The Silkie Bantam is a breed of chicken that is considered to be one of the more uncommon varieties in the entire world of chickens. The gentle silkie has feathers that give the appearance of fluffy down or silk, so it seems more like a stuffed toy than an animal that lives in a barnyard.
Silkie breeders sometimes have trouble distinguishing whether a particular chick will mature into a male or female adult. Even the most knowledgeable individuals are frequently taken aback till the very first egg is deposited or the very first crow is produced.
Silkie chicks are often sold in a straight run, which means they haven’t been sexed. Some places charge more for sexed silkie chicks, but unless DNA sexing is done, mistakes can still happen. If you live in a place where you can’t have roosters, knowing their gender is even more important. Look at the table below to see how male and female silkies are different. This will help you make a better guess.
Silkie Bantam Chicken Male Vs Female: What Are the Differences?
Here is a comprehensive guide to distinguish the male and female Silkie Bantam chicken that you should be aware of. The identification of the differences is based on their physical features.
| Physical Features | Male Silkie | Female Silkie |
| Size | Most of the time, males are a bit heavier and bigger than females. They also have legs that are thicker and stronger. This is a small but noticeable difference when the chicks hatch. | Most females are smaller than most males. When it came to size and width, eggs with female embryos were a bit smaller and lighter than eggs with male embryos. |
| Crest | When they are about 7 or 8 weeks old, male silkies get feathers that look like streamers. These are feathers that are longer than the other feathers on the crest. When they first hatch, male silkies tend to have crests that are more square-shaped. | The crests of females stay round, with no single feather being much longer than the others. When they first hatch, females tend to have crests that are more round. |
| Body shape an postures | Males may hold their tails higher and stand more straight up. As a result, they often appear taller than females. | Most of the time, women hold their bodies flatter to the ground. |
| Wattles | It will take longer for females to develop their wattles than for men. This comes in useful if you have several silkies from the same brood, as you will be able to observe sooner than normal when some of them start developing wattles (usually around 4-5 months). | Wattles are a sign of sexual maturity in female silkies, but they don’t appear until they’re fully grown (laying age, around 6-9 months). |
| Wings | Male chicks that are less than a week old will have fluffy wings, and their wings will typically be somewhat shorter in comparison to the wings of female chicks who are the same age. This occurs as a result of the sex-linked genes for rapid feather growth that are carried by some females. It is important to keep in mind that not all breeding lines of silkies will exhibit this behavior. | If you look closely at female chicks that are less than a week old, you might be able to see the beginning of the main feathers on the tips of their wings. When they are fully grown, their wings will reach the length of their tails; however, the wings of male chicks will appear to be shorter. |
| Feet feathering | When comparing male and female chicks from the same brood, the males often have denser feathers on their feet than the females do. | Female chicks from the same brood, on average, have a sparser covering of feathers on their feet than their male counterparts do. Due to the fact that foot feathering is a hereditary characteristic, this approach can only be utilized consistently when comparing chicks that come from the same brood. |
| Crowing | Around four months of age is the typical age at which cockerels begin to crow. | Pullets do not make crowing sounds. |
| Behavior | Even when they are young, males have a tendency to be more self-assured and inquisitive. | The female chicks have the disposition to be timid. However, not all females adhere to this guideline. |
| Spurs | Around the age of six months, cockerels will begin to acquire spurs. | Pullets do not have spurs. |
| Comb | The male’s comb is fashioned like a broader U than the female’s. In addition, their combs are significantly bigger than those of females. | Combs on females are either tapering or fashioned like a V. |
The Sexing of DNA
This method, which has a success rate of 99.9%, is by far the most accurate and dependable approach of sexually exploiting silkie chicks. It will cost you around $12 per bird, and you will need to collect a little bit of blood, feather clippings, or eggshells from each chick in order to complete the procedure. The majority of companies should be able to give outcomes within a week or two.
Vent Sexing
It is necessary to have a significant amount of expertise in order to have a respectable accuracy rate while using this strategy. There is just a slight distinction, and most backyard chicken keepers cannot use this strategy since it is impractical. The vent sexing procedure is more intrusive and, if performed poorly, can cause the chick to experience discomfort.
The chick’s vent is gently pressed on as the examiner looks inside at the cloacal folds to determine the chick’s sexuality. Males will have a very little hump or bubble, whilst females won’t have any of these features at all.
Even in the realm of commercial chicken production, it appears that this ability has been mostly abandoned. Many commercial layers are bred to have color or feather differences that are sex-linked, which makes the process of sexing them more simpler and more efficient.
Conclusion
Without a DNA test, the only way to determine the gender of a silkie younger than six months (or when they begin eaying or crowing) is to make the most educated assessment possible.
