Silky Feathered Cochins

[peachdawg78]

Has anyone ever seen silky feathered cochin bantams? I have a friend who has hatched several silky feathered chicks out of 2 pair of normal feathered buff cochin bantams. I looked on line and it seems overseas there have been a very rare few silky feathered birds spontaneously coming out of a red cochin bantam flock. I think I'm going to try and develop these but I was just looking for any insight.

 

[KellyHM]

Are you sure her Cochins aren't Silkie/Cochin crosses? Do they have dark skin or 5 toes? Silkie x Cochin will give smooth-feathered in the 1st generation, then if those are bred together you will get 25% silkie-feathered since it's a recessive trait.

 

[Kev]

Crosses between silkies and cochins have been done either by pet owners or breeders trying to introduce color or something else into the other breed. So it would not surprise me if the silky feather gene is floating around in the cochin gene pool. It is recessive so it requires the "luck" of pairing of two birds carrying that gene hidden to throw silky feathered ones- like that pair of your friend's.

Anyways, silky feathered x normal feather= all normal feathers(but carrying the silky gene).

silky x silky= all silky.

Not a cochin, but in an egg trade for naked necks, got two hens that proved to be carriers of the silky gene. So it gets around.. either deliberately or not. Not long ago there was a thread by a person with a pair of silky feathered Ameraucanas (or EE, can't remember)

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

I remember that thread. I've seen photos of silkie feathered japs and I think OEGB, and of course silkied seramas. Recessive genes can hide for generations.

 

[Kev]

Yep they sure can hide for generations.

The persons I got the silkie-carrying naked necks from were very surprised. Discovered that fact by crossing them with a silkie with the purpose of creating showgirls.. half of the chicks turned out silky feathered..

I did have a little fun doing a side project of making silky feathered naked necks in black and cuckoo. Thought they looked neat, the silking looks rather different on birds with shorter dense feathers.. Toyed with the idea of introducing silky into long tails for the simple reason to create a line that would not be able to jump over the fence into the neighbors(they were really bad about staying in their yard most of the day).. ended up deciding to get rid of all longtails though.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

I have a silkieXphoenix gorgeons colours. I keep wondering if his tail will molt or keep growing.

 

[flyingmonkeypoop]

I have gotten a silkie feathered red cochin from a hatchery before and have heard of others getting the same.

 

[peachdawg78]

I am quite sure that the parent birds are 100% buff cochin bantams. These chicks have the nice buff coloring, feathering to their middle toes and light skin. I am going to try and see if I can get them to breed true. Sounds like a fun challenge to me.

 

[blueoval1]

I saw a guy on eggbid with several different colors of silkie feathered cochins.

 

[chickenwhisperer123]

There are red cochins with silkie feathers on feathersite I believe..

YEP.

http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/CGA/Cochins/BRKCochinBty.html

Scroll most of the way down and you will see them.