YO GEORGIANS! :)

[swampturkey]

silkies supposedly came from either china or japan most likely. the two countries haven't really decided who really owns the rights to call themselves the origin of silkies lol. i have the white ones, but you more than likely had the black. oh yes, they have blue meat and blue bones. they apparently are a delicacy in southeast asia.

 

[nuttinfancy]

Thank you! They are just too beautiful to serve for lunch though! I had almost forgot about having her until talking with my girls. Now to add plans for a 5th new coop into my agenda and then the search for them an almost "purple" chicken shall begin!

 

[Flowerbh]

Good Morning everyone! Hope today is a great day for all. I have a question for the silkie owners/breeders (but anyone may know the answer).
When I was a teen (way back in the 80's) my boyfriend gave me a silkie. She was a dark "purple" color. I named her Puff! Anyway, the story he brought with her was that she may be a Japanese breed and that they are all dark meat birds (not that I was intending to have her for lunch) but that is all that was known. Does anyone know what I'm talking about or know if these exist around here? I was telling my daughters about her and they want one and it would be great if I could have another. Thanks in advance for any info and/or knowledge.

Silkies have black skin and blackish organs. They are a delicacy in Asian countries.

The chickens themselves come in a variety of colors, including, black, white, buff, paint, splash and partridge. They can be bearded or not. Most of them lay a small tinted egg, but some have been bred to lay colored eggs. Naked Neck Silkies are called Show Girls and are one of my favorites.

 

[nuttinfancy]

That is almost unreal! Thanks for sharing that pic. I have never seen one (without feathers)! I will definitely get to work on a place for some of them. I'm glad that my daughters are loving this as much as me. And they are going to help with my chicken math!!
Are silkies harder to raise than others? Do they require different diets/coops? I guess I should head over to the silkie thread and start reading instead of bombing you all with questions. Thanks again!

 

[Flowerbh]

All I can say about my Silkie is that she couldn't get up on the high roosts until we built her a ladder up to it. She made the most incredible broody and mom.
These were her foster chicks. She never stayed white as she loved dust bathing in our north GA red clay! LOL. I think I will get another silkie this year! We lost this one when a bear tore down the door to the run and killed her. I'm sure she was trying to protect her babies, who were all ok.

 

[Chad Cool]

Google "different colored eggs" and you can see all the fun colored eggs out there! I didn't know there were different colors either until I got my first 4 little chicks and started doing research on how to raise them. I discovered all the different colors and now my goal is to get all the breeds to have all the colors! Photos of some of my eggs. My extremely dark brown egg layer isn't laying yet. Can't wait for that one!

The colors are crazy right!!!!

 

[swampturkey]

no they are extremely easy to keep. they dont do well in pens that get real muddy after a rain. they will set on eggs more times in a year than most chickens will. i had 5 settings together on a giant mass of eggs at the same time.

 

[nuttinfancy]

All I can say about my Silkie is that she couldn't get up on the high roosts until we built her a ladder up to it. She made the most incredible broody and mom.
These were her foster chicks. She never stayed white as she loved dust bathing in our north GA red clay! LOL. I think I will get another silkie this year! We lost this one when a bear tore down the door to the run and killed her. I'm sure she was trying to protect her babies, who were all ok.

Ooh so sorry. I think she looks pretty with the Ga clay tint! I am definitely going to get a pair. Hubby rolled his eyes at lunch when he saw my list of building materials. All my roosts have ladders so that shouldn't be a problem. I find the girls like perching in different spots throughout the day so I left them.

 

[nuttinfancy]

no they are extremely easy to keep. they dont do well in pens that get real muddy after a rain. they will set on eggs more times in a year than most chickens will. i had 5 settings together on a giant mass of eggs at the same time.

Thanks. I'm working on the details for a coop/run now. Hubby said he knew I wouldn't be content with what I have! Hey, he is addicted to chocolate- I'm addicted to chickens!

 

[LTygress]

A muddy pen is definitely the worst enemy of a silkie owner. With the recent rainstorms, I had to bring my silkies inside and actually bathe them. They had mud caked onto their feathers so bad, that they almost looked like my brown easter egger hen with smooth feathers - and they are supposed to be WHITE silkies!