[silverteen]

I hatched 4 beautiful silkie chicks around 5 weeks ago and all was going well, i made them a bigger brooder around 2 weeks ago and all was well. however i noticed one of the white chicks was alot smaller than the others. My girlfriend noticed a black lump above the breast yesterday but i didnt have the internet to research and when i checked this morning the chick appeared to be sleeping. when i just checked it was barely breathing then finally stopped.

I feel really guilty i didnt do more and i allowed this to happen. ive had a better feel and its crop appears to be full.. possibly impacted, would this cause it? could this have caused the chick to be smaller?

this is the first time ive hatched chicks and its heartbreaking when you lose one.

what more could i have done? this last weeke we have moved house and ive not spent as much time with the chicks but i thought they were all ok and active until yesterday. the 3 remaining chicks appear much healthier and active and about double the size of the chick that died... gutted

[rileyfin]

Hi silverteen,
So sorry to hear about your silkie chick, I am a silkie nut and hatched quite a few batches of eggs last year and am onto my second full incubator this year :blink:

You did well to hatch 4 at this time of year, unfortunately some times chicks just do not thrive, they can be a bit like sheep and seem to just give up. There have been times when I have sat over a sickly chick for night on end and nomatter what I did I still lost it 

Dont blame yourself I am pretty sure there would have been nothing you could have done. You still have three more, they are soooo cute and such fun to watch - who needs tv!

[kegs]

Don't blame yourself Silverteen.  If the chick was small from the start then maybe there was some other reason it didn't flourish.    I had a chick that was attacked by a rat in our garage and felt awful that I didn't somehow foresee the event but you can't be there all of the time and especially as you were coping with a house move at the same time.  Enjoy your other 3 chicks and see what a good job you've done looking after them.

[silverteen]

here are my 8 week old gorgeous chicks, lost one but left with 3 gorgeous birds. any idea if these are hens/cocks?

[joyfull]

probably too early to tell yet, lovely looking birds though 

[ANHBUC]

Glad to see your remaining birds are doing so well.  Don't know about the sex sorry.   

[helens-hens]

They are gorgeous and they look like they have come on really well!

By the way, how do keep your lawn looking as good as that - over the winter my 2 hens have churned our lawn into something which resembles a ploughed field!

[rileyfin]

Hi silverteen,
cannot see your photo for some reason  , but I am quite good at sexing silkies and you should have a fair idea at 8 weeks.

Look closely at the piece of flesh just above the beak, at 8wks if it is a boy it will be wider, slightly more raised than on the girls and bobbly/rough, also if it is a boy it will be starting to show a dark burgandy hugh.

The boys head feathers wont be as round as the girls it will be more elvis like, with long thinner feathers growing back over.

The boys stand more upright than the girls, and puff their chests out more, they will be bigger with larger legs and they are the ones that make the warning noises.

Good luck

[Tony H]

lovley chucks  dont beat yourself up though its nature im afraid  i'v gone silkie mad as well i love the black ones 

[rileyfin]

Hey TonyH,
silkies are addictive, I have just hatched 17 black, splash, cuckoo and white with some blue due in a couple of weeks.
I have 4 miniature bearded black chicks that are the most adorable things you have ever seen, I luv em!

[ANHBUC]

Hey TonyH,
silkies are addictive, I have just hatched 17 black, splash, cuckoo and white with some blue due in a couple of weeks.
I have 4 miniature bearded black chicks that are the most adorable things you have ever seen, I luv em!

Rileyfin, you can't say things like that and not put pictures up for us to see for ourselves.  Sure it is breaking a forum rule if you don't!!!