Silkie thread!

[silky smooth]

For those that have been giving me advice on helping a sick pullet. She is dong much better. It's been a slow recovery but she is back sitting up on her own and she can also eat on her own but not enough to make me happy so still tube feeding. She isn't drinking anything on her own so I'm doing that for her also. Here she is eating. It's hard to tell which end is up because she is a black silkie but of course her head is in the food bowl.

She still isn't walking. She leans back onto her butt and stretches her legs out in front of her then flaps her wings to get to where she wants to go. I'm hoping she will get up on her feet and walk in the next 2 weeks because I won't be here to tend to her.

thank you for posting the photos i asked you for. some were very helpful
her legs are very thin. she has simply outgrown her legs, which can cause erratic behavior. i think they may not ever be strong enough to support her weight. there isn't a whole lot that can be done for it. except the pamper treatment you are giving, prayers, and time. you might try perching exersizes. to "strengthen her muscles." without strong legs, and feet to stop her rolling forward she might be frightened that she will face plant in the waterer and drown.(kind of like a weebles wobble situation. only she really will fall down. silkies are very round and rolly polly after all) You might try raising her waterer up a bit off the floor so she doesn't have to lean so far forward to drink. by all means if your vision is good you can check her ears for mite buildup. being indoors she probably has not had a chance to dust bathe either.
with increased polydactyl traits comes internal complications in the leg structure.(the more toes the more problems)
but this photo gave me the best inspiration for you.

 

[emvickrey]

thank you for posting the photos i asked you for. some were very helpful
her legs are very thin. she has simply outgrown her legs, which can cause erratic behavior. i think they may not ever be strong enough to support her weight. there isn't a whole lot that can be done for it. except the pamper treatment you are giving, prayers, and time. you might try perching exersizes. to "strengthen her muscles." without strong legs, and feet to stop her rolling forward she might be frightened that she will face plant in the waterer and drown.(kind of like a weebles wobble situation. only she really will fall down. silkies are very round and rolly polly after all) You might try raising her waterer up a bit off the floor so she doesn't have to lean so far forward to drink. by all means if your vision is good you can check her ears for mite buildup. being indoors she probably has not had a chance to dust bathe either.
with increased polydactyl traits comes internal complications in the leg structure.(the more toes the more problems)
but this photo gave me the best inspiration for you.

Thank you. I'll try the exercises. She has been bathed several times because when she couldn't get around at all when she pooped she was just in it till I got to her to clean her up. I have checked for mites but didn't see any. When it warms up more in a few days I'll take her out and give her DE to dust bathe in. If she don't do it I'll do it for her. She is very sweet and I'll do what I can to help her. She was hatched from a pullet egg. I wait 2 weeks before I attempt to hatch any pullet egg but she was the first chick that I hatched. She is about half the size as the older ones that came from that pullet. She has always been smaller. I expected it was because she came from a pullet egg. She has always been just fine up till now anyway. Maybe she has grown more than her legs have. I'll try to streghten them. I don't expect she will be getting bred with her leg issue. But for now I'll just work on the problem at hand.

 

[RoyalVista]

We hatched out some Silkie babies last year. My sister ordered the eggs on eBay and they were supposed to come from show/breeder stock. The pics of the parents looked great. Of the dozen eggs that my sister incubated, only 3 hatched. A black, a buff, and whatever this guy is. None were of very good quality, missing toes, poorly feathered, etc. but this guy's color has always intrigued me. Anyone know what this is or what genes might come into play?


Possibly LAVENDER!

I know it is really hard to see, but he has really dilute blue/gray markings, not to the tips of the feathers, but to the base. When he was smaller, it looked more like very dilute barring, but not all over, just on the back and in patches.

We hatched out some Silkie babies last year. My sister ordered the eggs on eBay and they were supposed to come from show/breeder stock. The pics of the parents looked great. Of the dozen eggs that my sister incubated, only 3 hatched. A black, a buff, and whatever this guy is. None were of very good quality, missing toes, poorly feathered, etc. but this guy's color has always intrigued me. Anyone know what this is or what genes might come into play?

I know it is really hard to see, but he has really dilute blue/gray markings, not to the tips of the feathers, but to the base. When he was smaller, it looked more like very dilute barring, but not all over, just on the back and in patches.

We hatched out some Silkie babies last year. My sister ordered the eggs on eBay and they were supposed to come from show/breeder stock. The pics of the parents looked great. Of the dozen eggs that my sister incubated, only 3 hatched. A black, a buff, and whatever this guy is. None were of very good quality, missing toes, poorly feathered, etc. but this guy's color has always intrigued me. Anyone know what this is or what genes might come into play?

I know it is really hard to see, but he has really dilute blue/gray markings, not to the tips of the feathers, but to the base. When he was smaller, it looked more like very dilute barring, but not all over, just on the back and in patches.

 

[RoyalVista]

He could be a very light colored splash or paint. Cant tell by the pics if the gray is all over or splotchy.

LAVENDER is most likely. Lavender is mixed with buff to create porcelain. Here a pic of a porcelain trio of chicks that depicts nice lavender undertones.

 

[RoyalVista]

LAVENDER is most likely. Lavender is mixed with buff to create porcelain. Here a pic of a porcelain trio of chicks that depicts nice lavender undertones.

And a pic of an a juvenile Lavender Roo

 

[RoyalVista]

She looks to be feathering in white. I had one that was lavender and he is coming in white. They will change between these feathers and their adult feathers, so hard to tell truely what color. Another I have, first feathers buff now pure white. So ???? Sorry I couldn't be of more help.

Looks possibly porcelain.

These are some of my porcelain chicks

 

[Fancychooklady]

Thank you. I'll try the exercises. She has been bathed several times because when she couldn't get around at all when she pooped she was just in it till I got to her to clean her up. I have checked for mites but didn't see any. When it warms up more in a few days I'll take her out and give her DE to dust bathe in. If she don't do it I'll do it for her. She is very sweet and I'll do what I can to help her. She was hatched from a pullet egg. I wait 2 weeks before I attempt to hatch any pullet egg but she was the first chick that I hatched. She is about half the size as the older ones that came from that pullet. She has always been smaller. I expected it was because she came from a pullet egg. She has always been just fine up till now anyway. Maybe she has grown more than her legs have. I'll try to streghten them. I don't expect she will be getting bred with her leg issue. But for now I'll just work on the problem at hand.

Birds don't simply outgrow their legs. Larger breeds can be susceptible to cage layer fatigue , where they sit on their hocks but this is usually due to improper calcium /phosphate ratio. Check her over for lice and mites and inspect inside the ear. I have had a hen go off balance with an ear infection. I found a smelly plug of puss in the ear.
Wryneck occurs when their is a thiamine B1 deficiency. The symptoms will normally begin in the legs with ataxia and then move up into the neck, the effects vary from a mild twisted neck to the more drastic ' star gazing ' stance. Silkies are predisposed to this condition .
with tube feeding, it's hard to know whether or not she is getting enough nutrition or vitamin supplement. Have you weighed her ?
I would PM @Casportpony and ask her for advice on feeding. She's the guru.

 

[Rowsdower]

He could be a very light colored splash or paint. Cant tell by the pics if the gray is all over or splotchy.

I actually went out to get another look at him and it appears that the dark undercolor is all over, but is only really noticeable in the areas where the feathers are broken or ruffled. It's not like a splash in that the color is at the base and the tip appears white. I nabbed a couple of feathers in the hope that you could better see what I am talking about. It may be difficult to see. Here goes....

 

[BonRae67]

I actually went out to get another look at him and it appears that the dark undercolor is all over, but is only really noticeable in the areas where the feathers are broken or ruffled. It's not like a splash in that the color is at the base and the tip appears white. I nabbed a couple of feathers in the hope that you could better see what I am talking about. It may be difficult to see. Here goes....

I can see it in the feathers. Sorry I have no idea what to call him. Handsome is one term, but as to color no clue. My white is white from skin to tip.

 

[bantambury]

LAVENDER is most likely. Lavender is mixed with buff to create porcelain. Here a pic of a porcelain trio of chicks that depicts nice lavender undertones.

pretty! are they yours? i have a porcelain but her color isnt too good