Silkie Smooth - Starting Out

Silkies aren't your average chicken... and that's why we love them!

Silkies are known for their very calm nature, they are sociable and enjoy cuddles with their humans. as they are so docile, they are considered to be a suitable breed for families looking to add chickens to their lives that they can all enjoy.

Silkies are also well known for a few key physcial features;

• they have black skin & bones (genetic trait called fibromelanosis)
• they have 5 toes (placement/set and proper separation of them matter for showing)
• they don't have "feathers" but rather silk like hair covering their bodies and heads
• their puffy heads look a lot like a dandelion in its seeding state
• they have silk feathers down their legs and on their toes
• as a standard of perfection a blue "ear lobe" would be evident *this tends to be brighter against the lighter colour silk

They come in a wide array of colourations, both solid and patterned, however not all variations are recognized at the poultry show level. We have opted to raise specific colours for breeding based on personal preference, and keep a couple "pets" for our personal enjoyment that do not fall within these colours.

Due to having this silk like fur rather than true feather, silkies cannot fly and they cannot repel water the same as standard chicken breeds. Providing proper care in the way of physical location is important to ensure they are not left out in damp/wet conditions. If you are going to raise silkies, it would be advisable to have a blowdryer on hand, as this is the best way to dry them off in the event they get wet (intentionally or otherwise)

Having long silky hair and feathered feet does mean a bit more attention is required for grooming to keep them clean and healthy. As chicks it is relatively easy for them to develop "pasty butt" if their fluff/early silk gets stuck around their vent after passing a bowel movement. It would be good practice to check them daily to ensure this doesn't go overlooked in error and cause major harm.  This is more common in chicks, however ensure adult can get poop stuck to their silk fur if they have looser bowel movements due to stress, heat or ill health. They are also more prone to bumble foot or other infections of the feather shafts in their toes if their feet are left coated in dirt / poop.

You may note a minimal number "normal" looking feathers in their wings, these feathers are called "flight feathers" however they are not functional for this breed. There will also be a different texture in some tail feathers called "streamers" which is one of the characteristics more notable in male silkies. Hens tend to have larger rounder "globe" silk heads and will not have the same "messy mowhak" that many males exhibit. It is common for this overwhelming fur to make it more difficult for silkies to see (find food/water and avoid injury or predators) those raising them will opt for one of two ways to combat this; a "bang trim" to ensure the fur around the eyes is trimmed back and allows for a better field of vision, or the use of a headband/pony tail if they wish to preserve the fullness of the fur for showing purposes.

Silkies hens do not start laying eggs until they are approx. 8 months old. Once they begin laying their small creamy white to light beige eggs (large for the size of chicken they are) it is fairly common for them to go "broody" and want to sit on and hatch out their own chicks. This motherly nature also makes them great surrogate hens for solo chicks or to finish the incubating process for other eggs even if not their own. They will lay between 100-120 eggs per year on average. If you opt to remove the hens eggs and place in an incubator, the standard incubation period for silkie eggs is 21 days.

There is more than one type of feathering pattern within the silkie breed:

Non-bearded; silk like fur covering the body entirely, large puffy head and feathered legs/feet. As the non-bearded silkies have less fur around their throat their ear lobes tend to be more exposed which allows their famous blue lobes to be seen more easily.

Bearded; follow the same patterning as a non-bearded but have more substantial throat feathering mimicking that of a man's beard.

Show Girl; this is a clear visual difference from the more standardized style of the silkie. They look like the "vegas ladies:" in the way of large head cresting on top of a naked (featherless/furless) neck to top of shoulders/chest. At first glance they may look ill or like they have been over-plucked if one is not familiar with this style of feather/fur placement. The body, legs and feet follow the typical placement pattern of the silkie breed. This style can be very popular within the poultry show world and is even more widely expressed in the "satins" and "frizzles" which are silkie crosses to alter the feather textures.

Most silkies fall within the "bantam" chicken group based on their smaller size. They are typically 2.5lbs or less in weight and range in height from 8-14" Their small stature, laid back nature and more delicate condition does put them at a slight disadvantage when housed with other chickens, so it would be advisable to pair with other bantam breeds or well mannered standard chickens.

Silkie roosters do not develop the red crown comb that is commonly seen on other breeds of chickens, rather, they have what is referred to as a walnut comb. It is slightly raised and textured much like a walnut (hence the name) in an ideal situation the comb would be black or a dark mulberry red. Their skin colour can be slightly blue toned or brown toned, however the true colour should be black or close to. Light colour silkies are not considered show quality birds as they do not follow the breed standards of perfection. Lighter skin colour, red/ rosy combs, not walnut combs, 4 toes or improper feather texture etc would put a bird outside of standards for the breed or what is referred to as "pet quality" and not recommended to be used for breeding.