Debbie's Silkies

[Ponypoor]

1: 40-45% until lockdown, then 65-70%

2: I have had silkies start hatching on day 18 on more than one occasion, so I do 5-day lockdowns. Since they aren't turned during lockdown, just know that the last week of rotating eggs isn't so necessary anyway, as they are large enough by then and active, so they won't get stuck.

3: I can't pick by color as I love them all. I have buffs, cuckoos, and paints, that are newer here, but the chocolates and splashes and even the blacks and whites still are so beautiful.

My favorite chicken though is CC. He's sadly in a breeding pen now, but would come running when I called him. He's just too beautiful not to breed, so he's with Marsha, another splash, kind of mauvish.

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I have another new venture with grey partridge moorhead silkies as I hatched one from purchased eggs. I have Missie (formerly Mystery as I had no idea what she was going to be) with a white silkie roo now hoping to get a grey/silver partridge rooster at least, and if lucky, another like her.

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Awwww CC is adorable! And a frizzle, to boot, I didn’t realize the silkie feathering could be frizzled until Clyde was hatched here. I noted his neck feathers were curled up - I tell people he sat on the electric fencing

And the other day I noted my two white silkie is also frizzle - I have owned her for 4 yrs and never noted it! Duh me!

I have a couple regular frizzled feathered girls and figured they would all look like them!

 

[Ponypoor]

Just putting some updates here as it's been a while.

We started incubating toward the end of January, and it's been non-stop ever since, increasing with # of eggs and # of customers wanting chicks.

I was hatching a batch of 15-24 eggs every 7-8 days. The last batch was larger and still behind by two to three hatches to fullfill orders. Some new customers and repeat customers are waiting and I was hating that.

Thus, brought up an old Brinsea from the basement. Now I could set a batch every 4-5 days and fullfill orders faster. I say "could" because I haven't experienced it yet having just set a batch yesterday due 4 days after a different batch is due.

I've never cut it this close but there's no reason not to; chicks hatch in one or two days, out the next, clean, and move over the next batch for lockdown. Should there ever be an issue with late hatches, etc., we have an NR360 in the basement we could use.

This could become overwhelming so if it does, I'll back off the days between setting eggs again, but at least I think I'll get caught up on orders first.

People have driven as far as 4 hours last fall, a few 3 hours, many 2 hours and the usual is between 1-2 hours from here. When I chose to raise silkies 8+ years ago, little did I know I would be one of very few who do.

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Below is the smaller hatch from last night, all sold to someone coming very early tomorrow from an hour away. We're getting rain and a lot of snow later so she wants to be back home before it hits.

These are mostly cuckoo, mauve, splashes and two silver/grey. I think the silvers are coming from when Carol, the buff cuckoo was with Buddy, the regular cuckoo. When a buff isn't with a buff, it's a surprise what you'll get.
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Paints and buffs will be coming in these batches shortly!

so cute

 

[Debbie292d]

Wow they are adorable! Love them!

Did she ship them expedited? I mean overnight?

Gosh they are lovely

Yes, she shipped Monday, we drove to Green Bay on Tuesday. Had we not driven there to get them, they'd have been delivered Wednesday.

 

[Ponypoor]

Yes, she shipped Monday, we drove to Green Bay on Tuesday. Had we not driven there to get them, they'd have been delivered Wednesday.

Better to get them early

 

[Sylvester017]

Just putting some updates here as it's been a while.

We started incubating toward the end of January, and it's been non-stop ever since, increasing with # of eggs and # of customers wanting chicks.

I was hatching a batch of 15-24 eggs every 7-8 days. The last batch was larger and still behind by two to three hatches to fullfill orders. Some new customers and repeat customers are waiting and I was hating that.

Thus, brought up an old Brinsea from the basement. Now I could set a batch every 4-5 days and fullfill orders faster. I say "could" because I haven't experienced it yet having just set a batch yesterday due 4 days after a different batch is due.

I've never cut it this close but there's no reason not to; chicks hatch in one or two days, out the next, clean, and move over the next batch for lockdown. Should there ever be an issue with late hatches, etc., we have an NR360 in the basement we could use.

This could become overwhelming so if it does, I'll back off the days between setting eggs again, but at least I think I'll get caught up on orders first.

People have driven as far as 4 hours last fall, a few 3 hours, many 2 hours and the usual is between 1-2 hours from here. When I chose to raise silkies 8+ years ago, little did I know I would be one of very few who do.

View attachment 4076083

Below is the smaller hatch from last night, all sold to someone coming very early tomorrow from an hour away. We're getting rain and a lot of snow later so she wants to be back home before it hits.

These are mostly cuckoo, mauve, splashes and two silver/grey. I think the silvers are coming from when Carol, the buff cuckoo was with Buddy, the regular cuckoo. When a buff isn't with a buff, it's a surprise what you'll get.
View attachment 4076095

Paints and buffs will be coming in these batches shortly!

With standard barred/cuckoo birds the female chicks have tighter white head spots & dark shading down the front legs & top of toes. The males have a wider white splash head spot & no shading down legs or toes. The males feather out a bit more silver than the females.

Debbie, like other cuckoo/barred birds, are your Cuckoo Silkies auto sexed at hatch or is it harder to identify cuz of their silkie down?

Silkies rule! Can't state enough great attributes about them!

Our sweeties from different local California breeders:

Partridge juveniles from a homeschool mom who hatched these from shipped eggs 2011

Black Silkie sold at our feed store who had a local source Silkie breeder 2012

DNA-sexed & vaccinated by NPIP certified Amber Waves Silkies ~ a Dark Partridge w/ gold collar & wing tips 2020

DNA sexed & vaccinated by Amber Waves Sikies ~ Silver/Gray Partridge & Buff-Blue Partridge 2021

DNA sexed & NPIP certified Buckaboo Farm ~ bearded Dark Partridge, non-bearded Moorhead Partridge, bearded Blue Silkie 2024

None of our Silkies were shipped. We picked up all Silkies in person 1 & 2-hr drives but worth it to us not having them stressed in shipping.

 

[Debbie292d]

So beautiful!

Debbie, like other cuckoo/barred birds, are your Cuckoo Silkies auto sexed at hatch or is it harder to identify cuz of their silkie down?

Yes, many cuckoo chicks have white spots on their head, but I haven't grown any of these out to know whether that's just meaning they are double-barred cuckoos or males. Some were the product of one cuckoo and a black hen, some were of a buff cuckoo hen with a cuckoo roo, so came out black or silver. I'm a little naive about the spots, so I just sold them all straight run.

You can kind of see the spot on one of the front left ones. They are a little more obvious than that though.

 

[Sylvester017]

Yes, I see the white head splotch ~ I would take a wild guess male Cuckoo Silkie on that one if cuckoo chick auto-sexing is correct.

I saw these photos of silver/soft-black Cuckoo Silkies & my guess is the more silver feathered juveniles are the males ~ very much like Cuckoo Dominiques or Barred Rock breeds where the males feather out more silver.

In Cuckoo Dominiques (& Barred Rocks) the female chick shank & toe is dark unlike the male chick ~ female is left leg. The shading disappears as female matures. On black Silkie skin would this even show is my question?

Head spots are erratic splashes on cuckoo male chicks but are centered tight white spots on female heads ~ top males, bottom females

These cuckoo chick auto-sexing photos are from The American Dominique: a Treatise for the Fancier by Mark A. Fields 1997

 

[Debbie292d]

Yes, I see the white head splotch ~ I would take a wild guess male Cuckoo Silkie on that one if cuckoo chick auto-sexing is correct.

I saw these photos of silver/soft-black Cuckoo Silkies & my guess is the more silver feathered juveniles are the males ~ very much like Cuckoo Dominiques or Barred Rock breeds where the males feather out more silver.

In Cuckoo Dominiques (& Barred Rocks) the female chick shank & toe is dark unlike the male chick ~ female is left leg. The shading disappears as female matures. On black Silkie skin would this even show is my question?
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Head spots are erratic splashes on cuckoo male chicks but are centered tight white spots on female heads ~ top males, bottom females
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These cuckoo chick auto-sexing photos are from The American Dominique: a Treatise for the Fancier by Mark A. Fields 1997

I'll be hatching a few on the 25th, so going to pay more attention to their feet. I never really noticed as I've had other silkies like mottled and paint that also can have white or "mottled" feet, so nothing's strange here anymore.

There haven't been any female cuckoos in with with this guy, MB, that's the dad to most of these.

I couldn't put the only other female cuckoo I had with him as she's a buff frizzle cuckoo. I put her with the other cuckoo male I have, and theirs were cuckoo, but either dark ones, or silver. I was hoping she'd throw out something unique, but nope. She's now with the other buff girls and Lester, the new lemon cuckoo. What they all make should be interesting!

 

[Debbie292d]

I was thinking I'd only have silkies. I wanted ducks, but we have a creek behind our house, so was afraid they'd swim away. I did find out Muscovies usually stick around better, so figured someday I'd get a couple of those.

A couple of weeks ago, someone an hour from here had to give up their pair of ducklings. They couldn't find anyone to take them, and word of mouth to my hubby's daughter, wound up having someone drop them off here. So, I have ducks! They said they were Bluffs. There is no such thing, so must've meant Buff's, or Buff Orpington ducks. I guess we'll find out when they grow up.

This was after about a week or two. They swim underwater! I thought ducks floated. Who knew? @Jenbirdee lookie what I got!

 

[Sylvester017]

Maybe they were just "bluffing" when they gave the ducks away At least there are 2 to keep each other company. So cute...

You don't want domestic duck breeds swimming away to wild environments where they are not equipped for survival. My Mom penned her domestic ducks & chickens except not her geese who were free cuz they did not wander from the property & were excellent guardian geese w/ their honking warnings.