or split is looking mottled! It's just really lightly mottled with a bit of white under the chin, a couple white wing feathers, a few white foot feathers and a bit of white tipped feathers on the hind end fluff but I'm still excited for my first mottled hatched from my own breeding.

She/he (I'm leaning towards he a bit based on the comb) is 6 weeks old now.

Been quiet here...everybody out working the gardens?! Hanging with the chicks?!
I Got 3 batches (what do yall call all your "groups" of chicks different ages)? Oldest are 4 months, then Hawaii babies going to new homes this weekend (unless I keep a couple sincedaughter thinks shes doin me a favor by taken couple and i just LUV em and wanna see em grow out!) and 16 in incubator from Alabama that arrived yesterday!

I've been hanging with the grow outs and taking lots of terrible pictures of them. I've taken hundreds and hardly have anything decent to show for it. It doesn't help that they are still kind of filling in and most a bit awkward.

Oh I hope the ones from Alabama do really well for you! I can't wait to see what hatches!

Chickaletta is happily sitting on 6 eggs I had express shipped (1 night it took)
It will be good to add some genetic diversity into my flock too so hopefully the hatch rate will be good since they cost $40 (AU)

Good luck! I hope she gets at least a few chicks to raise.

Hard to get them all to cooperate for a group shot! View attachment 3036483

They are all so lovely!

Sweet little Cher Bear has decided I might be okay after all. After her scary night in the big kid poop bin, she’s been lots more willing to sit with me and be snuggled

And it’s getting close to time to let Betty and Fuzzy take the babies out of the upstairs coop to wander and forage in the enclosed run! I will probably wait another week or so so they get a bit bigger, but they seem to be in very good hands!

Aww I'm so glad you've finally got a little silkie that wants to be with you more! I hope it keeps up.

The little polish with Fuzzy and Betty are just too cute! I hope they all really enjoy the run when it is time for them to go out and explore.

Update on the little Hanabi baby, now 11 days old and a little sweetie.
I guess “she” needs a name.
I sold the older one to a friend, so I should get updates on this one as well.
She is just like “her” mamma. So strange I am not seeing ANY Silkie in this one. Not even any sign of a crest coming in, though it could still come in a bit later.
Four toes on each foot. No beard.
Quite a bit smaller than the same age pure Silkie hatch mates.
I only have one rooster and he is paint, so he has to be the father, though I have never seen him mate Hanabi and she always runs away from him and can easily fly out of his reach.
I found some more red on the edges of the wing feathers. Interesting to see if this stays.
I’m having a hard time seeing if it has a Silkie comb or looks like it possibly may have a single comb or modified comb.View attachment 3037402View attachment 3037403View attachment 3037404View attachment 3037405View attachment 3037406View attachment 3037407
Mama Hanabi
View attachment 3037428

The little one is just gorgeous! I love seeing how that red is showing up so far, it really is pretty.

My little ones I got from my paint boy with a bit of red leakage and the red partridge mother have absolutely no hint of red yet at 5 weeks (perhaps being on silkie feathering it would be harder to notice as well though). Hanabi being fully red probably is a lot better at getting the red color introduced faster. It's really helpful to see this.

 

[Gammas Bearded Babies]

I've got my incubators loaded with a bunch of eggs for a local friend. They should be all or mostly all for her but it's still going to be a lot of fun to see what hatches. I'm excited for such a big hatch but I'm sure it'll be exhausting too. I put 42 eggs in and had 1 clear and two quitters so far at about a week along. They should hatch on the 8th of April.

The little chick that I was unsure whether it would be mottled or split is looking mottled! It's just really lightly mottled with a bit of white under the chin, a couple white wing feathers, a few white foot feathers and a bit of white tipped feathers on the hind end fluff but I'm still excited for my first mottled hatched from my own breeding.

She/he (I'm leaning towards he a bit based on the comb) is 6 weeks old now.

Wow that's a lot of babies! Hope they all hatch without any problems. Are they silkies?
Oh what a cutie! I'm amazed at how their lil feathers change so much and so fast! I bet more white will come in!

 

[kurby22]

I've got my incubators loaded with a bunch of eggs for a local friend. They should be all or mostly all for her but it's still going to be a lot of fun to see what hatches. I'm excited for such a big hatch but I'm sure it'll be exhausting too. I put 42 eggs in and had 1 clear and two quitters so far at about a week along. They should hatch on the 8th of April.

The little chick that I was unsure whether it would be mottled or split is looking mottled! It's just really lightly mottled with a bit of white under the chin, a couple white wing feathers, a few white foot feathers and a bit of white tipped feathers on the hind end fluff but I'm still excited for my first mottled hatched from my own breeding.

She/he (I'm leaning towards he a bit based on the comb) is 6 weeks old now.

View attachment 3039187



I've been hanging with the grow outs and taking lots of terrible pictures of them. I've taken hundreds and hardly have anything decent to show for it. It doesn't help that they are still kind of filling in and most a bit awkward.

Oh I hope the ones from Alabama do really well for you! I can't wait to see what hatches!



Good luck! I hope she gets at least a few chicks to raise.



They are all so lovely!



Aww I'm so glad you've finally got a little silkie that wants to be with you more! I hope it keeps up.

The little polish with Fuzzy and Betty are just too cute! I hope they all really enjoy the run when it is time for them to go out and explore.



The little one is just gorgeous! I love seeing how that red is showing up so far, it really is pretty.

My little ones I got from my paint boy with a bit of red leakage and the red partridge mother have absolutely no hint of red yet at 5 weeks (perhaps being on silkie feathering it would be harder to notice as well though). Hanabi being fully red probably is a lot better at getting the red color introduced faster. It's really helpful to see this.

Holy moly! 42 babies is a lot haha. Would be exciting and totally overwhelming Your black mottled chick looks like “he” will be very pretty!

Cher Bear is a confusing little Silkie! I don’t want to hack at her beautiful head feathers more than I have, but I really think I have to to give her a chance to build up her confidence. The poor girl hides all day behind my chicken sitting chair and spends half the day inside the coop. Tonight I got distracted and forgot to put them to bed, and it was pitch black out. Every chicken had gone to bed, but Cher, who was in the middle of the run hunkered down as flat as possible not making a sound. I just feel so bad for her she seems so miserable They’re just such gentle souls

I am excited to let all the babies outside to join Betty and Fuzzy and the outside Polish babies soon. I can tell the Polish babies are BORED and want out! I would upgrade them to larger digs if the d’Uccles weren’t so tiny! I don’t wanna leave them alone so I’m forcing the big chicks to be patient. The upgrade will be to our big dog crate that the d’Uccles would walk right out of! We don’t want to cover it with hardware cloth because our dog would destroy it, so they just gotta wait a bit longer! I set new eggs for the Easter HAL so I’m thinking the d’Uccles can be the big kids to the new tiny babies when they hatch Then the Polish are off the hook! I know Betty and Fuzzy are ready to join the flock, they miss out on all the chicken treats! I’m thinking I might move Cher and Sia in with the babies too. Maybe that will help her gain some confidence! I sure hope so anyway Chicken dynamics sure keep a person busy!

 

[LynnaePB]

Wow that's a lot of babies! Hope they all hatch without any problems. Are they silkies?
Oh what a cutie! I'm amazed at how their lil feathers change so much and so fast! I bet more white will come in!

Thank you!

They are all silkies, mostly from my main paint pen but a couple from my mottled Nn boy over paint girls and some from a mixed color pair. This friend breeds but isn't keeping color separated pens so she is fine with the mixed colors too.

Holy moly! 42 babies is a lot haha. Would be exciting and totally overwhelming Your black mottled chick looks like “he” will be very pretty!

Cher Bear is a confusing little Silkie! I don’t want to hack at her beautiful head feathers more than I have, but I really think I have to to give her a chance to build up her confidence. The poor girl hides all day behind my chicken sitting chair and spends half the day inside the coop. Tonight I got distracted and forgot to put them to bed, and it was pitch black out. Every chicken had gone to bed, but Cher, who was in the middle of the run hunkered down as flat as possible not making a sound. I just feel so bad for her she seems so miserable They’re just such gentle souls

I am excited to let all the babies outside to join Betty and Fuzzy and the outside Polish babies soon. I can tell the Polish babies are BORED and want out! I would upgrade them to larger digs if the d’Uccles weren’t so tiny! I don’t wanna leave them alone so I’m forcing the big chicks to be patient. The upgrade will be to our big dog crate that the d’Uccles would walk right out of! We don’t want to cover it with hardware cloth because our dog would destroy it, so they just gotta wait a bit longer! I set new eggs for the Easter HAL so I’m thinking the d’Uccles can be the big kids to the new tiny babies when they hatch Then the Polish are off the hook! I know Betty and Fuzzy are ready to join the flock, they miss out on all the chicken treats! I’m thinking I might move Cher and Sia in with the babies too. Maybe that will help her gain some confidence! I sure hope so anyway Chicken dynamics sure keep a person busy!

Thanks!

Aww poor little Cher, I've had some like that too. I usually try lopping off a lot of crest on those ones as well and while it doesn't always work a lot of the time it helps.

It sounds like you've got a good plan for the polish and d'Uccles! The little polish at least won't have to wait too terribly long. That is so exciting about the eggs for the EHAL as well, I hope you get a great hatch with them!

 

[chickengr]

Holy moly! 42 babies is a lot haha. Would be exciting and totally overwhelming Your black mottled chick looks like “he” will be very pretty!

Cher Bear is a confusing little Silkie! I don’t want to hack at her beautiful head feathers more than I have, but I really think I have to to give her a chance to build up her confidence. The poor girl hides all day behind my chicken sitting chair and spends half the day inside the coop. Tonight I got distracted and forgot to put them to bed, and it was pitch black out. Every chicken had gone to bed, but Cher, who was in the middle of the run hunkered down as flat as possible not making a sound. I just feel so bad for her she seems so miserable They’re just such gentle souls

I am excited to let all the babies outside to join Betty and Fuzzy and the outside Polish babies soon. I can tell the Polish babies are BORED and want out! I would upgrade them to larger digs if the d’Uccles weren’t so tiny! I don’t wanna leave them alone so I’m forcing the big chicks to be patient. The upgrade will be to our big dog crate that the d’Uccles would walk right out of! We don’t want to cover it with hardware cloth because our dog would destroy it, so they just gotta wait a bit longer! I set new eggs for the Easter HAL so I’m thinking the d’Uccles can be the big kids to the new tiny babies when they hatch Then the Polish are off the hook! I know Betty and Fuzzy are ready to join the flock, they miss out on all the chicken treats! I’m thinking I might move Cher and Sia in with the babies too. Maybe that will help her gain some confidence! I sure hope so anyway Chicken dynamics sure keep a person busy!

I also have 1 pullet who is sitting on a concrete block in the run while all the others went inside for night.

 

[chickengr]

are feed prices skyrocketing in the US as well? I will definitely keep silkies and araucanas only and got rid of the rest due to feed price and probably lack of feed. I hope to be able to find enough greens (from a market seller) for my waterfowl otherwise I'll have to butcher some of them.

 

[Gammas Bearded Babies]

are feed prices skyrocketing in the US as well? I will definitely keep silkies and araucanas only and got rid of the rest due to feed price and probably lack of feed. I hope to be able to find enough greens (from a market seller) for my waterfowl otherwise I'll have to butcher some of them.

They have gone up some...not as much accordingly as everything else though...yet anyway.
I've got tons of stuff I am planting to help with the feed bill (but mostly cuz I'm a crazy person that luvs trying to get stuff to grow - who am i!?!)
I hope it doesn't continue to get worse for you, that would be awful, but understandable too.

Cher Bear is a confusing little Silkie! I don’t want to hack at her beautiful head feathers more than I have, but I really think I have to to give her a chance to build up her confidence. The poor girl hides all day behind my chicken sitting chair and spends half the day inside the coop. Tonight I got distracted and forgot to put them to bed, and it was pitch black out. Every chicken had gone to bed, but Cher, who was in the middle of the run hunkered down as flat as possible not making a sound. I just feel so bad for her she seems so miserable They’re just such gentle souls

Awe she sounds a lot like my Josie...lil petite satin and scared of her shadow, literally! I gave her an awful wack job and she ended up lookin like an owl cuz of the black feathering underneath the white! But I've kept working with her and they've begun to grow out and I said I'm not doing the wack job again so she's gonna have to toughen up! She has begun asserting herself even with Zoe which I thought was head girlee! Dynamics change quite often in the coop!

They are all silkies, mostly from my main paint pen but a couple from my mottled Nn boy over paint girls and some from a mixed color pair.

Ok stupid question...Nn is that a naked neck or a genetic abbreviation for something else (like F1 I'm guessing is first generation?)
Would LUV to see a pic of him if it's a Naked Neck!

 

[LynnaePB]

They have gone up some...not as much accordingly as everything else though...yet anyway.
I've got tons of stuff I am planting to help with the feed bill (but mostly cuz I'm a crazy person that luvs trying to get stuff to grow - who am i!?!)
I hope it doesn't continue to get worse for you, that would be awful, but understandable too.


Awe she sounds a lot like my Josie...lil petite satin and scared of her shadow, literally! I gave her an awful wack job and she ended up lookin like an owl cuz of the black feathering underneath the white! But I've kept working with her and they've begun to grow out and I said I'm not doing the wack job again so she's gonna have to toughen up! She has begun asserting herself even with Zoe which I thought was head girlee! Dynamics change quite often in the coop!


Ok stupid question...Nn is that a naked neck or a genetic abbreviation for something else (like F1 I'm guessing is first generation?)
Would LUV to see a pic of him if it's a Naked Neck!

That isn't a stupid question at all! I probably shouldn't use the abbreviations so much. I always wonder at abbreviations I'm unsure of when browsing threads. It happens most often when it is a breed that has been abbreviated for me and I'm left wondering what kind of chicken someone is talking about.

When I use Nn I am referring to naked necks. I use Nn for one that is heterozygous for the gene and NN for one homozygous for the gene. While it isn't the official term calling them showgirls when they are heterozygous naked necks and strippers when homozygous is common too.

I got this guy this year from the big show in Knoxville from a breeder working on mottled. I wasn't sure if he was fully mottled or split but the breeder thought mottled just lightly marked (mostly in the crest). He is also non bearded and his skin pigment will need work which is really common with mottled genetics. Sorry for the poor picture, it was windy when I got it.

 

[Gammas Bearded Babies]

That isn't a stupid question at all! I probably shouldn't use the abbreviations so much. I always wonder at abbreviations I'm unsure of when browsing threads. It happens most often when it is a breed that has been abbreviated for me and I'm left wondering what kind of chicken someone is talking about.

When I use Nn I am referring to naked necks. I use Nn for one that is heterozygous for the gene and NN for one homozygous for the gene. While it isn't the official term calling them showgirls when they are heterozygous naked necks and strippers when homozygous is common too.

I got this guy this year from the big show in Knoxville from a breeder working on mottled. I wasn't sure if he was fully mottled or split but the breeder thought mottled just lightly marked (mostly in the crest). He is also non bearded and his skin pigment will need work which is really common with mottled genetics. Sorry for the poor picture, it was windy when I got it.

View attachment 3039393

Oh wow! He's a looker! So when u say his skin pigment needs work...you are referring to the fact that it is pink and not black?
Thank u for the explanation on Nn and NN. This is just super hard for me to grasp LOL!

Are they still havin shows in TN with thr avian flue breakout? I wasn't sure if we had it here or just everywhere around TN.