Silkies - They’re simply SPECTACULAR!

[LadiesAndJane]

Ahhhhh!!!!!! So cute!!! I loveeee the teddy bear picture...

Thanks!
The teddy bear is huge which makes the chicks look even smaller than they really are.

 

[BleuSaphir]

It is tricky! Our little man crows A LOT, starts at 3 am sometimes. We keep our immediate neighbors supplied in eggs, so they hopefully won't complain! We also live rural with other noises; cows, dogs, goats, landscaping equipment. Last one is the worst in my opinion.

I can’t imagine a rural farm without a noise of a Rooster!!!

 

[gothicpicasso]

It is tricky! Our little man crows A LOT, starts at 3 am sometimes. We keep our immediate neighbors supplied in eggs, so they hopefully won't complain! We also live rural with other noises; cows, dogs, goats, landscaping equipment. Last one is the worst in my opinion.

Sadly, I live in town. Plus I know for a FACT one of two neighbors would complain, maybe both. Neither live right next door but close enough they’d most likely hear a rooster.

 

[ForTheLoveOfSilkies]

Question for you silkie breeders:
How do pick chicks to keep? I know best to wait for grow outs to determine and I have had at least one ugly duckling that grew into a swan, but I need to decide at this young age. My daughter has decided on the one she likes best, hoping it is a pullet of course. She is very yellow in down like her father was, mom was more silvery down. Read here a while back that they MAY be sex linked in the white silkies.
I am trying to breed away from vaulted skulls, due to their inherent fragility with the open skull. Of these chicks that have hatched so far only 2 have the vaulted skulls. The one we want to keep does not have one, has good feathering on the second toe. Nice amount of fluff under the chin and around the neck. The usual 5 toes and black skin. Cute little round chick body. Anything else I should look for?
My current batch are all full siblings as only one of the pullets' eggs were fertile. Mom has a vaulted skull (thought she did not, but looking back at chick photos she does).
Dad does not.
Thanks!

Chipmunk - partridge colour means they stay .. yes to the health first though and the usual Silkie characteristics with black skin, 5 toes etc. .. Can you tell a bit of their personality at that young age? ..So hard to decide when they are all so cute little fluffballs!

 

[BleuSaphir]

Sadly, I live in town. Plus I know for a FACT one of two neighbors would complain, maybe both. Neither live right next door but close enough they’d most likely hear a rooster.

Having a rooster in the city or suburbs especially is like playing Russian roulette with our neighbors.
I wish it wasn’t that way. It very noisy to live in a city to complain about a rooster! Suburbs depend where...

 

[LadiesAndJane]

Chipmunk - partridge colour means they stay .. yes to the health first though and the usual Silkie characteristics with black skin, 5 toes etc. .. Can you tell a bit of their personality at that young age? ..So hard to decide when they are all so cute little fluffballs!

Sweet little chick, my daughter loves it, so I guess that's reason enough.

 

[PioneerChicks]

Question for you silkie breeders:
How do pick chicks to keep? I know best to wait for grow outs to determine and I have had at least one ugly duckling that grew into a swan, but I need to decide at this young age. My daughter has decided on the one she likes best, hoping it is a pullet of course. She is very yellow in down like her father was, mom was more silvery down. Read here a while back that they MAY be sex linked in the white silkies.
I am trying to breed away from vaulted skulls, due to their inherent fragility with the open skull. Of these chicks that have hatched so far only 2 have the vaulted skulls. The one we want to keep does not have one, has good feathering on the second toe. Nice amount of fluff under the chin and around the neck. The usual 5 toes and black skin. Cute little round chick body. Anything else I should look for?
My current batch are all full siblings as only one of the pullets' eggs were fertile. Mom has a vaulted skull (thought she did not, but looking back at chick photos she does).
Dad does not.
Thanks!

I raise mine to the point where I can tell their age, then remove at least most of the boys. How picky I am depends on how many girls there are.

Have you ever heard of The American Standard Of Perfection? It is a book that tells what a show quality chicken should look like. It is best to try to match your breeding stock to it.

This year I will work mostly on growing bigger crests (and beards if they are bearded), and a bit on shortening the legs. If I get really lucky with a lot of girls, I will start on widening the back.

Keep in mind that I am no expert on this. I actually started with hatchery stock and their chicks were fairly good quality, so I have started improving the line. A poultry judge advised me to focus on the three points mentioned in the paragraph above.

If you do have to choose from the chicks, black skin, five toes, and fluffiness should be good things to keep in mind. I'm not sure if how fluffy they are as chicks affects them as adults, but it's worth a shot!

Good luck and have fun!

 

[LadiesAndJane]

I raise mine to the point where I can tell their age, then remove at least most of the boys. How picky I am depends on how many girls there are.

Have you ever heard of The American Standard Of Perfection? It is a book that tells what a show quality chicken should look like. It is best to try to match your breeding stock to it.

This year I will work mostly on growing bigger crests (and beards if they are bearded), and a bit on shortening the legs. If I get really lucky with a lot of girls, I will start on widening the back.

Keep in mind that I am no expert on this. I actually started with hatchery stock and their chicks were fairly good quality, so I have started improving the line. A poultry judge advised me to focus on the three points mentioned in the paragraph above.

If you do have to choose from the chicks, black skin, five toes, and fluffiness should be good things to keep in mind. I'm not sure if how fluffy they are as chicks affects them as adults, but it's worth a shot!

Good luck and have fun!

Thank you, this is so helpful!
Thankfully, all my girls look pretty good.
My cockerel has a single comb, though he came from breeder stock as well. Not sure about the comb genetics. He looks really good otherwise. Might have to switch him out though of course he is a sweetheart and we love him.
Doesn’t look like any of these chicks have a single comb, as far as I can tell this young.
I am finding that my silkies are quite popular here. They are all super fluffy. So of course I would like to continue to improve what I have. Funny one of the chicks was hatched with only four toes on one foot though both parents have five toes.
Hoping some of these eggs I hatch from two different breeders on the mainland will help improve the gene pool over here as well. Most silkies that I see on craigslist here anyway are from hatchery stock. Many have the wrong coloring of their skin and combs and minimal crests and are also quite large.
And as far as the cuteness and fluffiness of the chick determining the adult appearance, obviously there’s no way to predict that. Case in point is Zelda here who was quite funny looking as a chick and grew into this beautiful creature now.

 

[feather13]

What adorable photos! This thread is making me so jealous and miss having Silkies . Our flock of five was wiped out by Mareks. Has anyone had luck raising vaccinated Silkies on Mareks-infected property?

 

[feather13]

Having a rooster in the city or suburbs especially is like playing Russian roulette with our neighbors.
I wish it wasn’t that way. It very noisy to live in a city to complain about a rooster! Suburbs depend where...

We live in a densely populated, primarily immigrant and BIPOC suburb (tiny houses with small yards) and always ask neighbors before we get new chicks. They have been surprisingly happy about us having them (and free cartons of eggs help!). So maybe try canvassing neighbors if you really want a rooster?

Some of our neighbors have roosters and we've had them in the past (all three died of Mareks ). I'm too nervous about a rooster getting impounded since we're not zoned for them (it would break my heart and be $$$), so won't be getting any more. I say hearing roosters crowing is so much more delightful than the endless barking of backyard dogs left out all day and night by themselves!