Washingtonians Come Together! Washington Peeps

[Duck Drover]

@Chickielady


And that is why I decided I'll only seriously work on the partridge silkies. I have a pen of odd color silkies that are just for fun and no brain work required. They tend to be better for my pictures though.

I started with mixed colored Silkies since I wanted them as incubators and brooders but then decided to focus on BBS show quality, even though we don't show. I get really tempted to go back to mixed colors because they are so unique looking but then I want to keep perfecting what we have and keep to pure colors.

Years ago I never expected to have or breed Silkies because I thought they were ridiculous birds with no purpose, lol. It is funny how much we love them now!

 

[Duck Drover]

They are stunning. Here is a chick from our latest hatch came from my splash hen and blue rooster. I am gonna have to pull that Splash though if she keeps throwing these toes.. >.< Which is sucky because her crest and colors are stunning.. Just those **** toes.

That is pretty significant. The first thing I look at is toes when the Silkies hatch and any defect at all results in selling the chicks cheap as pet quality. The toes hardly show so most people don't care but I won't even grow them out to compare other breed characteristics.

 

[Duck Drover]

Double toenails is something I have pop up every now and then. They are the weirdest thing. Moreso than the 6 toes that sometimes can happen. It's always the inner rear toe. Usually only one foot

I can't see the double nail in the picture on my phone screen but I have had the occasional toe segment growing out of another toe. I go for wide toe spacing and sell off anything with Y shaped toes as well (4th and 5th fork out from a double wide base rather than being separate and parallel). I will tolerate some twist in the toenails but the toes have to be straight to keep them for breeding.

 

[Hinotori]

She's an odd color. Very pretty but only for my photo projects. The double nails are weird because they are so perfect and you have to pay attention to notice them.

 

[Duck Drover]

I had my abdominal ultrasound this morning and it seems I have an enlarged fatty liver and a gallstone. I will have to completely change my eating habits, even though it is hereditary and not caused by diet, in order to try to reverse the damage. I suspect that the ibuprofen I took in order to walk on a shredded tendon and heel spur may have tipped me over the edge when it comes to having liver damage because my doctor warned me that it could damage my liver. I have been off ibuprofen and acetaminophen the past couple weeks already since I am doing a paid arthritis drug study. Now I need to change my eating habits and get more exercise to lose weight.

 

[Hinotori]

Another bird with the double nail

6 toed chick

 

[Duck Drover]

She's an odd color. Very pretty but only for my photo projects. The double nails are weird because they are so perfect and you have to pay attention to notice them.

I enlarged the picture and I see it now. It looks like a wide clefted nail but it is two nails side by side. That would not pass inspection here, lol. So much can go wrong with Silkies while other breeds are more uniform in appearance.

 

[Hinotori]

I had my abdominal ultrasound this morning and it seems I have an enlarged fatty liver and a gallstone. I will have to completely change my eating habits, even though it is hereditary and not caused by diet, in order to try to reverse the damage. I suspect that the ibuprofen I took in order to walk on a shredded tendon and heel spur may have tipped me over the edge when it comes to having liver damage because my doctor warned me that it could damage my liver. I have been off ibuprofen and acetaminophen the past couple weeks already since I am doing a paid arthritis drug study. Now I need to change my eating habits and get more exercise to lose weight.

Eek. So many drugs damage the liver, so I can see how that wouldn't have helped. That's going to have to be a careful diet. I hope it recovers fast

 

[Hinotori]

She's an odd color. Very pretty but only for my photo projects. The double nails are weird because they are so perfect and you have to pay attention to notice them.

I enlarged the picture and I see it now. It looks like a wide clefted nail but it is two nails side by side. That would not pass inspection here, lol. So much can go wrong with Silkies while other breeds are more uniform in appearance.

I don't use the ones with the extra nail in the partridge pens. I sold off the other hen that had it and ate a cockerel.

 

[Duck Drover]

Eek. So many drugs damage the liver, so I can see how that wouldn't have helped. That's going to have to be a careful diet. I hope it recovers fast

Yes, and Wednesday I have surgery and a biopsy to determine if I have uterine cancer. I am 47 and my body is falling apart already!