Silkie Mix?

[FluffyButtBabies]

Hey! Earlier I had a post called "Silkies: Yay or Nay" if anyone remembers lol. Well I had a few silkie chicks born with no vault and light skin. Some people told me that was possible in paints, and most ended up turning darker after a bit. But I still got one chick who's stumping me. Her name is Luna and she's the smartest and sweetest baby I've ever had! She's absolutely gorgeous too. But...not very silkie-looking. She's got the 5 toes and all, but she kept her pale white skin. She still has no sign of a vault or even tuft of crest feathers. Plus her feathers are curling much like you'd see in a frizzle. And even stranger is that she seems to be...brown? Almost like a s'more. I've never seen any silkies with this coloration, and certainly no paints with brown in them (so why the white skin?) So basically, once again I ask the question, is Luna a silkie at all? Or a mix? The lady we got her from also had some mille fleurs, which would explain the coloration, but not the frizzle look? I'm just mystified with this little girl!

 

[JedJackson]

Maybe a silkie crossed with a frizzle cochin bantam. I do see indications that she will have a small crest. The coloring is mixed. Maybe something like a pale, patchy millie fleur? I'm not sure, really.

 

[FluffyButtBabies]

I have another chick that's almost all black who's rocking that same frizzle look, but even more wild. But she looks more silkie-ish other than the feathers. Silkies don't usually have feathers like this, right?

 

[LynnaePB]

The first little one definitely reminds me of some sort of mille fleur project coloring. Those colors have mottling involved and that lightens skin pigment. It looks like it could be wheaten based which also tends to lighten skin color some from what I've heard.

Was the breeder working on a mille fleur satin or silkie project?

The ones with less silkie features could be from a satin project. Usually those are started using cochins to get the non silkied feathers. If the project is still in the early phases it would be normal for some of the silkie features (like larger crests) to not be as apparent yet.

Satins are a project breed (not yet recognized by the APA or ABA). They are bred to the same standard as silkies but have non silkied feathering. They can be smooth or frizzled.

There are many breeders who like to mix their satins and silkies because when mixed you get a really neat variety of feather types.

Some breeders consider the satins silkies too and may sell them as silkies. This can create issues when a buyer buys chicks expecting silkie feathering. Whether a breeder thinks of them as silkies or another breed due to feather type it is always best to tell potential buyers there will be a chance of non silkied feathering when they buy chicks.

Your little satins (or project satins if they aren't many generation in) are both frizzled with non silkie feathers. If you breed them at any point make sure not to pair them with another frizzled satin or silkie (it's harder to tell when a silkie is frizzled but they do look a little different than regular feathered silkies). Frizzle to frizzle breeding has a chance of producing frazzles which have health issues (brittle feathers and often internal issues that can be fatal).

This is not my photo, I just got it off google images (I believe this photo was by a breeder who originally started satins as a project breed). It shows the different feather types and what is considered a satin vs a silkie based on feather type.

 

[FluffyButtBabies]

That was a great explanation, thanks so much! I honestly had no clue about the whole "satin silkie" thing. I will admit I was expecting little fluff balls, but I don't discriminate when it comes to cute babies! It'll be so interesting to see how they turn out. And thanks for the frazzle warning! I'll keep an eye on them!