Is it a chicken or is it a cony ? A question asked by more than one curious person while stare at a Silkie and trying to figure out where the head is .
Silkie chickens sure as shooting do n’t expect like your modal chicken due to their deficiency of feathers . Well , Silkies do have feathers , but they do n’t have the barbicels that hold most feather together . When a bird primp , it is clicking the flyspeck barbicels together , so their feathers stay in place and bet tasteful and orderly .
Since Silkies do n’t have barbicels , their feather vanish freely everywhere with no rhyme or reason .
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About Silkie Chickens
There is no specific software documentation of the origin nor the breeds that went into creating Silkie Chickens . These birds seem to have originated in China .
Silkies were accept into the American Standard of Perfection as of 1874 .
There are two character of Silkies , barbate and nonbearded Silkies . Bearded Silkies have a muff around their faces . There are several different color varieties in Silkies , such as black , gentle , buff , grey , partridge , and clean .
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Silkie Characteristics
1. Size and Weight
While Silkie wimp are technically categorized as bantam , many the great unwashed view Silkies a different class of snort all in all . These are rather petite bird , with hen press about 3 pounds and rooster approximately 4 pound .
2. Temperament
Silkies are probably comfortably known for their fond and blue-blooded dispositions . Always ready to draw close up with their owners and happy to sit in your lap , you wo n’t recover a much sweet strain of wimp .
Silkie hens are also famous for their constant desire to go broody and raise a batch of chicks . Many chicken breeders keep a small flock of Silkies strictly to use them for their mothering tendencies .
3. Egg Production
If you are after a strain for egg production , Silkies probably are n’t your bird . Silkies fair about 100 small and promiscuous colored eggs per year .
The main purposes of Silkies are as PET , brood mothers , and exhibition .
4. Meat Production
Silkies are small birds , so they by all odds do n’t make the good meat producers . However , if you are after some alien looking center , it does n’t get more alien than a Silkie .
These chickens have bleak skin and blueish tinged flesh , so they are startling in appearance on your dinner table .
Despite their odd color , Silkie meat does n’t sample any dissimilar than veritable crybaby meat .
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Taking Care of Silkies
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1. Feeding and Nutritional Needs
Silkies are rather little bird , and it is best tofeedthem crumbles rather than pellets so they do not have a gruelling time eating and support nutrient .
When raisingchicks , feed them chick starter / agriculturist for the first 16 - 18 week of their lifespan .
Once your birds are nearing laying years , tack them to a good quality put crumble provender . Providesupplemental Ca , such as huitre shells in a separate dish so your hen can eat up it as needed .
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2. Housing and Fencing
Because Silkies are pocket-size and miss feathers that lay neatly on their consistence , they can have a laborious timestaying warmand wry . You will need a draft - complimentary , butwell - ventilated coopwhere your Silkies can seek refuge from the weather .
Inside the chicken coop , provide 2 - 3 straightforward feet per bird , and 7 - 8 square feet per bird in the chicken running .
you’re able to also view Silkies ashouse pets ; these fluffy minuscule hiss are gain popularity as a good household pet .
3. Health Issues and Care
Silkies can be prostrate to a few dissimilar health effect , includingscaly leg mitesandMarek ’s disease . Scaly wooden leg pinch are a sponge that are peculiarly attract to feather legged chickens .
Keeping aclean coopand verify your chick have good dust bathing area will help prevent this .
Marek ’s disease is cause by the herpes virus virus and transfer from bird to raspberry because it is viral . There is no cure for it , so it is best to be proactive and prevent the disease . Do n’t crowd your birds , keep living conditions as sanitary as potential , quarantine new arrivals , and some even immunize their chicks against the disease .
4. Breeding
BreedingSilkies is a merriment and rewarding process , and often you ’ll have built - inincubatorswith broody hen .
There is a in high spirits demand for Silkies , so you should have no problem sell special adults , skirt , or hatching bollock . With several different vividness variations out there , you’re able to pluck one that you enjoy and have fun with it !
Breed Alternatives
1. Sultans
You wo n’t find another breed quite like a Silkie , but Sultans do share some characteristics . Sultans are lily-white birds with feathered leg and an exciting top air mile on their oral sex . Unlike Silkies , Sultans do n’t have an unbelievable tendency to go pensive , but you will find these chick fun and sorcerous to raise still .
2. Cochin Bantams
CochinsBantams do not have the silky feathering ; however , they are very alike to Silkies in personality . With a strong tendency to go musing and very affectionate towards their caretaker , these little birds are a joy to have around the thou .
3. Showgirls
Showgirls are half Silkie and are a cross of Turken Naked Necks and Silkies . You will find Showgirls to be unusually standardised to Silkies , and just as fun to have around .
Fun Facts About Silkies
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Unlike most strain of chickens who have four toe , Silkies have five ! There were also many myth spin about these charming birds , including one enjoin by Dutch breeders , claiming they were the offspring of a rabbit crossed with a wimp .
Although sometimes Silkies can require a piffling extra upkeep , they are 100 % deserving it with their endearing feathers and sweet dispositions .
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