Silkie

Hen 1.1 to 1.4 kg

The Silkie is a breed of domestic chicken. There are various forms of silkie: The Japanese Silk chicken with black skin and the Thai silk chicken with white skin as the Great Silk chicken and also as a dwarf - silk chicken.

History

Only a few chicken breeds have such a long and storied history as the Silkies. Despite many documents in the literature and by other traditions, however, the exact origin remains unclear. Authentic, however, that the Venetian merchant and travel writer Marco Polo reported in 1292 after a trip to Mongolia and China from black chickens, which he described as cat hair. Later described by the Swiss naturalist and writer Conrad Gesner in his published 1555 bird book the Silkies as snow-white wool chicken with black skin, which are known in China. Another record of 1793 refers to the occurrence of the silk chicken in Holland, Westphalia and Burgundy. From this period there is also a reference to traveling showmen who presented at fairs Silkies as a cross between chicken and rabbit.

Appearance

Chickens are somewhat smaller than normal hens. Male Silkies have a mulberry- shaped comb.

The special features of the silk chickens are her five toes and the blue-black skin. Their feathers seem to be frayed and fell like. The reason is that the contour feathers, the hooks are missing rays to the side branches that normally connect the springs to a contiguous area. In addition, the springs of the Silkies have a soft shaft. Therefore, they are unable to fly and are suitable for low fenced enclosure.

The earlobes are colored bright turquoise blue. The currently accepted plumage colors are white, black, blue, pearl gray, yellow, red, splash, cuckoo, partridge and silver partridge (formerly referred to as silver gray). As with all other chicken breeds and the blue color shock is spalterbig. In the breeding of these fall color in the mating of blue x blue about 25 % black, 50 % blue and 25 % splash colored offspring. Other distinguishing features are the hood-like tuft on the head and to the feet reaching plumage. Here is a short feathering of the legs and the outer toe. A silk hen lays about 80 eggs per year. Silkies are very good and reliable breeder.