While most Silkies are generally considered bantams in the USA, it's not necessarily always the case elsewhere -- I always recommend local chicken groups for the best info for your area!
My dear nice Lady! Please visite my channel and take a look. Quails are half domesticated tiny wild chicken. All sorts of chicken are very social birds. You only have to invest veeer, much time, love and care and they will love you and see you as a mother or alpha figure. My quails would never poop in me or in my bed/nest because of their real feelings they have for me. My last quail died on 2. Dezember thus year in my hands beak on nose on the way to the VET. It is so hard for me being without my so loved feather-children. I shared all of my free time with them and I'm sure that it is possible that you cuties could AS handsome and cuddle-addicted as my chicks. :)
@@user-qo8rl7ew5i this is a new venture for us. From what we’ve found, you need to place the into a small chicken run side by side with the original placing them in it during the day for a week or so. Then try them either free roaming or in the original run for a few hours while you can observe them. After doing this several times, if they get along you should be fine. Like I said, we’re new. Research on TH-cam and see what others have done and decide what you think is best for you and your flock.
My little free range princess silkie comes to my front door whenever she gets wet from rain.. so I bring her in and dry her feathers with my hair dryer on low setting. She seems to appreciate it and has no fear at all! They make the best pets!
I had a silkie rooster his name was King Tut he wasn't very friendly I had to walk backwards so he didn't attack me from behind my neighbor behind me their dog who broke through their neighbors fence and broke through another part of their fence to get three of my silkie only one survived and my son named her tiny. She has a sister but she not a silkie she a big black chicken I'm not sure what she is I don't think she a Jersey Giant but close to them but their were young enough we got another flock mix with silkie and regular chicken and tiny ( the silkie) she is the second of the pecking order I seen her pull some of the others chicken feathers like she is bullying the other chicken. I have another flock of chicken and their separated from my young flock I see my tiny try to pick a fight with one of my older flock. I think my silkie tiny is a feisty silkie.
We have four silkies and your information in this video is spot on. We also have Ameraucanas and ended up putting them in separate areas because the silkies get picked on. They are very sweet and cute but we do regret getting silkies. Mostly because of the extra care and low egg production. I also feel bad for them in bad weather and feel bad that they can’t see well. I will say my daughter loves holding and petting them because they are very docile. They do make fun pets for kids.
SILKIES USED TO BE SNOW CHICKENS, originating from China. THAT'S why they have black skin, Downey feathers, and feet that have an extra toe, functioning as 'snow shoes'. Also, the hens are the BEST mommas. My silkie has willingly adopted any 'rescue chicks' and even a duckling. I have never heard of 'grooming' silkies, except for occasional trimming of 'bangs'...must be a mainland thing. 😄
I lost my favorite silkie rooster to heat stroke. I only mention this because it's not something that was not cautioned in the video. If you have a day over or near 100 F keep an eye on them.
We have kept Silkies in our flock for years we raise almost all our chicks with them. This spring we had a little Silkie hen that chased 4 Geese around our chicken yard because they were picking on her chicks. they are a great breed to keep around in your flocks.
Same, we only have a pair of silkies in our flock (I just couldn't resist) and I swear I crack up so hard when I see the tiny litlle white ball of fluf chase away my giant chubby Plymouth
I know this is an old post, but having had chickens now for a couple years, i kinda laugh about articles that say this chicken acts this way, this other chicken acts this way, etc. I've had 3 silkies. I read about how friendly and docile they are, yadda yadda. Well, somebody forgot to inform the chickens of their supposed personalities. Im here to tell you other than physical characteristics, you can throw the personality stuff out the window. All of my silkies thought they were big bird. Last summer one went very broody. We kicked her out of the coop a couple times. The first time she followed hubby around a good 10 minutes "swearing " at him. It is now mid January and I guess they are finally on speaking terms again. I have seen those little birds grab treats out of the big chickens beak and run away. One of them decided she was a night owl and didn't want to go into the coop till way after dark. She'd be outside still, just scratching around being a chicken. None of them particularly fond of being touched. They were raised together from chicks and were handled as much as the regular chickens, who now are all pretty friendly. Except the silkies. I've read how they hate to be wet. So, all the rest of the chickens had the sense to get outa the rain, silkies be outside and didn't seem to bother them at all, even though they looked like a drowned rat. Even egg laying i think can vary. My silkies almost keep up with the rest. Yea, the eggs are smaller. I prbly wouldn't want *just* silkies for eggs. That said, they're not *that* small. Reading about them, people make it sound like you're gonna get pigeon eggs. Id say they're about like buying small eggs from the store. So my half cents worth is buy whatever chicken you want based on egg color or looks or whatever, but when it comes to personality, much like people, they are all individuals. In the end it usually all works out. 😎
I had silkies back in the 70's. I never worried about the winters even though I did check on them. Mom had Road Island Reds in a Coupe. My Silkies were free to roam. She would lay 6 eggs and then hatch them. They both would take the small chicks around andd feed and protect them. The whole time she would lay 6 more eggs. The rooster would take the babies while she would sit on the other eggs and he would keep them warm at night by sitting on them and would scratch and feed them during the day. Once the second nest would hatch then she would bring them to the rooster and they both cared for both clutches. I would go out at night and would find them in tractor shed usually and they rooster and the hen would be sitting on the chicks but both sets would be mixed under mom and dad. The bigger chicks would poke out from under dad and then one of the younger ones under that one. I miss them a lot. I loved having them. They were the only family chickens I ever knew of. He had a clean head and a purple/black rose comb on his head. He looked like a rooster and she had the typical tuff of feathers on her head but they were quite the lookers for chickens. "IF" I could, I would wish to have those exact silkies back. After I went to college Dad took care of them for me for some time but one day he called and said a fox had gotten them. I was sad about losing the Kernal and Abigail. They were the best chickens I ever had. I am getting ready to fence my property and build two coupes. The field will be my Buckey Chickens and the other coupe will be above the yard and those will be my Silkies. I am also thinking of getting some of those Ayam Cemani chickens but will have to wait to see how things go once I get the field and yard fenced in. I prefer to keep the different breeds of chickens seperate. I was told the Silkies I had were Siamese Silkies. It has been so many years I do not know if I can ever find those exact ones but I still want the black skin silkies to have in my yard. Mine were black skin but the dark color was filled with a lot of dark purple, even the rooster rose comb and her featers too. They were Perfect Chickens. They would eat bugs but would not disturbed seeds when we were planting our garden and were a help to keep bugs down while were were planting and even in the garden. Thanks for the Video! I learned some things about these chickens that I didn't know.
Lily is definitely a roo 😀 Don’t worry because I’ve had some baby boys that have a girlie name as well. It might be the reason Johnny Cash sang “A Boy Named Sue” lol
I have got silkie. & I'm A breeder for 10 years. I grew up around chickens. I hate to disappoint you but the splash has strimers he is also A Rooster . I hope you will have goid experience in silkie breeds I know I do. My first silkie I got 9 years ago & she still with me
Loved your film. kept Silkies for many years as backyard pets. I have always given their topknots a trim when they start covering their eyes. ...modified mohawks...lol. My girls love being able to see well, and walk around like tiny giraffes after their hair cuts, stretching their necks out and looking around eagerly. 😊
I have been raising silkies since last 4 years. Yes, they do require good amount of care compared to other chicken breeds. I do free range my silkies for few hours everyday and trim their feathers or fur near the eyes once every 2-3 months. I give them a full body bath once every 3 months to keep them clean.
I just found you, and 30 seconds in I’m impressed lol. I love that you’ve made a written version too, not everyone absorbs information the same way or can watch videos right away. Very cool! That is all, bye.
I dont think it is the cold that gets them. It's the wet weather WITH freezing Temps that get them. Cold and dry they do just fine. Cold and wet they will suffer
I've been breeding Silkies and Satins for years now and that Splash Silkie "lily" is a cockerel also. The last buff Silkie that you show does look like a female but she appears to have the wrong comb type for a Silkie which isn't uncommon. The standard call for a walnut comb like your other Silkies have. She appears to have what is called a straight comb. Now granted I didn't get a great look at it. I like the advice that you give, and several of the points that you made are things that I have to try and explain to people over and over again. They definitely are unique and don't behave like other breeds. They are mainly for ornamental, showing, and pet purposes. They make good incubators and mothers. I laugh when people ask about their egg production and politely tell them they should look for another breed that is meant for that if they are wanting eggs. I always recommend keeping Silkies in their own separate coop and not mixed with other standard breeds. Sure, if they are all raised together from chicks they might get along just fine and some people say they don't have any issues mixing theirs but, I personally wouldn't risk it. People also don't realize how hard they are to tell what gender they are compared to most breeds. I do offer DNA sexing but it costs quite a bit but it is the only way to know for sure at a young age. Unless you get one that starts crowing early lol. You can always read more about DNA testing at iqbirdtesting.com. 😀
They say Silkies are poor egg layers but I have a hen which lays an egg every day and doesn't start getting broody unless I leave the eggs in her nest box. She even laid an egg every day in the winter.
I find that female silkies have blue faces, while males have redder faces where the comb is. The "hair" on top of the head is also slightly different between sexes.
I love my silkies. I got one to breed with an orloff hen and now I have this amazing silkie rooster with a golden mullet and amazing browns and whites. His name is GOLDENHAWK and he is definitely a rocker.
We have 17 silkies and we keep hatching more every few months. We hatch out really interesting silkies too- like a few days ago we hatched a little white one with blue and pink skin. We even hatched a black one even though all our adult silkies are white, blue, and some sort of light colored partridge. My goal is to get one of those orange or partridge silkies and maybe even one of those black and white splash ones. But we have to sell the 2 roosters we have and bring in new ones to get more colors.
I had wanted to get 1 silkie hen to be the brooder for any eggs that hatch later, but decided against it because I just didn't want to deal with roosters. But silkie moms are outstandingly broody.
Yeah, my daughter in law and I have made that impulse buy as well. We have 11 silkies coming at the end of June so I’m very glad to see this now so we can prepare now. My grandparents and her mom have always had chickens, this is our first venture with them. Our first chicks are near ready to leave the nursery and Pawpaw is getting ready to build the coop. Now I do believe we’ll be building a duplex coop. One place, side by side still together but not together. We’re already getting close to our chicks so yes, we’d hate to loose any of them. Our granddaughters would be really heartbroken 💔. Thanks for sharing this advice. It was well needed!
I love the breed! They are such a friendly wonderful chicken. We handled ours as chicks and they were super friendly. Winter in a small hutch our 5 hens did absolutely fine..important to have dry straw (bedding) and draft free but in freezing rain and snow here in AR they did fine.
I live in the Pacific Northwest. Ours always did fine in winter. That being said the whole flock had easy access to shelter and we kept them all locked up at night and in severe weather. The silkes were always outside with the other birds. I never noticed them to handle cold or wet different than the other breeds. I've never had problems of keeping any of our feather footed birds clean. If your coop is kept clean and they have enough space there's no problem. I also never had a problem with them and predators. That being said most of the danger is at night for chickens. I've never noticed an issue with they're vision. They are very watchful and social. Silkie boys will actually team up to take on a threat. I had two gang up on my Jersey Giant who was getting out of line with another bird. As a whole they are easy going and a lot calmer. Hand raised birds and using a heating pad rather than a light to warm them makes a huge difference in chicken personalities. (Do your research before attempting the heating pad method. It requires a little set up to do right and safely) When you get to know the breed it's easy to tell the girls from the boys but yes it can be hard when they are young.
I trim my silkies head feathers so that they can see a bit better ( though the breed in general has very poor eyesight) - this helps them with foraging and being able to compete with my other chickens for treats. There is a blood supply to the base of the feathers so you have to be careful not to trim too close to the base. The also look very funny with their little mohawks!
Hey your silkies are gorgeous I also have to let you know your lily is actually a roo I have been breeding silkies for a year now and he definitely has streamers which is a 100% tell sign of a rooster
Such a good video! Thank you for compiling all the facts for us 😊 I was wondering, how much to the males crow? Is it louder / less loud than other breeds, and do they crow extremely early in the morning? I’d love to have silkies as pets but I’m a late sleeper, and having a rooster singing their heart out at 5 in the morning every day would probably drive me stir crazy 😅
I don’t treat the silkies different then my other chickens and let him free range like it wants. If something flies over he just start running with the others. Indeed terrible eyesight though, a bit funny sometimes 😇 My silkie just loves to free range when it’s raining, all the others are under cover and the silkie just keeps on going, not a problem she says. I can agree they shouldn’t be kept with very feisty breeds.
I have 22 Silkies and one Satin. When raising Silkies and regular size chickens we also have Bantams, Brahmas and Cochin chickens you definitely need separate housing for the Silkies and Bantams!! The reason for this, the bigger chickens pick on the small ones and also you have to feed Silkies and Bantams crumbles not pellets. Pellets are too big for the Silkies/Bantams they can actually choke on it. We built our chicken coop with 8" cedar channel siding with metal roofing and 1x2 welded wire to make it predator proof, also put windows in it and divided the middle of the chicken coop with 1x2 welded wire Silkies on one side the bigger chickens on the other. Both sides have separate door entrances and heat lamps throughout the entire winter. With me being a Silkie owner for 20 years Silkies do need heat lamp!! I wish I could post pictures on here to show you what the chicken coop looks like.
We gave our silkies ten quail eggs as sort of a joke/test to see if they could hatch them. They absolutely did and were mad that we took them away. We aren't doing this anymore obviously and we really didn't think it would work.
I’ve owned silkie chickens for over a year now, and one thing I’ve noticed is you can teach them their name and they come. This has only happened with two of my roosters due to being extra hands on for various reasons 😊
We just got 12 new hens, and 4 are silkie cross Rhode Island reds and they are soooo beautiful and actually have been laying the most of our whole flock! Small little golf ball sized eggs tho
Silkies are fine with cold but not wind or rain also silkies should have black comb and wattles. To tell roosters and hens apart as chicks if you don’t want to do vent sexing you can look at how they stand the roosters being more upright and sometimes you can look at their feet (which isn’t the most reliable but) the roosters tend to have thicker, bigger feet (I have some 6 week old chicks with a hen and have already figured out their genders). I wouldn’t recommend keeping silkies with other big breeds but you can try.
I have had silkies for well over 10 years. I have a backyard garden so I find they are the best. They are quiet and so cuddly. I free range mine and I have not had problems. I don't think I would ever have another breed for my backyard garden. Maybe if I moved out to the country I would get others. Great video!
I just was given 2 month old silkies and we built a mini hoop tractor. 4x6 with 8 ft cattle panels bent into hoops. That way they can free range in our yard safely. Don't know if we got hens or roosters but its nice to have them as pets... If you handle them it helps. I got one that is extremely friendly wants to be all over me the other not so much lol!
Mine started laying at ~21 weeks old. Last fall I had a silkie hen go broody and I just let her do her thing, she hatched 2 silkies and a brahmin/silkie hybrid; all hens by some dumb luck. 7 weeks ago more chicks hatched (2 silkies and a brahmin/silkie hybrid again). Regarding not letting them free range out of safety, get a dummy garden owl and place it on top of your chicken coop to deter hawks.
One of my Silkie mamas is currently raising her hatched white leghorn babies. 😍😍😍 I have given away so many Silkie roosters that I’m now gathering Silkie eggs as fast as I can to deter more babies. They are a sweet little pet, mine are somewhat snuggly, but I’m not going to go into another generation. When these are gone…I’m done. I’ll miss my bucket therapy in the Silkie pen but they are really high maintenance. Blessings, debby
I can't believe you found them at tractor supply our tractor supply refuses to get them! I handle my chickens because their pets for me I love to snuggle chickens and it takes two seconds for a bird to just love me
how long after this video did it take till you realized Lilly was not a Lilly but in face a Larry? that comb and those streamers on the head are a dead giveaway!
We recently got two Silkies and were told they were bad layers... We've had an egg every day without fail and 2 eggs a day 3 times a week. Pretty good if you ask me!
I had 2 silkies named Frodo & Bilbo, they died the same way, instant chicken death. Their life with us was very short, and they were about 8 weeks? I was thinking about everything I did wrong, is their any cause or anything I could've done to prevent it? Because I always blame myself...And anything I can do to avoid it for next time?
Great video! We breed silkies and just love them. FYI your splash is a boy :) You can tell because of the "streamers" growing out of the back of his head. Girls have a more uniform rounded crest. Enjoy them!
Great job describing the silkies! Ours do great free dancing but we don't have trees, so fewer aerial predators than most people have. They also have plenty of other chickens out with them to help alert them of potential danger. Unfortunately because they pretty much don't fly at all, they are more prone to ground predators like coyotes, raccoons and even snakes (the latter is a problem in our part of Texas in the summer). But their sweetness definitely makes them worth the extra attention 😍😍😍
I have a large flock that are free range on my 30 acre farm in Florida. The Silkies and the Orpingtons hang out in/around the large coop (a 30x25 foot barn I converted), while the other chickens and turkeys roam around in the woods. The silkies are great for breeding more chicks, which is the only reason I have them.
thank you for this video. I live in suburbs and cannot have traditional breeds. but if i want to have them strictly as pets, how many should i get? i mean , do they need a lot of "friends" or just one would be okay. Also, i have cats, so..... any advice?😀 thank you
Get three or four. Most countries will allow that many (check your codes). It's enough birds for them to cuddle in together when it gets cold. Also enough to feel like you have a flock
Silkies also need a higher protein feed. We mix game crumbles in with their food to make sure they are getting the proper amount. My silkies lay almost every day.
Whats your suggestion for us the beginner who just want some fresh eggs. We want the quiet ones since we live with neigbours and hopefully the snuggly ones. Thank you
We have a short 3ft fence and the silkies are the only ones that stay in. Our big silkie rooster jumps over the fence but the other 2 cannot. Our black silkie hen Mavis has her eyes mostly covered and she is in her own little world. She broods on and off every 3-4 weeks and pretty funny opening the box and finding her sitting on 8 eggs from all the other girls! She also does not take any crap from the full size hens. She is by far our sweetest chicken. Worse part of silkies is you cannot sex them as chicks and by the time you know half your birds are roosters, you have fallen in love with them and dont want to get rid of them. :) We have two silkie roosters, one black and one white and at least they do not crow much and are not nearly as loud as little bantom roosters. One suggestion is to make sure your roosts are accessible for the silkies because they cannot fly but they can jump over a foot. Our roosts are about 3 ft off the floor so I built a ladder up to the roost and they can jump up to the roost.
ive actually had my silkies since the day you posted this and they didnt get introduced to our big flock because we were planning to wait about a week and then we surprisingly got given two young (as in 5 weeks) sebrings and my small silkie flock has taken them under their wing (no pun intended) 😂 i actually free roam my silkies and they are completely fine being free roamed🥰😍😎
I have silkies just love them and are with my big girl flock of cochins, brahmas , marons, speckled suffix, ... and do have other bantans about 70 birds, hard to count all so active. They were all raised together and amazing how well they all get along. The silkies stand up for themselves. Also silkies like to roost next to the big birds their security blankets. Built my coop in layer of shelves and roosts at different levels and at very top 7' 1/2 feet. Amazing how the silkies will go all the way to top as have shelves they can jump up with perches at all along different levels to hop up. Silkies love it and will climb right up with the bigger birds. Some still sleep in nesting boxes find 2 or 3 in one box. I do keep 4 heaters in coop as in northern state. Keeps temperature above freezing like at 40-45% , not to hot. keep bedding deep 6" at least to keep them dry in coop. I do open door to let them all out even in snow. Silkies are first ones out love to run around in snow. I Do keep hay out daily in sheltered areas and roost outside for them too, that go above snow level they can get out of snow or they can get back in coop if get cold, all works out never lost one to the cold very healthy active birds. the key is lots of warm water don't let water freeze up and also feed warm mashes helps. LOL ENJOY YOUR PETS!
Excellent vlog and very informative. I want a chicken as a pet but I also want eggs. As beautiful as silkies are I would find it hard to pick from all their beautiful colours. Cheers
I'm getting 4 silkies (3 girls and a boy) and I'm definitely gonna take these tips for when I get them. I'm probably gonna keep them in a coop of their own and since we don't have winter where I live, they're gonna be fine but if it's too hot, they're gonna have to go into my house to keep them cool
I also live in very hot area (Az) but in the house would be difficult. I think I’ll try mist system or large fan and ice bottles for them to lay next to. Hope it works.
Because the feathers do not have barbs in them and thus do not interlock, silkies loose a lot more heat than normal/smooth feathered birds, simular to how chicks cannot hold heat because of their down and thus require suplimental heat. I personally give additional heat when the temperature goes past -10°c, and you have to make sure they don't get water in their beards in the winter as they will freeze up. I have kept silkies for years no, and breed them as well. My personal birds get "haircuts" to remove feathers from around their eyes so they can free range. Another thing is in the winter if they are allowed outdoors, their feet need to be checked regularly as the feathers on their feet act like brooms and will cake up and freeze. Besides that very good points. P.s. Lily is a rooster...
First time silkie owner my self, and i absolutely love my girls! I bought them from Tractor Supply back in April, when they was little chicks, and all the tag said was "assorted bantams," $3.50 ea. I ended up with 2 black bearded female silkies, 2 black rosecombs (1 male, 1 female), and 1 golden laced cochin (male). Like every body else i had to wait and see what the sexes was when they crowed or laid a egg. They have been raised together and still are together. My silkies just started laying 2 wks ago and have laid every other day since. I also read on the breeding that some times it won't take if the fur around the vent isn't kept trimmed. Although i'm not sure on that note just yet, but i do know the cochin "loves" the silkie hens, lol. Everything i have read says it's best to wait til the following spring to hatch the eggs so i'll learn more first hand on that next year. Great video btw, i'm still curious about the cold weather as well so i'll just keep a close eye on them.
@@OakAbode Besides the bigger comb, a big give away is the "streamers" sticking out of the back of "her" crest. You can kind of see them on Bigfoot and Chester as well. Silkie males often have these feathers sticking out beyond the main fluff of the crest, while females usually have a more even ball of fluff, more like buttercup. Of course this is not always reliable considering how much silkies can vary in appearance between the various different hatchery and exhibition bred strains, I've seen some silkies that actually have little or no crest at all, but with silkies who do have a noticeable crest, those streamers are a pretty good sign that you are dealing with a boy. If you're keeping your silkies separate from the rest of the chickens, you may need to add a few more hens so poor buttercup doesn't get too much "male attention."
Not sure if this has been brought up already in the comments but another consideration before keeping silkies is their predisposition to vit. Deficiency and more importantly, their inclination toward developing symptoms related to the Marek's virus; the first is treatable when identified early enough but the only course of action against the virus is supportive care to keep the immune system well managed and stress to a minimum.
I got my first silkie in march n it does great with the other chickens i bought at the same time (a bantam, and 2 amberlinks) the amberlinks honestly act like their the silkie and bantams mommas 🤣 they will let them lay under them and everything!
Hi, ty for this informative video I have currently bought a silkie who is 5 months and there have been a series of complication, so I hope you can help us. When our silkie was born, it developed crooked neck and after research we were able to correct it, but now our silkie has had problems with her legs and now can't walk. She has had a mite problem that we are currently correcting with medicine called Frontline and she's a lot better now, but her legs are still not working. Some online say marreks disease? Don't know what determines that, do you? and her knees are now somehow not turned the right way which is weird because it seemed to have happened when she stopped walking. Anyway, sorry to write a book lol, but any help would be greatly appreciated. Ty
Silkies handle cold well from my experience. We had them up in Iowa and they handled the cold very well. We had a couple of winters get to -20 F. They do good in a flock with gentle breeds that they've grown up with. The cochins and brahmas got along with them just fine.
Your silkies are SO cute. I SO appreciate this video. I'll be moving into a home with half an acre and I really thought I wanted silkies because they're so cute. But I want eggs and I don't think these are the right chicken now! So thank you for this educational video!
Glad i found this channel . We ended up with a grey baby silkie. I had never seen one with so much feathers on the feet glad to find out what to be aware of. We don't know if it's a boy or girl yet
I have 3 silkie hens and 2 silkie roos. I just got more silkie chicks. I keep my silkies with my Seramas and old English chicks so when it's cold they all can heat each other and have each others company. Great birds! 🥰😍
My father kept a rather large flock of chickens when I was growing up and we always had 2-3 silkie roosters and 10-13 silkie hens at any given time. We also had several other breeds Araucana, Sebright, Buff Orpington, Polish, are just a few we had and we always had at least 1 rooster and 2-5 hens per rooster of each breed. My observations on Silkies are this they did fine in cold as long as it was a dry cold. The roost always had an open door to the run and we only kept a heat lamp on when it got down into the negative teens and we supplemented with more corn in their feed to boost their internal heat. The male silkies were always the most aggressive of the roosters of any breed we had, the only male birds that were more aggressive were the wild turkeys that we raised. The female silkies were the most docile and submissive hens in the flock. They were the best brooders of the hens if you take a weekend trip you are likely to come back to at least one of them guarding a nest. A fun breed to have and they are really interesting to watch molting and you get to see all that black skin.
My 74 yr old neighbor swears by her silkies and Bennies...I am considering getting 3 for myself next spring. Here's my scenario- single guy, 2 acres in the country. I want eggs, but honestly? Not a LOT! I won't eat them...I could do with 2 dozen a month...max. I live in NH. So -30F is not uncommon. Brrrr....yeah. also, 90F in summer. Are silkies and Bennies good for me as well?
A girlfriend of mine was looking to rehome a silkie rooster and we took him in. It did take quite some time as he is our only silkie for the girls to warm up to him. But he is the best rooster and really takes care of his girls.
only add silkies when adding 3+ or more to your flock....and add them to a flock with not so aggressive birds. I notice silkies because of their calm mellow disposition they tend to get picked on alot. so make sure to raise all the new (silkies included) chicks together. Then they are fine.
In my experience, it's the breed that determines how tame they are, and also it's an individual characteristic. You can handle a guineafowl as much as you like; they'll never be tame.
While most Silkies are generally considered bantams in the USA, it's not necessarily always the case elsewhere -- I always recommend local chicken groups for the best info for your area!
My dear nice Lady!
Please visite my channel and take a look.
Quails are half domesticated tiny wild chicken.
All sorts of chicken are very social birds.
You only have to invest veeer, much time, love and care and they will love you and see you as a mother or alpha figure.
My quails would never poop in me or in my bed/nest because of their real feelings they have for me.
My last quail died on 2. Dezember thus year in my hands beak on nose on the way to the VET.
It is so hard for me being without my so loved feather-children.
I shared all of my free time with them and I'm sure that it is possible that you cuties could AS handsome and cuddle-addicted as my chicks. :)
@@user-qo8rl7ew5i this is a new venture for us. From what we’ve found, you need to place the into a small chicken run side by side with the original placing them in it during the day for a week or so. Then try them either free roaming or in the original run for a few hours while you can observe them. After doing this several times, if they get along you should be fine. Like I said, we’re new. Research on TH-cam and see what others have done and decide what you think is best for you and your flock.
My little free range princess silkie comes to my front door whenever she gets wet from rain.. so I bring her in and dry her feathers with my hair dryer on low setting. She seems to appreciate it and has no fear at all! They make the best pets!
Thats sonds like just about the cutest thing in the world, "Mama, sky's wet again :( I require assistance."
I had a silkie rooster his name was King Tut he wasn't very friendly I had to walk backwards so he didn't attack me from behind my neighbor behind me their dog who broke through their neighbors fence and broke through another part of their fence to get three of my silkie only one survived and my son named her tiny. She has a sister but she not a silkie she a big black chicken I'm not sure what she is I don't think she a Jersey Giant but close to them but their were young enough we got another flock mix with silkie and regular chicken and tiny ( the silkie) she is the second of the pecking order I seen her pull some of the others chicken feathers like she is bullying the other chicken. I have another flock of chicken and their separated from my young flock I see my tiny try to pick a fight with one of my older flock. I think my silkie tiny is a feisty silkie.
We have four silkies and your information in this video is spot on. We also have Ameraucanas and ended up putting them in separate areas because the silkies get picked on. They are very sweet and cute but we do regret getting silkies. Mostly because of the extra care and low egg production. I also feel bad for them in bad weather and feel bad that they can’t see well. I will say my daughter loves holding and petting them because they are very docile. They do make fun pets for kids.
SILKIES USED TO BE SNOW CHICKENS, originating from China. THAT'S why they have black skin, Downey feathers, and feet that have an extra toe, functioning as 'snow shoes'. Also, the hens are the BEST mommas. My silkie has willingly adopted any 'rescue chicks' and even a duckling. I have never heard of 'grooming' silkies, except for occasional trimming of 'bangs'...must be a mainland thing. 😄
Thanks for the info I'm a 11 year old and Im already raising 10 silkies
Good for you. You will have some knowledge that someday most wish they had.
lets go gamer
I’m 12 and I’m getting silkies and I’m so excited
I’m 13 and I have 2 silkies
I lost my favorite silkie rooster to heat stroke. I only mention this because it's not something that was not cautioned in the video. If you have a day over or near 100 F keep an eye on them.
Do you recommend a fan? Or should I just bring them inside? I am getting silkies but live in California
I’m in Mississippi getting some as pets
@@avery3613 A fan is perfect for silkies. It's also super nice to do ice cubes in the water 🧡
Our silkie/ Americana mix loved standing in front of the fan on hot days.
Sorry you lost your favourite one (or any of the flock, for that matter). Thanks for highlighting the issue.
We have kept Silkies in our flock for years we raise almost all our chicks with them. This spring we had a little Silkie hen that chased 4 Geese around our chicken yard because they were picking on her chicks. they are a great breed to keep around in your flocks.
How cute!! Small but mighty indeed! 🥰
The picture this put in my head just cracked me up. Silkies are such sweeties but don’t mess with a mommas chicks!
Our white silkies are bullying our australops 🤣
One of my buff silkies used to bully one of our buff Orpingtons who was 3 times bigger than she was. LOL
Same, we only have a pair of silkies in our flock (I just couldn't resist) and I swear I crack up so hard when I see the tiny litlle white ball of fluf chase away my giant chubby Plymouth
I know this is an old post, but having had chickens now for a couple years, i kinda laugh about articles that say this chicken acts this way, this other chicken acts this way, etc. I've had 3 silkies. I read about how friendly and docile they are, yadda yadda. Well, somebody forgot to inform the chickens of their supposed personalities. Im here to tell you other than physical characteristics, you can throw the personality stuff out the window. All of my silkies thought they were big bird. Last summer one went very broody. We kicked her out of the coop a couple times. The first time she followed hubby around a good 10 minutes "swearing " at him. It is now mid January and I guess they are finally on speaking terms again. I have seen those little birds grab treats out of the big chickens beak and run away. One of them decided she was a night owl and didn't want to go into the coop till way after dark. She'd be outside still, just scratching around being a chicken. None of them particularly fond of being touched. They were raised together from chicks and were handled as much as the regular chickens, who now are all pretty friendly. Except the silkies. I've read how they hate to be wet. So, all the rest of the chickens had the sense to get outa the rain, silkies be outside and didn't seem to bother them at all, even though they looked like a drowned rat. Even egg laying i think can vary. My silkies almost keep up with the rest. Yea, the eggs are smaller. I prbly wouldn't want *just* silkies for eggs. That said, they're not *that* small. Reading about them, people make it sound like you're gonna get pigeon eggs. Id say they're about like buying small eggs from the store. So my half cents worth is buy whatever chicken you want based on egg color or looks or whatever, but when it comes to personality, much like people, they are all individuals. In the end it usually all works out. 😎
I had silkies back in the 70's. I never worried about the winters even though I did check on them. Mom had Road Island Reds in a Coupe. My Silkies were free to roam. She would lay 6 eggs and then hatch them. They both would take the small chicks around andd feed and protect them. The whole time she would lay 6 more eggs. The rooster would take the babies while she would sit on the other eggs and he would keep them warm at night by sitting on them and would scratch and feed them during the day. Once the second nest would hatch then she would bring them to the rooster and they both cared for both clutches. I would go out at night and would find them in tractor shed usually and they rooster and the hen would be sitting on the chicks but both sets would be mixed under mom and dad. The bigger chicks would poke out from under dad and then one of the younger ones under that one. I miss them a lot. I loved having them. They were the only family chickens I ever knew of. He had a clean head and a purple/black rose comb on his head. He looked like a rooster and she had the typical tuff of feathers on her head but they were quite the lookers for chickens. "IF" I could, I would wish to have those exact silkies back. After I went to college Dad took care of them for me for some time but one day he called and said a fox had gotten them. I was sad about losing the Kernal and Abigail. They were the best chickens I ever had. I am getting ready to fence my property and build two coupes. The field will be my Buckey Chickens and the other coupe will be above the yard and those will be my Silkies. I am also thinking of getting some of those Ayam Cemani chickens but will have to wait to see how things go once I get the field and yard fenced in. I prefer to keep the different breeds of chickens seperate. I was told the Silkies I had were Siamese Silkies. It has been so many years I do not know if I can ever find those exact ones but I still want the black skin silkies to have in my yard. Mine were black skin but the dark color was filled with a lot of dark purple, even the rooster rose comb and her featers too. They were Perfect Chickens. They would eat bugs but would not disturbed seeds when we were planting our garden and were a help to keep bugs down while were were planting and even in the garden.
Thanks for the Video! I learned some things about these chickens that I didn't know.
Lily is definitely a roo 😀 Don’t worry because I’ve had some baby boys that have a girlie name as well. It might be the reason Johnny Cash sang “A Boy Named Sue” lol
I have got silkie. & I'm A breeder for 10 years. I grew up around chickens. I hate to disappoint you but the splash has strimers he is also A Rooster . I hope you will have goid experience in silkie breeds I know I do. My first silkie I got 9 years ago & she still with me
Loved your film. kept Silkies for many years as backyard pets. I have always given their topknots a trim when they start covering their eyes. ...modified mohawks...lol. My girls love being able to see well, and walk around like tiny giraffes after their hair cuts, stretching their necks out and looking around eagerly. 😊
Lol, SPOILER ALERT, if you’re watching this in 2022, Lilly’s pronouns are actually He, Him.
I have two silkies Floyd and Zoot - they are the cuddliest birds I've ever had
Whoops… just got mine on an impulse buy today 😂😂
I have been raising silkies since last 4 years. Yes, they do require good amount of care compared to other chicken breeds. I do free range my silkies for few hours everyday and trim their feathers or fur near the eyes once every 2-3 months. I give them a full body bath once every 3 months to keep them clean.
How do you bathe silke ? I have one that is always getting dirty from crown to below neck.... Its like every day
@@NoorFatima-oh7qoFill a sink or bathtub up to their belly. Use baby shampoo when done dry them with a hair dryer.
I just found you, and 30 seconds in I’m impressed lol. I love that you’ve made a written version too, not everyone absorbs information the same way or can watch videos right away. Very cool! That is all, bye.
I dont think it is the cold that gets them. It's the wet weather WITH freezing Temps that get them. Cold and dry they do just fine. Cold and wet they will suffer
I've been breeding Silkies and Satins for years now and that Splash Silkie "lily" is a cockerel also. The last buff Silkie that you show does look like a female but she appears to have the wrong comb type for a Silkie which isn't uncommon. The standard call for a walnut comb like your other Silkies have. She appears to have what is called a straight comb. Now granted I didn't get a great look at it. I like the advice that you give, and several of the points that you made are things that I have to try and explain to people over and over again. They definitely are unique and don't behave like other breeds. They are mainly for ornamental, showing, and pet purposes. They make good incubators and mothers. I laugh when people ask about their egg production and politely tell them they should look for another breed that is meant for that if they are wanting eggs. I always recommend keeping Silkies in their own separate coop and not mixed with other standard breeds. Sure, if they are all raised together from chicks they might get along just fine and some people say they don't have any issues mixing theirs but, I personally wouldn't risk it. People also don't realize how hard they are to tell what gender they are compared to most breeds. I do offer DNA sexing but it costs quite a bit but it is the only way to know for sure at a young age. Unless you get one that starts crowing early lol. You can always read more about DNA testing at iqbirdtesting.com. 😀
Yep, agree splash is a boy. Tons of streamers. :)
I'd love more information on your silkies if you breed and sell hens only :)
👀.....what they taste like tho? Lol
They say Silkies are poor egg layers but I have a hen which lays an egg every day and doesn't start getting broody unless I leave the eggs in her nest box. She even laid an egg every day in the winter.
I find that female silkies have blue faces, while males have redder faces where the comb is. The "hair" on top of the head is also slightly different between sexes.
I love my silkies. I got one to breed with an orloff hen and now I have this amazing silkie rooster with a golden mullet and amazing browns and whites. His name is GOLDENHAWK and he is definitely a rocker.
We have 17 silkies and we keep hatching more every few months.
We hatch out really interesting silkies too- like a few days ago we hatched a little white one with blue and pink skin. We even hatched a black one even though all our adult silkies are white, blue, and some sort of light colored partridge.
My goal is to get one of those orange or partridge silkies and maybe even one of those black and white splash ones. But we have to sell the 2 roosters we have and bring in new ones to get more colors.
how much you sell the rooster?
Are you still selling a silkie rooster?
I had wanted to get 1 silkie hen to be the brooder for any eggs that hatch later, but decided against it because I just didn't want to deal with roosters. But silkie moms are outstandingly broody.
Oh my gosh I had to keep replaying 6:20. "Don't disrespect my size". Should have named him Napoleon😆
Yeah, my daughter in law and I have made that impulse buy as well. We have 11 silkies coming at the end of June so I’m very glad to see this now so we can prepare now. My grandparents and her mom have always had chickens, this is our first venture with them. Our first chicks are near ready to leave the nursery and Pawpaw is getting ready to build the coop. Now I do believe we’ll be building a duplex coop. One place, side by side still together but not together. We’re already getting close to our chicks so yes, we’d hate to loose any of them. Our granddaughters would be really heartbroken 💔. Thanks for sharing this advice. It was well needed!
erm... how did you know to post this on the day that i picked up my three silkies.😂😍
I love the breed! They are such a friendly wonderful chicken. We handled ours as chicks and they were super friendly. Winter in a small hutch our 5 hens did absolutely fine..important to have dry straw (bedding) and draft free but in freezing rain and snow here in AR they did fine.
Oh thank goodness I saw youre in Arkansas. Im about to buy 4 and wondered how theyd do
Just did an impulse buy of 3 Silkies today so glad I found your video!
Might want to keep an eye on your slash silkie, im thinking it's a rooster not a female...
She said it was a rooster in the beginning
I live in the Pacific Northwest. Ours always did fine in winter. That being said the whole flock had easy access to shelter and we kept them all locked up at night and in severe weather. The silkes were always outside with the other birds. I never noticed them to handle cold or wet different than the other breeds. I've never had problems of keeping any of our feather footed birds clean. If your coop is kept clean and they have enough space there's no problem. I also never had a problem with them and predators. That being said most of the danger is at night for chickens. I've never noticed an issue with they're vision. They are very watchful and social. Silkie boys will actually team up to take on a threat. I had two gang up on my Jersey Giant who was getting out of line with another bird. As a whole they are easy going and a lot calmer. Hand raised birds and using a heating pad rather than a light to warm them makes a huge difference in chicken personalities. (Do your research before attempting the heating pad method. It requires a little set up to do right and safely) When you get to know the breed it's easy to tell the girls from the boys but yes it can be hard when they are young.
I trim my silkies head feathers so that they can see a bit better ( though the breed in general has very poor eyesight) - this helps them with foraging and being able to compete with my other chickens for treats. There is a blood supply to the base of the feathers so you have to be careful not to trim too close to the base. The also look very funny with their little mohawks!
What do you use to cut the feathers?
Hey your silkies are gorgeous I also have to let you know your lily is actually a roo I have been breeding silkies for a year now and he definitely has streamers which is a 100% tell sign of a rooster
I said the same thing ! She will know when it starts to crow...ha ha ha
Yup, definitely a Roo. Lol
I'm an f.n.g when it comes to chickens especially silkies. What exactly are signs of roosters in this breed? And what are streamers?
Yep, when she held it up and said 'This is a hen,' I was like NOPE, that's a rooster.
Such a good video! Thank you for compiling all the facts for us 😊 I was wondering, how much to the males crow? Is it louder / less loud than other breeds, and do they crow extremely early in the morning? I’d love to have silkies as pets but I’m a late sleeper, and having a rooster singing their heart out at 5 in the morning every day would probably drive me stir crazy 😅
I don’t treat the silkies different then my other chickens and let him free range like it wants. If something flies over he just start running with the others. Indeed terrible eyesight though, a bit funny sometimes 😇
My silkie just loves to free range when it’s raining, all the others are under cover and the silkie just keeps on going, not a problem she says.
I can agree they shouldn’t be kept with very feisty breeds.
I started with 6 now have 50, they hatch and breed like mice. They are so cute, but now I have way too many
Send me some lol
I have 22 Silkies and one Satin. When raising Silkies and regular size chickens we also have Bantams, Brahmas and Cochin chickens you definitely need separate housing for the Silkies and Bantams!! The reason for this, the bigger chickens pick on the small ones and also you have to feed Silkies and Bantams crumbles not pellets. Pellets are too big for the Silkies/Bantams they can actually choke on it. We built our chicken coop with 8" cedar channel siding with metal roofing and 1x2 welded wire to make it predator proof, also put windows in it and divided the middle of the chicken coop with 1x2 welded wire Silkies on one side the bigger chickens on the other. Both sides have separate door entrances and heat lamps throughout the entire winter. With me being a Silkie owner for 20 years Silkies do need heat lamp!! I wish I could post pictures on here to show you what the chicken coop looks like.
Silkies can eat mini pellets though.
Also if the summers get super hot, they need a fan too.
What do they eat?
@@babynieve9612 they need the crumbles of whatever type you decide. Example If laying eggs use the layer crumbles and not the layer pellets.
Hello what do you use for heat??
We gave our silkies ten quail eggs as sort of a joke/test to see if they could hatch them. They absolutely did and were mad that we took them away. We aren't doing this anymore obviously and we really didn't think it would work.
I’ve owned silkie chickens for over a year now, and one thing I’ve noticed is you can teach them their name and they come. This has only happened with two of my roosters due to being extra hands on for various reasons 😊
We just got 12 new hens, and 4 are silkie cross Rhode Island reds and they are soooo beautiful and actually have been laying the most of our whole flock! Small little golf ball sized eggs tho
Silkies are fine with cold but not wind or rain also silkies should have black comb and wattles. To tell roosters and hens apart as chicks if you don’t want to do vent sexing you can look at how they stand the roosters being more upright and sometimes you can look at their feet (which isn’t the most reliable but) the roosters tend to have thicker, bigger feet (I have some 6 week old chicks with a hen and have already figured out their genders). I wouldn’t recommend keeping silkies with other big breeds but you can try.
Do you think I could keep 2 silkies with 2 medium sized birds if they’re raised together from day 1?
I have had silkies for well over 10 years. I have a backyard garden so I find they are the best. They are quiet and so cuddly. I free range mine and I have not had problems. I don't think I would ever have another breed for my backyard garden. Maybe if I moved out to the country I would get others. Great video!
I just was given 2 month old silkies and we built a mini hoop tractor. 4x6 with 8 ft cattle panels bent into hoops. That way they can free range in our yard safely. Don't know if we got hens or roosters but its nice to have them as pets... If you handle them it helps. I got one that is extremely friendly wants to be all over me the other not so much lol!
I've had chicken's and ducks for 3 years but just hatched my first silkie today. My 8 year old is hoping to show one 😬🤞Thanks for the info.
Mine started laying at ~21 weeks old. Last fall I had a silkie hen go broody and I just let her do her thing, she hatched 2 silkies and a brahmin/silkie hybrid; all hens by some dumb luck. 7 weeks ago more chicks hatched (2 silkies and a brahmin/silkie hybrid again). Regarding not letting them free range out of safety, get a dummy garden owl and place it on top of your chicken coop to deter hawks.
One of my Silkie mamas is currently raising her hatched white leghorn babies. 😍😍😍 I have given away so many Silkie roosters that I’m now gathering Silkie eggs as fast as I can to deter more babies. They are a sweet little pet, mine are somewhat snuggly, but I’m not going to go into another generation. When these are gone…I’m done. I’ll miss my bucket therapy in the Silkie pen but they are really high maintenance.
Blessings, debby
I can't believe you found them at tractor supply our tractor supply refuses to get them!
I handle my chickens because their pets for me I love to snuggle chickens and it takes two seconds for a bird to just love me
how long after this video did it take till you realized Lilly was not a Lilly but in face a Larry? that comb and those streamers on the head are a dead giveaway!
"Small but Mighty" Love that :) I just adopted two Silkie chicks - Your video was very helpful! I will be keeping a close eye on them 💛
I've enjoyed my Silkies. They make loyal companions & affectionate lap pets.
They become family members.
we clip the fuzz around their eyes. They are very thankful when we do.
We recently got two Silkies and were told they were bad layers... We've had an egg every day without fail and 2 eggs a day 3 times a week. Pretty good if you ask me!
Would love to know what are you feeding them ? That might make the difference.
I just moved and got 4 silkies too! Thanks for all the info!
I had 2 silkies named Frodo & Bilbo, they died the same way, instant chicken death. Their life with us was very short, and they were about 8 weeks? I was thinking about everything I did wrong, is their any cause or anything I could've done to prevent it? Because I always blame myself...And anything I can do to avoid it for next time?
Silkies do fine in the winter, as long as they are kept dry.
They look like the bad guy that chased Marvin the Martian
Can you raise them with other breeds to have them brood eggs?
Lol thank you for your honestly love silkies but what you said is real
Great video! We breed silkies and just love them. FYI your splash is a boy :) You can tell because of the "streamers" growing out of the back of his head. Girls have a more uniform rounded crest. Enjoy them!
I concur Splash roo
Great job describing the silkies! Ours do great free dancing but we don't have trees, so fewer aerial predators than most people have. They also have plenty of other chickens out with them to help alert them of potential danger. Unfortunately because they pretty much don't fly at all, they are more prone to ground predators like coyotes, raccoons and even snakes (the latter is a problem in our part of Texas in the summer). But their sweetness definitely makes them worth the extra attention 😍😍😍
Free dancing!?? I assume you mean free range/ranging?
lilly is a rooster! "streamer" feathers on the crest (puff) on the head. DEFINITELY a rooster!
Could you go in depth about what did you spend $600 on for the silkies?
I have a large flock that are free range on my 30 acre farm in Florida. The Silkies and the Orpingtons hang out in/around the large coop (a 30x25 foot barn I converted), while the other chickens and turkeys roam around in the woods. The silkies are great for breeding more chicks, which is the only reason I have them.
in my experience your silkies will get a lot friendlier once they start laying!
I personally want to raise Wyandottes.
I am raising Wyandotte and Silkie chicks together this spring. Doing well so far
thank you for this video. I live in suburbs and cannot have traditional breeds. but if i want to have them strictly as pets, how many should i get? i mean , do they need a lot of "friends" or just one would be okay. Also, i have cats, so..... any advice?😀 thank you
Are you going to keep them inside..? Also chickens are flock animals
Get three or four. Most countries will allow that many (check your codes). It's enough birds for them to cuddle in together when it gets cold. Also enough to feel like you have a flock
Do you have silkie to sell?
Silkies also need a higher protein feed. We mix game crumbles in with their food to make sure they are getting the proper amount. My silkies lay almost every day.
I have a Polish and I give her hair cuts around her eyes whenever the feathers grow long. She's stylish lol
Whats your suggestion for us the beginner who just want some fresh eggs. We want the quiet ones since we live with neigbours and hopefully the snuggly ones. Thank you
We have a short 3ft fence and the silkies are the only ones that stay in. Our big silkie rooster jumps over the fence but the other 2 cannot. Our black silkie hen Mavis has her eyes mostly covered and she is in her own little world. She broods on and off every 3-4 weeks and pretty funny opening the box and finding her sitting on 8 eggs from all the other girls! She also does not take any crap from the full size hens. She is by far our sweetest chicken. Worse part of silkies is you cannot sex them as chicks and by the time you know half your birds are roosters, you have fallen in love with them and dont want to get rid of them. :) We have two silkie roosters, one black and one white and at least they do not crow much and are not nearly as loud as little bantom roosters.
One suggestion is to make sure your roosts are accessible for the silkies because they cannot fly but they can jump over a foot. Our roosts are about 3 ft off the floor so I built a ladder up to the roost and they can jump up to the roost.
You have beautiful silkies. But “Lily” is a little Roo.
Chester is small but mighty 😂😂😃
ive actually had my silkies since the day you posted this and they didnt get introduced to our big flock because we were planning to wait about a week and then we surprisingly got given two young (as in 5 weeks) sebrings and my small silkie flock has taken them under their wing (no pun intended) 😂 i actually free roam my silkies and they are completely fine being free roamed🥰😍😎
I have silkies just love them and are with my big girl flock of cochins, brahmas , marons, speckled suffix, ... and do have other bantans about 70 birds, hard to count all so active. They were all raised together and amazing how well they all get along. The silkies stand up for themselves. Also silkies like to roost next to the big birds their security blankets. Built my coop in layer of shelves and roosts at different levels and at very top 7' 1/2 feet. Amazing how the silkies will go all the way to top as have shelves they can jump up with perches at all along different levels to hop up. Silkies love it and will climb right up with the bigger birds. Some still sleep in nesting boxes find 2 or 3 in one box. I do keep 4 heaters in coop as in northern state. Keeps temperature above freezing like at 40-45% , not to hot. keep bedding deep 6" at least to keep them dry in coop. I do open door to let them all out even in snow. Silkies are first ones out love to run around in snow. I Do keep hay out daily in sheltered areas and roost outside for them too, that go above snow level they can get out of snow or they can get back in coop if get cold, all works out never lost one to the cold very healthy active birds. the key is lots of warm water don't let water freeze up and also feed warm mashes helps. LOL ENJOY YOUR PETS!
Excellent vlog and very informative. I want a chicken as a pet but I also want eggs. As beautiful as silkies are I would find it hard to pick from all their beautiful colours. Cheers
Silkies are great with kids because they’re so gentle- make sure kids are old enough to treat them gently!
I'm getting 4 silkies (3 girls and a boy) and I'm definitely gonna take these tips for when I get them. I'm probably gonna keep them in a coop of their own and since we don't have winter where I live, they're gonna be fine but if it's too hot, they're gonna have to go into my house to keep them cool
I also live in very hot area (Az) but in the house would be difficult. I think I’ll try mist system or large fan and ice bottles for them to lay next to. Hope it works.
Can you do a video on how to hold chickens, how to feel comfortable around chickens please!?
Pick them up with both hands, keeping their wings close to their body. Place them on your lap and cuddle them😊
“Silkies are a calmer breed” *Brad from Useless Farm enters the chat 👁👄👁*
Because the feathers do not have barbs in them and thus do not interlock, silkies loose a lot more heat than normal/smooth feathered birds, simular to how chicks cannot hold heat because of their down and thus require suplimental heat. I personally give additional heat when the temperature goes past -10°c, and you have to make sure they don't get water in their beards in the winter as they will freeze up.
I have kept silkies for years no, and breed them as well. My personal birds get "haircuts" to remove feathers from around their eyes so they can free range.
Another thing is in the winter if they are allowed outdoors, their feet need to be checked regularly as the feathers on their feet act like brooms and will cake up and freeze.
Besides that very good points.
P.s. Lily is a rooster...
Silkies lose* heat...
First time silkie owner my self, and i absolutely love my girls! I bought them from Tractor Supply back in April, when they was little chicks, and all the tag said was "assorted bantams," $3.50 ea. I ended up with 2 black bearded female silkies, 2 black rosecombs (1 male, 1 female), and 1 golden laced cochin (male). Like every body else i had to wait and see what the sexes was when they crowed or laid a egg. They have been raised together and still are together. My silkies just started laying 2 wks ago and have laid every other day since. I also read on the breeding that some times it won't take if the fur around the vent isn't kept trimmed. Although i'm not sure on that note just yet, but i do know the cochin "loves" the silkie hens, lol. Everything i have read says it's best to wait til the following spring to hatch the eggs so i'll learn more first hand on that next year. Great video btw, i'm still curious about the cold weather as well so i'll just keep a close eye on them.
Silkies are cute my fav
I think Lilly is a rooster.
I think you may be right 😩
I was going to say the same thing! 😩 major downfall with Silkies is the sexing! Beautiful birds though!! ❤️❤️
Lily is definitely a rooster. Sorry to say.
@@OakAbode Besides the bigger comb, a big give away is the "streamers" sticking out of the back of "her" crest. You can kind of see them on Bigfoot and Chester as well. Silkie males often have these feathers sticking out beyond the main fluff of the crest, while females usually have a more even ball of fluff, more like buttercup. Of course this is not always reliable considering how much silkies can vary in appearance between the various different hatchery and exhibition bred strains, I've seen some silkies that actually have little or no crest at all, but with silkies who do have a noticeable crest, those streamers are a pretty good sign that you are dealing with a boy. If you're keeping your silkies separate from the rest of the chickens, you may need to add a few more hens so poor buttercup doesn't get too much "male attention."
Not sure if this has been brought up already in the comments but another consideration before keeping silkies is their predisposition to vit. Deficiency and more importantly, their inclination toward developing symptoms related to the Marek's virus; the first is treatable when identified early enough but the only course of action against the virus is supportive care to keep the immune system well managed and stress to a minimum.
So excited to watch this! I adore them and I've been doing a lot of research before potentially adding them to my future flock
I got my first silkie in march n it does great with the other chickens i bought at the same time (a bantam, and 2 amberlinks) the amberlinks honestly act like their the silkie and bantams mommas 🤣 they will let them lay under them and everything!
Hi, ty for this informative video
I have currently bought a silkie who is 5 months and there have been a series of complication, so I hope you can help us. When our silkie was born, it developed crooked neck and after research we were able to correct it, but now our silkie has had problems with her legs and now can't walk. She has had a mite problem that we are currently correcting with medicine called Frontline and she's a lot better now, but her legs are still not working. Some online say marreks disease? Don't know what determines that, do you? and her knees are now somehow not turned the right way which is weird because it seemed to have happened when she stopped walking. Anyway, sorry to write a book lol, but any help would be greatly appreciated. Ty
Silkies handle cold well from my experience. We had them up in Iowa and they handled the cold very well. We had a couple of winters get to -20 F. They do good in a flock with gentle breeds that they've grown up with. The cochins and brahmas got along with them just fine.
Lilly is a dude
Looove this - thanks for sharing!
Your silkies are SO cute. I SO appreciate this video. I'll be moving into a home with half an acre and I really thought I wanted silkies because they're so cute. But I want eggs and I don't think these are the right chicken now! So thank you for this educational video!
Very difficult hatching. Fragile as babies , they have to stay dry. Not heat tolerant.
We just love our silkies. Cant have chickens and go without. Thanks for sharing. -Daniel
Glad i found this channel . We ended up with a grey baby silkie. I had never seen one with so much feathers on the feet glad to find out what to be aware of. We don't know if it's a boy or girl yet
I have 3 silkie hens and 2 silkie roos. I just got more silkie chicks. I keep my silkies with my Seramas and old English chicks so when it's cold they all can heat each other and have each others company. Great birds! 🥰😍
My father kept a rather large flock of chickens when I was growing up and we always had 2-3 silkie roosters and 10-13 silkie hens at any given time. We also had several other breeds Araucana, Sebright, Buff Orpington, Polish, are just a few we had and we always had at least 1 rooster and 2-5 hens per rooster of each breed. My observations on Silkies are this they did fine in cold as long as it was a dry cold. The roost always had an open door to the run and we only kept a heat lamp on when it got down into the negative teens and we supplemented with more corn in their feed to boost their internal heat. The male silkies were always the most aggressive of the roosters of any breed we had, the only male birds that were more aggressive were the wild turkeys that we raised. The female silkies were the most docile and submissive hens in the flock. They were the best brooders of the hens if you take a weekend trip you are likely to come back to at least one of them guarding a nest. A fun breed to have and they are really interesting to watch molting and you get to see all that black skin.
My 74 yr old neighbor swears by her silkies and Bennies...I am considering getting 3 for myself next spring.
Here's my scenario- single guy, 2 acres in the country. I want eggs, but honestly? Not a LOT! I won't eat them...I could do with 2 dozen a month...max.
I live in NH. So -30F is not uncommon. Brrrr....yeah. also, 90F in summer.
Are silkies and Bennies good for me as well?
A girlfriend of mine was looking to rehome a silkie rooster and we took him in. It did take quite some time as he is our only silkie for the girls to warm up to him. But he is the best rooster and really takes care of his girls.
Can u trim their face feathers so they can see better
You can trim their face feathers with caution. I have done so to mine and they are much more confident and move about more
This was SO helpful! Thank you so much!
only add silkies when adding 3+ or more to your flock....and add them to a flock with not so aggressive birds. I notice silkies because of their calm mellow disposition they tend to get picked on alot. so make sure to raise all the new (silkies included) chicks together. Then they are fine.
In my experience, it's the breed that determines how tame they are, and also it's an individual characteristic. You can handle a guineafowl as much as you like; they'll never be tame.