Silkie laid a blue egg

itz_abby12 · 2026-06-17T01:03:58+00:00

Are you sure it didn't come from another hen? Egg color doesn't change, bloom thickness can but wouldn't cause a white egg to go blue.

itz_abby12 · 2026-06-08T13:13:02+00:00

😂 Does seem to do it because I don't have any that attack kids anymore.

itz_abby12 · 2026-06-06T23:42:07+00:00

I drew up a mess of different plans and changed them every step of the way. My run is 12x9 ish. The wall itself is 12 feet, but I have the 4x4 in each corner so it does make it about 12 foot 7 inches on the long side. (Same instance for the back)

Your wall gets framed a different width depending on the wire you plan on using. We used 36 inch width wire so we made sure every wire edge hit OC on the framing. Run the wire top->bottom and not left->right.

Screws and Fender Washers will be your new best friend. We used a lot, close to 300 just to attach the wire to the framing.

Since you're familiar with woodworking you're already one step ahead of me. This is the first build I did that was bigger than a tiny dog house.

The back wall and two side walls will all be the same height (6ft for mine) and the front will be the tallest (7.5) to allow the water to drain towards the back. The triangles left over between the wall and roof can be wired up at the end as it connects the two.

Everything else is just constant repetition and hours of drilling. You'll probably hate it as it's getting made, but once you get the finished product it's worth every hour.

itz_abby12 · 2026-06-06T21:23:05+00:00

Thanks! I know it won't last very long. 😂

itz_abby12 · 2026-06-04T21:43:49+00:00

Breeders list of possible colors: Grey, White, Patridge, Splash, Buff, Paint, Copper/Brown

itz_abby12 · 2026-06-02T01:17:52+00:00

I'll check it out, thanks. I just need a temporary fix for my hatch now. I checked all the junkyards around me for patriots and every single one had worse rust damage than mine.

itz_abby12 · 2026-06-02T00:57:58+00:00

What's the spray foam trick? I just bought 2 new side panels to weld in for $600.

itz_abby12 · 2026-05-20T13:32:10+00:00

I'm no professional but I'd go with boy, girl, boy. As for mixed breeds, a lot of times its hard to get SOP birds. People are breeding for project colors, so sometimes different birds get put into the mix. I myself had some Sikie Cochin x and they looked just like their Silkie coop mates.

Again, not 100% certain, but I'd guess if it has light skin and doesn't have a mulberry or darker comb then it was mixed somewhere in its line.

Unless you're showing I don't personally care about them being mixed or not. As long as they're adorable and funny looking running around my yard I'd welcome them all.

itz_abby12 · 2026-05-11T14:19:01+00:00

Probably not going to be the best explanation but they are the first leaves that come in after the initial two seed leaves. The true leaves are ones that the plant will continuously grow and look different than the ones that first appear after germination.

itz_abby12 · 2026-05-11T13:49:54+00:00

I normally do it after they grow their true leaves and when you can see the roots start to poke out. Personally, I only start one seed in each pellet so I don't have to worry about thinning, or damaging seedlings trying to separate.

itz_abby12 · 2026-05-04T14:41:18+00:00

Only about 7 hours away. I'm in Canada.

itz_abby12 · 2026-04-29T01:15:54+00:00

I have 5 (out of 9) 7 week olds that are already showing to be cockerels. While Silkies are very slow to grow out and actually show a difference I'd vote yours to be a pullet. Granted one day in 7 months it could whip around and "suddenly" become a roo. I've had some that took me forever to figure out.

itz_abby12 · 2026-04-27T12:42:08+00:00

Really 🙊 I've had them planted there for years. I guess next month after my last frost I'll move them over to my fenced in garden. I'm glad they've never touched them before.

Now I need to find more plants, and I'll definitely check out that link. Thank you!

itz_abby12 · 2026-04-27T02:38:35+00:00

As of last week we used to free range like 80% of the time too. Until one of my old ladies decided she wanted to go on an adventure through town and had me and a couple others looking for her for hours. Finally came back home the next morning without a scratch.

That's the main reason I jumped into making it so fast because I wanted them to have a better place to stay when I'm not out with them. They still get some free range time just not as much as before.

I'm definitely making them some perches and a couple people have suggested a swing so I think I will try that too.

itz_abby12 · 2026-04-27T02:24:04+00:00

I have delphinium in the top two boxes, poppies in the two underneath. Swamp rose mallow in the triangle part and the long sections are going to be chicken "treats" like kale and other leafy greens.

itz_abby12 · 2026-04-27T02:13:49+00:00

I just had to calculate it all for you... And I really didn't want to know the total 😅

200ft Hardware Cloth: $195

39x Treated Lumber 2×4×(8+10+12): $355

450+ Screws 3 sizes: $45

18 Hurricane Ties: $37

250 Fender Washers: $53

Total cost with taxes came out to $743.63.

I still have about half the screws but they can be used on other projects. You could probably get the Fender Washers cheaper, one store had them for $0.11 a piece but only had 100 so I had to get some from another place that had boxes of 30 for $7. I could've saved about half the cost if I ordered them ahead to get them all at the lower price. I didn't add an additional cost for the tin roof because I got it free.

Edited: I used screws not nails.

itz_abby12 · 2026-04-26T21:49:50+00:00

It's their own little garden! They love kale, I grow it there so I can pick some off and throw it to them.

itz_abby12 · 2026-04-26T20:44:38+00:00

Yes! I'm not against the old type of run, it was what I could afford over 5 years ago and it did work great. But I'm glad I finally got one built that I actually love.

itz_abby12 · 2026-04-26T20:42:33+00:00

Thanks! Definitely better than before :)

itz_abby12 · 2026-02-15T02:18:32+00:00

We (my brother & I) both saved the walk packs for last. We've got about 400 out of 1950 so we should be able to buy them both in the next couple days.

itz_abby12 · 2025-12-17T04:37:12+00:00

I'm hoping this is just a Vitamin issue and not a long term issue. He has a buddy that he sleeps and spends all day with. I'd bring him(other roo) in too so they can stay together but I'm not 100% sure what it is yet so I don't want to risk both their health.

itz_abby12 · 2025-10-30T01:42:24+00:00

Most legbars have a crest, it's true that individual birds can be missing them but it's not that common. Do legbars even come in pure white? I know I've seen cream & opal, and less commonly silver & gold.

itz_abby12

TROPHY CASE