Vaulted skulls... Are they actually a curse??

[19hhbelgian]

So I have been putting a lot of time into my polish birds, and the babies always hatch with HUGE vaulted skulls. I have yet to hatch a chick with a small vault. BUT, they also seem very fragile. Is there such a thing as an overly vaulted skull? Also, how long does it actually take for the skull to harden? I have a few pics below of some brand new chicks I just hatched out. All have the same HUGE vaults.

 

[Three Cedars Silkies]

Their skull does not harden. Their is a covering over their brain, but it is thin and they can easily be injured. It's can be a problem for polish and silkies.

 

[SundownWaterfowl]

A couple years ago when I was getting rid of my hatchery silkies, I had this one pullet with a huge vault. Something spooked her and she ran, head first, and whacked her vault, and I mean whacked it. I was suprised she didnt die from it.

 

[CoopCrazy]

Personally I dont like anything wiotht he vaulted skulls to my knowledge it is actually a defect and can make the birds very fragile...

 

[rancher hicks]

I don't have polish so could someone explain a "vaulted" skull and show pics of polish with out a vaulted skull?

 

[SundownWaterfowl]

Quote:
I have silkies hatch out all the time with vaulted skulls, and are never fragile.

 

[CoopCrazy]

Quote:
I have silkies hatch out all the time with vaulted skulls, and are never fragile.

I am just going by what I have heard .. Not from experience..

 

[hinkjc]

Please note: the pictures may be graphic for some. Open with caution, but these are skull photos of vaulted skulls which may help people who breed these birds to understand what is under all that fluff.

http://www.personal.psu.edu/staff/l/a/lah161/skull photos.html

 

[Smoky73]

There is a picture on the internet of a silkie skull of a vaulted bird. (A polish would not be much different) A vaulted bird actually has no skull on top except for maybe a thin strip down the middle.

Here are two articles -follow the links please-
http://www.browneggblueegg.com/Article.html

http://www.browneggblueegg.com/Article.html

However, after reading the first one, I had a thought....I love anything medical and I do know that when trauma to the brain occurs in people, its the swelling of the brain against the skull which can cause death, which is why in hospitals, they will remove part of your skull in an emergency to relieve the pressure to your brain, allowing it to expand.
But any amount of damage depending on how hard could cause irreversible damage to the brain and yes, some birds have died from it.
I personally do not care either way if the birds are vaulted or not, and I do not see that their crests are any bigger, I have had some non vaulted have equally as nice crests as non-vaulted.

 

[robin416]

I don't find vaulted skulls any more beneficial where fullness on the top knot is concerned. I have through personal experience found that they are more fragile. My highest mortality rate in chicks is those with the vaulted skulls. I have one hen who was nailed years ago that still suffers when conditions are right from the resulting injury to her brain.