Silkie thread!

[Chicken Tamer]

Nope one is the others are hens because I get eggs from them and I have some of the grays ones eggs under my broody hen. Sorry if I sound like a smart mouth LoL

 

[aoxa]

Nope one is the others are hens because I get eggs from them and I have some of the grays ones eggs under my broody hen. Sorry if I sound like a smart mouth LoL

I see streamers on all of them, the 'hen' that is buff coloured has dark splotches in 'her' wings that is a male trait. The splash looking one is the closest looking to a hen. I can't imagine the buff being a girl. Looks way too manly to me.

 

[KMHunter]

Quote: Maybe I need to get a small pool and see if they will use that. They would dust bathe but just dig their own holes somewhere else. I will have to try again.

 

[Hawkeye95]

I prefer Sevin dust, DE has never worked for me, neither works on eggs. Both can be sprinkled in the dust bath area can aid in their own deterring of mites...DE is supposed to be all natural, BUT inhaled it is just as dangerous as sevin if not more so to the respitory system of birds and humans. DE is tiny shards of sharp silica, and can damage lungs if inhaled. Sevin is a pesticide, and should be used sparringly, best used in the coop mixed in the bedding and sprinkled directly on the bird, or in dust spots...Some use DE as a wormer, or claim it can be used as a wormer, but once its wet it is useless, also I *believe* its been disproven as well....I remember reading up on it when it wasn't working for me.

For mites/lice I use sevin in dust spots and coops, and on birds directly I use permethrin or adams flea and tick spray either one is the same thing you use on dogs for flea/tick control and works well on mites/lice.

X2!!!! If you've tried DE and Sevin-- the Sevin will kill the mites in about 2 minutes flat. With the DE, the way it works, the bugs first have to come across it, and then be in it enough that it cuts their exoskeleton to the point that it dehydrates them. As you can imagine... that takes a LOT longer. Especially if you find an infestation, I'd rather have a live bird than a dead bird waiting around for DE to work or not work. I have DE too.. a whole bag of it. I'm just 'eh' on it. I've read it can be eaten and used as an internal wormer, but there again, it's going to have to be put in the food consistently and then the whole-- when it gets wet, it won't work thing... If you really have a significant worm load on your birds, you need to use a real wormer.

Besides, if you start reading up on Sevin, did you know that it was originally produced for the poultry industry? So it's not an accident that it works the best with minimal risk to the bird. A lot of people even use it in their Martin houses -- sprinkle it in the nesting for the wild birds. It's been shown over and over to be a safe product.

A breeder who shows told me that the judges prefer a dark blue that is almost black. I have some of those (2 months old); but I think the lighter blue is prettier. She shows the lighter blue- and people fuss at her for "not keeping to the standard" In the APA book, it doesn't really specify. Here is a pic of the light blue and the dark blue (scruffy because they are growing big boy feathers). I prefer the lighter.

I have dark blues, and this is my first year showing, and so far have not heard anything about dark vs light. I think they should be judged on their own merits and how well their coloring is, leakage, etc.. I have no preference for light or dark, I think they are both really pretty. All judges will have preferences for what colors they like, but that doesn't mean that all judges will all have the same opinions. I had a judge this Spring that told me how much he loves the dark blues and thought mine has great color. To me, she looks black. That is how dark she is. So, you never know. The judge I just had a few weeks ago at our summer show-- he never said a word one way or the other on her color (whether he preferred one over the other). But the best way to find out which is better is to show them and start just going to shows.

 

[Chicken Tamer]

Sorry she is a hen LoL She is 10 months now!!!

If you get too grossed out sorry.

But my boy mounts her too soo

 

[aoxa]

Maybe I need to get a small pool and see if they will use that. They would dust bathe but just dig their own holes somewhere else. I will have to try again.

If you want to spoil them, add some safe mulch. Mine go CRAZY in mulch. They love mulch dust baths lol.

 

[City farm]

One of my brand new babies

What color is he/she?

two days old and has amazing feathering on all 10 toes 

Wow I am excited for you! Beautiful , any names yet?

 

[City farm]

[COLOR=800000]Heres the latest pictures I have of him, he is a huge fluffy bowling ball[/COLOR]







[COLOR=800000]And some more of Titus for you  [/COLOR]

Wow those are good photos! They look so happy..
Is that dark one a red?..

 

[Chicken Tamer]

The rookie:
She looks like a splash to me.
Also so far it looks like a she.

 

[KMHunter]

Quote: Mine love peat moss, dirt, and sand mixed to gether with DE or Sevin. I am using Sevin for the silkie pen because I have read on here about the issues of mites and lice.