Undecided over to get Silkies or not

[AlleysChicks]

I have 2 large breeds in with my silkies and they do fine. BUT they’ve been together since they hatched. I did add 3 other bantam pullets in after about 4 months and the one bullied the silkies so bad I had to move it to a different coop. She pulled big chunks of feathers out and the silkie was terrified of her. You could try to introduce some to your flock but I’d have a backup plan just incase things went sour.

 

[gimmie birdies]

I have a few food and water dishes out and in diff places.

 

[sylviethecochin]

One of my silkies was being stupid (refused to stay in the barn, insisted on perching out behind the shed, etc.) and I was afraid she was going to get taken by a predator. So I dropped her in with the standards this winter.

This is what I noticed:

After some initial bullying, in which she got a slightly bloody crest, she settled in fairly well. She does sleep on the floor. At feeding time, she's in the middle of the pan, first for the rush. I have two larger rubber pans for twenty-four hens. She tends to sit in the coop door during the day, for sunlight.

She's now higher up on the pecking order than the younger leghorns (8-monthers), but definitely no-where near the top. Bullying has completely ceased.

In our coop, we have:
Eleven Leghorns
Four silkiexEE pullets
Four Production Reds
One leghorn-cross rooster
One black Sexlink hen (home-brewed PRxBR)
Four EEs.

I free-feed 16% layer pellets/mash (whatever's available) with the occasional handful of corn, kitchen scraps, and any eggs that are damaged.

The coop is 85 square feet, ten feet smaller than recommended. There is a bucket upside down in the middle to serve as both a sight-line breaker and a seat.

The run is a little larger than 400 square feet and bare.

Based on this, I would say that mature, adult silkies can be integrated into a flock unless your hens are tremendous bullies. I am less confident about juvenile silkies.

 

[drumstick diva]

Silkies appear dumb usually because their big crests, beards obscure their vision. If you carefully cut the feathers back you'll be surprised how much more active they are once they can see around them.