What do you think about this silkie?

[happymom99]

I bought two day-old silkies and they look very different from one another and I have been pretty confident one is a girl and one is a boy. They are just over 6 months old now. The one that I think is a boy has a big knobby comb thing on his/her head and larger waddles. I don't feel spurs on it's legs, but I don't know what they would feel like. He/She has never crowed. I have seen him/her sitting in the nestbox.

When do silkie boys usually crow?

Is there any chance that the silkie I described, with the big knobby thing on its head is a girl or do only boys have that?

Would a boy silkie want to sit in a nestbox?

I know that if I want to know for sure I need to wait until he/she lays or crows but I am nervous. I am not zoned for roosters and once it crows I will have to get it out of here right away. If the knobby thing is definitive boy, I would rather just rehome it now.

Thank you for any info!

 

[Jeanette56]

Could you provide some photos? Your written description sounds like Roo but that doesn't mean it is.

 

[happymom99]

I am having a hard time getting a pic because the silkie is black and all of its features blend together. I am trying with my iphone though. My husband, who is better with the camera than though, is going to try to get a shot with a real camera for me. He will try in daylight as well as in the dark with a flash and see if either way we getter results. Hopefully we will get something good enough to post.

In the meantime...

***Can anyone tell me when a silkie roo typically starts to crow?

***Would a roo ever squat and put his tail aside, the way a hen does? The chicken in question was in the nest box this morning and when I laid my hand on his/her back to pet it and put it at ease so I could check underneath for an egg, he/she squatted, put its wings out, and moved its tail aside, just like my hens.

I appreciate any input anyone has. I am kind of stressing because now, of all things, my flock has developed avian pox. I have never dealt with illness before in my chickens so on top of worrying about their health now, I am worried this chicken is going to crow before the pox go away. I don't know what I will do then. If he crows, he can't stay here. I have to get rid of him fast. Animal control will be at my suburban door in a heartbeat because I am only zoned for hens. But if he has pox, of course I have nowhere to take him. I can't give someone a sick chicken.

Thank you again.

 

[ESofVA]

Could you provide some photos? Your written description sounds like Roo but that doesn't mean it is.

I agree with Jeanette56...really need a pic.

Since your bird has already been exposed to Avian Pox (who diagnosed it?) it either has had it, has it in a mild form or it is not showing symptoms yet. If it had it and recuperated it can not catch it again and will not be a carrier. I would wait and see if it gets sick a while before I would consider rehoming it.

 

[silkiemelon]

I'll try to answer some of your questions.

Silkie roos usually crow by 6 months of age, but it really does vary. Mine started crowing at 4 months, and I've heard of someone's starting to crow at 3 months. My friends silkie stayed silent for a year until it started. So crowing is a ticking time bomb.

Also, yours shouldn't have spurs. Mine usually don't start getting them till they're a year old.

One of my silkie roos likes to chill in one of my nestboxes. I don't know if any other roosters do this, but mine does from time to time. So it still could mean yours is a boy.

But overall, just like everyone else said, we need pics.