Silkies - They’re simply SPECTACULAR!

[LadiesAndJane]

Guess what.... FINALLLLLLYYYYY... got my coop and run setup and leveled and ready to go! Girls moved in last night!!

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They look so tiny in all of that space!

I had to take Elsa out.. because she was just totally attacking Esmeralda. I put her back in her old coop until evening, then she seemed calmer. Still chasing, but not feet in the air hawk attack style.

They were all so funny, no one wanted to go into the coop. So i had to wait til it was almost dark, then put each one up on the roost. Not only that, they wouldn't get down in the morning either So i carried each one down again. I could see Minnie and Daisy exploring in there this morning after breakfast, so maybe they'll get it. Curious where they are going to lay eggs. Probably in the run instead of one of the 8 nest boxes

What an awesome space for your babies and for you! It looks fantastic I just love it!

 

[LadiesAndJane]

So my little girl silkie is not as healthy as before. She had the biggest goopiest poop ball stuck to her tail area, not positive if it was blocking her vent, but possible. I washed it all off as well as the surrounding feathers (she wss super mellow, so i was able to keep the rest of her dry). I held her until she had her next poop, which was a very normal but humongous cecal poop.

This morning she had more milky watery poop stuck again. I washed her off again. Seems like her crop is still full from yesterday too. I boiled some eggs, pulled out the yolk and mashed them w olive oil and chick grit. Hoping that helps move things along. Haven't had poop problems in any chicks before beyond the first week. Besides the yolk and olive oil, im adding the chick vitamins back into the water. She is drinking, eating, and sloppily pooping on herself.

Any other ideas to try would be appreciated!

How old is she now? Are you feeding medicated chick starter? Any other birds showing similar symptoms?
When I have chicks with diarrhea I give it two days if they are otherwise well. If the diarrhea continues then I will treat for coccidiosis by adding Corid to their drinking water. Does not necessarily mean they have cocci, but it is the most common cause of diarrhea in chicks.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

I put the eggs in incubator too. it was for a friend. as I had a few silkie and bantam cochin eggs I put them too. I am not sure if my boys mate so this is to check fertility as well. my new silkie boy is young and my bantam cochin is a dog attack surviver (limping for good) so I don't know if he is capable of mating.

When is your hatch date? Mine are due on the 26th and the 31st so far, I tend to add more eggs in the incubator though so they’ll likely be more dates!

 

[ForTheLoveOfSilkies]

Get a frizzle... They're the best!
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I want one!!!! So cute and frizzzley! There's someone down my road that has some so I'm thinking fertile egg swap! Do the eggs look the same as Silkies though? So I won't be able to tell them apart if I just want to hatch my silkies?

 

[ForTheLoveOfSilkies]

Guess what.... FINALLLLLLYYYYY... got my coop and run setup and leveled and ready to go! Girls moved in last night!!

View attachment 2963601View attachment 2963600View attachment 2963598View attachment 2963599View attachment 2963597
They look so tiny in all of that space!

I had to take Elsa out.. because she was just totally attacking Esmeralda. I put her back in her old coop until evening, then she seemed calmer. Still chasing, but not feet in the air hawk attack style.

They were all so funny, no one wanted to go into the coop. So i had to wait til it was almost dark, then put each one up on the roost. Not only that, they wouldn't get down in the morning either So i carried each one down again. I could see Minnie and Daisy exploring in there this morning after breakfast, so maybe they'll get it. Curious where they are going to lay eggs. Probably in the run instead of one of the 8 nest boxes

Nice coop!
From my experience chickens don't like change and well Silkies do tend to be worse with change as often their crests obscure their vision so if there is change to where things are located they don't know where to go till they work it out after a while or shown where things are by others. It may take awhile for them to get use to their new home

 

[AngBantamLuv]

Nice coop!
From my experience chickens don't like change and well Silkies do tend to be worse with change as often their crests obscure their vision so if there is change to where things are located they don't know where to go till they work it out after a while or shown where things are by others. It may take awhile for them to get use to their new home

Oh, those were my big girls who were afraid of the coop! but i saw them wandering around today, and even had one egg in a nest box! One was in the run under the ramp (Esmeralda....) but they'll figure it out.

I just moved all the polish and silkie chicks from the garage to the small coop i have on the back porch. I bought a brooder plate but its too massive to fit safely in it. Hopefully w their body heat and a couple blankets, they'll be good. They are 6 weeks now.

 

[AngBantamLuv]

How old is she now? Are you feeding medicated chick starter? Any other birds showing similar symptoms?
When I have chicks with diarrhea I give it two days if they are otherwise well. If the diarrhea continues then I will treat for coccidiosis by adding Corid to their drinking water. Does not necessarily mean they have cocci, but it is the most common cause of diarrhea in chicks.

She is 6 weeks old, and no one else has any issues. I think ill add the corid tonight. They aren't very keen on the gravity waterer and feeder anyhow, so the chick waterer will be perfect. She is eating and drinking, so that's a good sign in my book. She is about half the size of the other silkie chick. I hope its not failure to thrive.

 

[chickengr]

When is your hatch date? Mine are due on the 26th and the 31st so far, I tend to add more eggs in the incubator though so they’ll likely be more dates!

6th february. I might add more eggs once I discard the unfertile ones.

it seems my big girl silkie does not like her new companion I have seen him a few times trying to mate her but she escaped.

I still cannot guess sex of the 8 chicks. the first 3 are about 2 mo. I thought 1 of them was boy but the comb is small. there is one of the younger that seems to have bigger comb. I had 3 hatches about 2 weeks apart.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

6th february. I might add more eggs once I discard the unfertile ones.

it seems my big girl silkie does not like her new companion I have seen him a few times trying to mate her but she escaped.

I still cannot guess sex of the 8 chicks. the first 3 are about 2 mo. I thought 1 of them was boy but the comb is small. there is one of the younger that seems to have bigger comb. I had 3 hatches about 2 weeks apart.

I went through 3 boys before I found one that my hen Kana likes!
You can try posting photos of the chicks, we can give it a gender guess anyway!

 

[PippinTheChicken]

I want one!!!! So cute and frizzzley! There's someone down my road that has some so I'm thinking fertile egg swap! Do the eggs look the same as Silkies though? So I won't be able to tell them apart if I just want to hatch my silkies?

The eggs are small and round.
This batch is my marvel crew... 100% hatch rate AND 3 pullets!!!!