Silkies For Production in Canada
By
Tania McGuire
Peers,
Alberta, Canada
Yes! They do very
well. I have to concentrate on this factor to spark Canadians' interest in the
breed. Yes, you can eat the eggs they are no different, except they are
smaller, two for your egg sandwich instead of one.
I have raised many
breeds over the last twenty years and have found the Silkies to be the most
cold tolerant, there were no Silkies lost in my flock of last year, due to
frostbite. Even through a few ups and downs in the weather reaching down to -40
Celsius or so. I had one young hen that got chilled and needed assistance to
lay an egg. Two days in my house, third day back out and no further problems. A
healthy five hens that were in a camper trailer with no artificial light, or
heat source until the last cold snap in March still managed quite well at
popping out five eggs almost daily. In this trailer I had one barnyard chicken
with a normal single typed comb amongst them, and this bird had caught really
bad frostbite around on the face and comb. The bird was in severe pain and had
to be put down, the damage was extensive.
You see my job is
twice as hard here; I have to concentrate on laying ability as well as beauty,
to promote these fine birds. And now with the cost of power rising I’m sure
feed too, will rise. We people in these cold wintering Prairie Provinces have
to find the breed that will tolerate more cold than the traditional layers.
I am hoping that more interest will spark and that way I will have new Silkies to fall back on in nearby areas; I keep on struggling to make our little cutey, the Silkie, a popular chicken.