4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[Sam]

Hello

 

I'm still planning but I really want silkies if (when ) I get a bigger coop and I'm wondering if silkies will live with my hybrids? (black star, goldline, white star) Could LF Silkie or bantam live with them? My hybrids are all really calm, if they have a pecking order it's not obvious at all because they never peck eachother. Saying that though I wouldn't want to risk it. Oh and also are silkies as soft as they look? Thanks

[mollyripkim]

Don't know about living with bigger girls but yes they are really soft and fluffy. My grey girl is like a ball of fluff!

[Sam]

Good!

Now I just have to hope they could live together....

[scarlettohara]

My 14 week old babies fr with my 12 lf with no problems - however they have separate housing. I'm collecting 2 more next week who need a home

[beach chick]

I've always mixed silkies with big girls with no problem whatsoever - tho I know people will say you should never risk it!

I think it is down to how much space you have, and whether they can escape/hide away if they want to. I have to say though that mine have always mingled as one big happy flock - I've been very lucky perhaps.

[percy049]

As long as you introduce more than 1 silkie, it should be fine . It will probably take a little longer to settle down between them (about 3 weeks), and you need to extra vigilant about bullying, no matter how docile your current birds are (which I was I discovered, the hard way).

[Sam]

My WIR is 12m sqrd and I have 4 girls & hopefully will get 1 silkie and another girl to introduce, would the other girl have to be small too?

 

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Thanks for the replies

[scarlettohara]

I agree with Beach Chick - if they have enough room they will be fine and do it SLOWLY don't just throw them in and expect them to get on as they do look very peckable with their beehive hairdos Why don't you get 2 silkies

[Sam]

Yes, if I do get a cube i'd have the eglu to do intros with

 

Why don't you get 2 silkies

I would love to, but I want a cream legbar, white star, buff orpington, silver laced wyandottes, ex-batts...... & the list goes on! It's a downward spiral from here

[beach chick]

the biggest size differentiation I ever had at the same time was a Buff Orp and a Golden Sebright - talk about little and large!! but they were best of friends. sadly the Sebright was foxed, and the Buff Orp died earlier this year.

[Chortle Chook]

I don't think that the size really matters. It is more a case of personalities. Silkies are really gentle and sweet natured and a tad defenceless, dopy if you like and yes they are as soft and cudgy as they look. They would mix with any other gentle breeds I think and have read that despite the size difference they can go well with Orps but also with Polands, Houdans and Sultans. I have them with Frizzles.

 

However I would not put one little Silkie on her own with other breeds as they really do seem to like their own kind and need friends. I have quite a few Silkies and at one point looked after a couple of Wyandottes for a friend. Though there were no squabbles they just never mingled. I also know someone who has several different breeds (including a Hamburg and an Appenzeller) and just one Silkie. There is no bullying but the little Silkie is always left on her own which seems rather sad.

 

Here is a group to wet your appetite

[zakjon-98]

I have Dot my little appenzeller in with my 3 other girls. She is about 1/2 the size of my two sussexs and Barnevelder I think she is probably a bit small for her breed being large fowl. However she does not put up with my barnevelder and if she is in her special egg laying spot she dug under a bush, she stands there screams at her and shoves her off!

So I don't think it matters if you have a coop for intros.

[Sam]

I just Googled Golden Sebright and wow.. they are tiny! Sorry to hear neither of them are no longer around

 

Cheaky chook, it was you who got me into them with all of your photos! Then someone posted a video about them and I was hooked! I don't need to be told twice to get 2 wouldn't want a lonely silkie! Are silkies noisy? I know someone posted a thread the other day and everyone said that theirs (cant remember the breed ) was noisy. Do they like to be handled?

 

Thanks for all the advice

[Chortle Chook]

My girls got very tame quickly, however I would have to admit that they (well one in particular) can be quite noisy. I think that sometimes she just gets impatient if she has to queue for the nest box and this has been taken up by too many broodies.

 

On the downside Silkies do go broodie quite a bit during the summer (each one of mine has had 2 broody periods so far) but on the plus side they laid all through the winter. My chooks' characters vary quite a bit. Dinky is a little shy chocolate girly, Dolly is a laid back gold one who likes to sit on my lap, Doodle is a bossy white madam who kowns she is pretty (this is the noisy one), Dixie the partridge is an 'I'm still doing my hair' girl who is always late for everything whereas Dusty my balck girl is always first up for any treats. They all take very nicely from my hand too but not all want to be picked up. Dolly and Doodle are easy to scoop up and I can pick them up one in each arm very easily, but Dusty is not keen.

[mollyripkim]

Only one of my five is a bit noisy, usually when she wants to be let out, sees me in the kitchen or to announce an egg. I've nothing to compare it but I don't think it's that bad. They are very friendly, follow me around the garden and Gracie often comes for a chat at the back door! Gracie and henrietta will also happily jump up onto my lap especially if food is around but I can just pick up all five for a cuddle. I am waiting for two more at the moment, two lovely White girls so I am really excited.

[Sam]

I can put up with broody-ness, it's a good excuse to get some hatching eggs

I guess it's just the temperament of individual birds regarding the friendliness, same with my currently girls.

As for the noise though I have one quite noisy girl, she does her crowing thing 3/4 mornings are week and I took some eggs to the neighbours and neither of them said she has ever woken them up 2 silkies couldn't hurt, could they?!

I'm determined to get 1 white & 1 black silkie, even if it means putting up with some extra noise!

 

Thank you both for your help

[Chortle Chook]

I wouldn't say that my girls make a lot of noise in the morning. It is just that Doodle has this room in the nest box thing and starts off a "barp, Beep, BARP, BOOP, B A R P" thing if she has to queue for the space she thinks she should have. (Unlike the others she is not keen on sharing the nest box)

 

I can't wait to see pix of your new girls.

 

mollyripkim can we see pix of your girls too?

[Sam]

Aww doesn't she like to share?! Mine just squeeze into the nest box together I'm afraid you may be waiting some time for some photos, I've got to hunt down a second hand cube first!! I'm sure I'll give in and up buying a new one though

 

Ooo I agree, any photos mollyripkim? Infact... photos anyone?! This will be the closest I get for a while haha!

[Heidi-Hi]

Well, I have three (don't know how that happened!!) silkies mixed with 7 LF. Bella (white), Chocolate (uh, chocolate colour) and Toffee (um, toffee coloured) Very original, I know!

 

They are mixing OK, although Toffee is painfully shy. I have decided to buy a second house (yes, OH almost moved out!) to give the little ones their own sleeping quarters. They all free range together, but I just feel uneasy if I had to keep them all locked in the WIR for whatever reason. (well, that was my excuse for getting another one anyway ) Not sure how I will get them all into their own accommodation at night though... Any advice?

 

Bella is VERY noisy VERY early in the morning. This morning I let them out 04:10!!! Don't worry, we are fox free around here. They are quite far down the garden, and if I can hear her, so must the neighbours at the back!

[scarlettohara]

Of the 2 I am rehoming next week one is noisy when laying which is why her owner can't keep her Doubt if she is noisier than my pekin cockerel and my skylines when they lay - we shall see

[Sam]

Nooooooooooo

I'm not sure if I'd want to risk it or not, I get really paranoid when my current chicken makes her noise, I constantly worry about the neighbours even though they've said its fine I think I'm too kind I don't think I could cope getting up a 4am Thanks for your replies

[mollyripkim]

I,ll try and put some photos on, not very good at photo bucket. Having small op tomorrow so will be out of action for a few days but will do. I love seeing everyone else's photos.

[beach chick]

I just Googled Golden Sebright and wow.. they are tiny!

 

she was absolutely stunningly beautiful, and so funny, if she wanted something she would just run UNDERNEATH the bigger girls, through their legs and everything and then swipe whatever it was straight from under their beaks

[Chortle Chook]

I hope your op goes well mollyripkim and that recovery time will give you plenty of opportunity for chook watching

Heidi-Hi have you managed to get the correct hens in their correct housing at night yet? I've found that my smallest hen, a little Frizzle, likes to sleep on the perch next to and practically under my biggest Silkie. It looks really sweet.

Sam, if you get paranoid about noisy girls then perhaps Silkies are not for you. How about a couple of big Orpingtons? They are really cuddly and sweet natured. I believe that bigger birds make less noise than banties. Not sure what other people's experience is, but quite a few people have told me that their big hens are not as noisy as my lot.

[Heidi-Hi]

Hi Cheaky Chook, no, the house is not ready yet for occupation. I have to do all the groundworks, bricks, slabs etc myself, as OH has washed his hands off it He says he has had enough, and any more chicken business and he's moving out Ha ha, I'm like, go on then, off you go, more chickens for me So no, I'm not ready yet, but hopefully it will be OK.. The new house is for 3 silkies, a lavender pekin and a silkie cross (providing she doesn't turn out to be too big) The lavender pekin and silkie cross is 5 and 4 weeks respectively at the mo, and I want them to go in the new house first when they are ready to go outside, and then eventually put the other 3 silkies in there too. Well, thats the plan anyway, and we know how wrong those can go when it comes to chickens...