Silkies are different from any other kind of chickens. They look like they have fur! Marco Polo saw these in China centuries ago and was baffled by the furry chickens. Their feathers don't have a solid core, so the feathers don't stick together, making them look like they have hair. Another difference can be found on their feet--they have an extra "thumb" toe! Their skin, bones, and meat is black! In China, they are a delicacy and it is believed they have medicinal powers (they don't have anything different than regular chickens, only their insides are black). Last Friday, we got black and white silkies. We got one rooster and two hens of each color. Here are a bunch of their feet. The bottom-most picture shows how they perch. Because they have two 'thumbs', they can't grip quite as tight--the muscles for both of these toes is really just one set that is divided between two, so it's not as strong. This is a collection of the roosters' and hens' heads. As you can see, the two roosters' combs are not very pretty. But, this is how they should be. The hens may not have a comb, or may have a small one, as you can see by these ladies. Did you notice anything different about their earlobes? They are blue! You can see how the neck feathers look like fur! Because the feathers don't stick together, silkies are not 'water resistant', meaning they will get soaked in the rain. If that happens, you'll have to dry them off to prevent hypothermia. Despite all the feathers that are like fur, they do have flight feathers, but they can't really fly.
Silkies are called 'the lapdogs of the chicken world' because they are so docile and loving. As you can see by the white rooster, he laid in my hand with no problems. Many people who have these chickens can go outside, sit down, and have a silkie in their lap! These make great mothers! They will hatch any egg and raise the baby, even if it's not a chicken. Some have raised turkey, ducks, and even geese!
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Chickens are effected by weather, just like us. Different kinds of weather can result in different things.
Rainy weather can result in cooler temperatures. Also, if chickens get too wet, they may get cold. It's important to make sure your chickens have a shelter to get out of the rain. Rain storms sometimes bring lightening. Lightening strikes trees and other tall objects. So, you need to make sure the shelter isn't attached to anything taller. Frosty weather can result in hypothermia, or lower body temperature, or frostbite. Frostbite is when a body part gets cold or frozen, loses blood flow, and the skin dies. To help prevent frostbite, some farmers will put petroleum jelly on exposed skin, such as combs, wattles, earlobes, and possibly legs and feet. At night, chickens need a shelter that protects them from the cold wind and helps keep them warmer. Hot weather may result in hyperthermia, or raised body temperatures. This may cause dehydration, organ damage, or death. Make sure you give your chickens plenty of water and shade to get out of the sun. If you give your chickens a pan of water, you can expect to see them stand in it to cool down. Chickens with more down will not do as well in hot places because they can't cool down as much. This is why some breeds do better in hotter climates--they don't have much down, or fluff. The pecking order is the order of rank. Literally, the chicken at the top of the pecking order can peck everyone. The next top chicken can peck everyone except the top chicken. And, so on. The highest rank chicken gets to eat first. The lowest rank gets to eat whatever is left over.
Hens and roosters both have their own pecking orders. Big Mama is the top hen. Snowy is our top rooster. Even though they live together, each gender has their own ranking system. With the hens' pecking order, the top hen gets to establish who eats first, who sleeps where (to a point), who gets to lay their eggs in boxes, and which roosters are preferred for breeding with them. They, also, break up many fights. The roosters' pecking order establishes who is the strongest. This leads to an order for crowing and breeding. The top rooster gets to breed more with his choice of hens. And, he will get to decide if another rooster is allowed to breed with certain hens. Even the babies have a pecking order. Usually, the top baby is the strongest and biggest. They get to eat first and they get to go underneath their mama first. The lowest ranked baby gets to eat last and is usually the one that doesn't get to go completely under mama. It's not as strongly established as with the grown chickens, and their order changes a lot as they grow. When they are establishing a pecking order, there are fights. There's rarely any injuries as a result of these skirmishes. At most, there may be a few scratches. But, they heal quickly. If there is plenty of room and perches to get up on, the losing chicken can get away. This ends the fight, for the moment, and may permanently end it if the loser has learned their place. Introducing a new chicken to the flock is a bad idea if you introduce only one or two at a time. This results in bullying. If there are several new members at one time, they'll be less likely bullied because everyone is checking out all of the new members, not just one or two. The chickens that are bullied are more likely to be seriously injured, which may lead to their death. Also, if they're bullied, they may not get to eat or drink because the flock doesn't accept them, so they won't let the "stranger" take their resources. A pecking order is a good thing. It helps keep peace and it helps keep the flock healthy. Without a pecking order, there would be chaos. Everyone would try to eat at the same time, there would be constant fights, and the flock would be more likely to be attacked from predators because no one would be watching for them. But, since there is a pecking order, everyone has their place and the designated guard keeps an eye out for predators. It can be amusing to watch the pecking order happen. However, it may seem a bit mean, but it's really not. Perching is when chickens sit and balance on something off the ground. Chickens will perch on things like branches, pieces of wood, fences, and backs of chairs. They perch at night to stay safe from predators because they can't see in the dark. This is Whiny, Spock, and one of the golden-laced wyandottes perching at night. As you can see, they are balanced and sitting down with their toes covered by their feathers. Here, you can see Poser and the Bearded Lady covering their toes with their feathers. This is to keep their feet warm. If you look at the picture above, you will see Big Mama (at the far right) not covering her feet. The silver-laced wyandotte (at the far left) has her feet completely covered. Because the silver-laced wyandotte's feet are more covered by feathers, she will do better in cold weather than Big Mama would. Chickens covering their feet like this is a lot like us wearing socks--it keeps feet warm! Egg Muncher doesn't have her feet covered. This is because she has less fluff on her which prevents her from covering her feet at night. Leghorns typically don't do well in cold weather, partially because of this.
So, if you live in a colder climate, make sure you get fluffier chickens so their toes will stay nice and toasty warm at night. Good night, chickies! |
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