Think we could all do with a bit of good news. It’s definitely Spring:
Two definite - maybe more (Didn’t want to disturb them). Still a few eggs unhatched, so maybe more to come…
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Fabulous, joe. Just what one needed!
Soo xx
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I’m reliably informed that there are at least three - I thought there were, but one went scurrying under a wing just before the third emerged so I couldn’t see whether it was the same one.
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Oh - and the photos are decent enough to be able to zoom in a bit:
The yellow one has a definite attitude - I suspect it might be a rooster. Not our problem, for once - these are being hatched to order (Though we’ll be keeping a couple back - just to maintain egg production, of course. Nothing at all to do with being cute and fluffy…)
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Of course not. It is simply one softy calling to another.
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Well, several to several - with fevvery intermediaries. Or more accurately, one fevvery and two fluffy.
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Somewhat nervous and hence elusive, but we think there are six now. Only two (or possibly three) visible in the pics below - will keep trying!
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I like the fluffy white hen
What make is she?
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Immensely cheering, Joe
Thank-you
Carinthia.xx
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That’s Bella - our original silkie / mudlark:
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I could fancy a Bella alike or ten if slugs were part of her diet
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They eat slugs, don’t they?
(a film which was a surprising flop)
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Silkies are wonderful! Not the best if you’re after eggs, though - they tend to be seasonal and lay maybe every other day. The eggs are small, but are almost pure yolk - perfect for for custard of to hard boil for salads!
They are also almost perpetually broody - a lot of breeders keep them as incubators (They’ll try to hatch anything - stones, golf balls…)
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Silkie eggs are also, to cross-thread, ideal for mayonnaise!
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Are they that glorious deep gold, Joe?
Yolks, I mean
Sorry
Carinthia.xx
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Yes! The colour depends on the diet, so the more protein the better. Ours can scratch around outside all day, so the eggses tend to be a really vivid orange / gold.
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Thought so!
Carinthia.xx
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New! Improved! Now wiv added slug!
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The hens we hen sit for our neighbours are part of their organic pest control system for their market garden
Silkies sound like my sort of hen - half egg producer and three quarters pet
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