What's wrong with their feathers?

[Dipsy Doodle Doo]

Well shoot! I have a couple of Silkie hens that will be *clean* in another week --- I'd be glad to donate for the test-mate if you were close enough to pick them up. I hope you can find someone local to work with.
This is going to sound silly, but is it possible to ship 'chicken juice' and artifically inseminate hens (I know you can AI hens, but don't know about the shipping).

Lisa

 

[Happy Chooks]

Quote:
I wouldn't even want to know how you collect the "juice".

 

[Germaine_11.20]

I am not sure if I understood Jean correctly but I think that if you breed your roo to a silkie hen, hatch the chicks (21 days) then if there is a fray the chicks will be silkie feathered, if not they would be hard feathered.?????

I don't think you have to breed the siblings together of line breed. The first hatch should show.

Forgive me if I am wrong.

 

[pips&peeps]

Quote:
No, if they are silkied the chicks will be silkied. If they are fray, they will be hard feathered. Recessive genes take two copies to express. So if Julie's birds are silkied, bred to a silkie then you get silkie chicks. If it is anything else, you will get hard feathered chicks.

 

[BeardedLadyFarm]

pips&peeps :

Yes, that would be the cheapest way to do it. Because if they are silkie, the offspring will be silkie.

The way I read the information on fray, is that it is a simple recessive gene. So you would need two copies of it to manifest. So if it is fray a test breeding to a silkie should produce a regular feathered bird.

Julie, do you have any silkies you can breed your cockerel to?????

Funny, I just had the same thought the other day. Quick, someone send Julie a silkie!​

 

[SteveH]

I read the pages discussing the frayed feather defect and can't see any resemblance to Julie's birds nor the subsequent problems in breeding of homozygous to homozygous . Better safe than sorry I suppose as far as testing , but Julies chickens look to have a little rudimentary feathering on their tails and wings [ which can be found in some pure Silkies ] and their bodies covered by long , hair like , feathers. Not as fluffy and full as the little Silkies , but very much like the pictures of the large fowl F2 chickens I've seen . If its a fray feather defect it is being presented in a completely different form than is described in that text . Anyway , I'll bet some university would jump at the chance to do a research project on them and I hope the result is good . Plus the idea of a hen Silkie test breeding is a good idea and you only need a healthy Silkie hen and a few weeks to get the results . Best wishes .

 

[kathyinmo]

Julie,
I have Silkie hens. My DH is working in NM and TX. He travels. He is home a week, gone a week. I will check with him, and see his next location. He got home today, and will be leaving in less than a week. If anywhere near you, I can have him bring the Silkies to you, if you are interested. I have 2 white, 2 buff, 1 blue. PM me, and we can work out the details, if you wish.

ETA: Do you have any black Ameraucanas in with Ozzie currently? If not, maybe we can get some of those to you, also.

 

[alicefelldown]

Day (Monday Feb 22nd) 18 update on my attempt:

As of today (Day 20), some of the other eggs (BCM, Ameraucana, Olive Eggers, etc) have fully hatched, and most of the others have pipped, but so far there has been no action from any of these strange-feathered birds. Fingers (and toes!!) are still fully crossed!!

 

[Dipsy Doodle Doo]

Hi! Fingers and toes crossed for you!
Honestly, to my eye they always have and still look silkie feathered (from the pics) and fray seems a far stretch --- but test-mating would be the most simple way to clear that up.
Good luck!

Lisa

 

[averytds]

Good Luck!