Have raised a silkie and a couple of RIR looking chicks together. Thought the silkie was a hen. Well, 'she's' starting to crow. Seems to be showing some interest in the red hens, but I haven't seen him accomplishing any thing yet. Neither of the red hens are laying, yet. Should be soon. Wondering if anybody out there has had any mixing of silkies with 'regular' sized chickens?
Silkie Breed with RIR size hen?
Halnik,
Most of us have silkies and hens..
I have 3 silkies 1male,2 females.
I have 5 red sex links 1 male,4 females.
Then I have 7 Bared rocks all together..
IT takes time just wait you will see..
Tracey
Well, where there is a will there is a way - Read the Fabulous Idea for chicks thread down the page - sizing issues - I believe silkies are bantam and RIR get to be about 6 lbs heres I link I stole from the Who Lays the Biggest Brown egg thread http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html#d It shows size differences etc. There is also a Raising Bantam with Regular chickens on page 4 you might want to check out. But I say post pic's of the offspring.
How are things in Canada, eh? Where is Smithville in Ontario? How do your Silkies make it through the winter? Or is this your first year ?(its my first year as a chick owner actually haven't made it to a month yet)
Do you out in the country or
Can you post a picture of your Silkie/RIR rooster? I'd love to see him!
I had a Silkie breed a full size chicken in the Seventies. She escaped and nested in the hay loft. The offspring looked very unappetizing with black skin. A Chinese grocer here sells black chickens for $11.99.
Glenda_Michigan - my rooster is just a white silkie. He is showing interest in a 'mixed' hen that looks like a RIR. She has not begun to lay eggs yet.
MQN - Smithville is between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie-between Hamilton and Niagara Falls. We didn't really get winter till after Christmas. Most of which wasn't too bad. When we got the really cold spell I took the 1 rooster and 3 hens in and put them in a large dog cage with shavings and straw for 'bedding' and kept it in our garage which is not heated, but is insulated.
The young silkie rooster and red hens where a result of my young girls not bringing in the eggs, because one of the silkie hens decided to start brooding in November. The girls didn't want to 'bother' her. By the time I realized it we didn't know how long they had been out there. They ended up hatching the last day or 2 of November. I brought them in the house for the first while and moved them to the garage with a heat lamp when they got too big for a box. So the hens that we've kepted are getting to laying age by now and the silkie rooster-who we thought was a hen-is the same age.
well, it's possible, but I'd say unlikely. My silkie roo always seemed a little out of his league with the big girls. I think it depends on how big he really gets.