Silkie chickens are precisely as they appear funny, cuddly, soft feathers, and looking to be your friend. If you're looking for an adorable, sweet-natured 'teddy bear' companion, this is the right breed. They are one of the friendliest chicken varieties and will appreciate your attention and company. Their unique appearance also makes them a popular exhibition bird. Silkie chicks can have clean faces or have a muff and beard. Most have a crest. For show, they need to have five black toes. Silkies are great garden girls. You can plant brassicas (cabbage plants) in their run area. The Silkies will keep the caterpillars and other pests at bay and fertilize the plants at the same time. It is delightful to observe the hens drink the droplets of fresh morning dew from the leaves like nectar. Permaculture means solving problems naturally. Spent bedding is a great addition to your compost pile adding much needed carbon, nitrogen and nutrients.
Eggs they will gift
Gifts 2-3 white small eggs a week
Personality
If you're looking for a friendly, chatty, sweet-natured poultry pal as a first bird for your children or a companion for yourself, you may just have found your ideal. Silkie chickens are exactly as they look - funny, cuddly and very kind. They are one of the few chickens who would be happy to be kept in an apartment. Keep in mind they will need a chicken buddy. If you are low on space, Silkies are happy to be contained in a mud-free run. Their downy feathers mean they can't fly so roost bars need to be lower. Silkies go broody often and make excellent mothers even if hatching others’ eggs.
History
Believed to be originated in China during the Han dynasty. The Chinese term for Silkie is wu-gu-ji, which means black boned. In 1298, Marco Polo bragged about seeing a bird with black skin and "hair like a cat" on his travels to china. Considering Silkies, produce more carnosine compared to other poultry, they were used in Chinese medicine. Marco Polo introduced the first Silkie chickens to the western world. Silkies made their big debut in the 1900s. Several patrons paid to view the traveling circus side show ‘freaks” attraction where Silkies were described as "Chickens with fur instead of feathers".
Sexing Method
Several communities have laws in which roosters are not allowed. The sex of a Silkie is not reliably identifiable by external characteristics until mature. Vent sexing is not safe for bantam breeds. Thus, industry standard is to offer as an unsexed straight run. To assist city families, we offer Silkies with your choice of unsexed chicks with females with coverage or DNA sexed females.
Chick: Buff Silkie
Most families are attracted to obtaining their chickens from us because we are proud to be completely different than typical feed store/ hatchery industry standards. Industry standard is to sex as accurately as possible and sell as pullets (female chicks) and force customers to accept a >10% chance of an accidental rooster without the ability to accept returns nor refunds. In addition, industry standard is to sell bantams (such as silkies) as straight runs since they are too small for safe vent sexing. We offer multiple sexing options.
Male
If you are lucky enough to have a rooster, our male sexing option is a great way to save money on a wonderful breed.
Unsexed
This option means that the chicks have not yet been sexed and are sold as a straight run. While nature usually averages half girls and half boys in high volumes, families should only order if prepared for >50% possible roosters.
Female Coverage
This is our most economical choice for families seeking a female. We kept city ordinances that restrict rooster ownership in mind. This option is great for families that want to enjoy a backyard flock of ladies. We use traditional sexing methods on the breeds that capable of being vent sexed, home accidental roosters, and issue store credit of original purchased price. To learn more about how we sex baby chicks based on their breed view: How to Sex Chickens.
Depending on the breed, sexing accuracy can range as low as 50% for bantam breeds, 90% for standard breeds, and as high as 95% for auto sexing breeds. Our female coverage option is not a service fee for sexing the chick, it is the cost difference between purchasing a male or a female chicken. We do not believe in grinding males alive nor suffocating them as day olds to enable a profit when selling a stated female chick at ridiculously low prices. Thus, our female pricing takes into consideration the male left behind with each female purchased. Male chicks are typically half the price of a female.
To qualify for rehoming, the rooster must remain in perfect health. If the family decides to return the rooster, a store credit in the amount of original purchase price is provided. As a family, you are welcome to decide to keep any accidental rooster and forfeit the credit.
DNA Sexed Female Chicks
For families that get emotionally bonded quickly and do not want to risk a future discovery of a rooster, we offer DNA sexing. DNA sexing is the only true accurate method of sexing baby chicks. DNA testing is a significantly higher financial investment. In most cases, it is 3x the cost as (1) female sex covered chick.
Balance accuracy with financial investment
The sexing decision is one that needs to be made at time of purchased and the original order cannot be altered once the order is fulfilled. It is important as a family to determine the right balance between sexing accuracy and financial investment for your family’s situation.
We provide as much information on our website as possible to ensure families make an informed decision based on their situation and lifestyle. Some breeds are more accurate in sexing and most families find our female coverage adequate in providing a free home for their accidental rooster (up to $100 savings) and use the store credit towards a replacement or our organic feed. While harder to sex bantam breeds, or families that know they will develop a with strong emotional attachment prefer to invest in DNA sexing.