Silkies are a breed of bantam chicken that is enormously popular today with a broad spectrum of poultry fanciers, from the experienced breeder who exhibits their birds, to the

Bantam Silkie chickens have some unusual characteristics all of their own including 5 toes and feathered shanks, black skin and flesh, and beautiful blue earlobes, as seen on this Columbian Silkie. Photos by Donna McCormick, www.BluegrassBantams.com.

4-H Cloverbud who is just getting into chickens. Their unusual feathers give them a fluffy feel and appearance, and their big poufy crests make them irresistible to just about all but the most hardened of breeders.

Silkies originated in Asia, most likely in China, but their specific source is shrouded in history. It is said that Marco Polo wrote about them as early as the 1400s, describing chickens with fur-like plumage he came across in his Asian travels. I know for sure that there were Silkies in China during the time before the Boxer Rebellion, as my great-grandfather's brother in-law brought some back with him. (Those were the days when you didn't have to jump through so many hoops to import birds!)

They are one of the first breeds of chicken to have been admitted to the APA Standard of Perfection, in 1874 (the first year it was published.) Early photos of them compared with images we have now show how modern breeders have worked hard to improve their type, crests are much bigger, bodies rounder, and fluff fluffier!

Silkies are an unusual breed of poultry in that they have black skin and flesh, a characteristic not found in other breeds. Asian cultures consider soup and other dishes made of their flesh to be highly curative of disease, and there has been a recent increase in interest in culinary circles for using the birds in high-end restaurants. But most of us like Silkies because of their appealing appearance, and their other good qualities.

This Silkie cockerel shows the tight walnut comb of the breed. Comb and wattles should be a deep mulberry color. Silkies are notorious for their broodiness, and are very good mothers and foster parents. This is a Gray Silkie hen.

Silkies are very docile and calm. They make wonderful birds for youngsters, and are relatively easy to care for, although they do have some special requirements if you are going to exhibit them at shows. As well, they are somewhat fragile, and don't do well in conditions that other, more hardy birds can handle. They should be kept indoors or in a very secure draft-free pen over the winter, preferably with a well-ventilated heat source. Because they have five toes on each foot, with feathers on the outer two, and feathered shanks, they need to be kept in a pen that has its shavings changed regularly, or dirt will crust up in their toes and become very difficult to remove.

There's no doubt about it, Silkies start out as cute fluffy balls of feathers, and stay that way their entire lives.

If you decide you are going to show your Silkies, and are working with white or light colors, you must be very careful to keep your birds clean. Some Silkies have the annoying habit of getting their crests wet when they drink out of normal water cups, and then getting food stuck in the wet crest. Once their feathers are stained it can be impossible to get them white again.

The most common colors for Silkies are black and white. What a striking contrast!

Some breeders have cleverly discovered that they can use hair styling tape to keep their birds' crests clean.

A Gray Silkie pullet

This also allows the birds to see better, and they seem to enjoy the freedom the tape allows. Other breeders use special bottle waterers to make sure their birds can only get their beaks in the water, keeping their crests clean and dry.

Silkie hens make excellent broodies and mothers, and are prized for being willing to hatch eggs from other breeds. Many people prefer to use Silkies to incubate chicks rather than an incubator; they're known to "hatch rocks!" However, being so very inclined to broodiness means they are not the best of layers, so if you're looking for a bird to lay an egg every day for 200 or more days, Silkies might not be the best choice for you.

But for most people, Silkies are an irresistible bird, and many of us have tried our hands at breeding them at least once. They are readily available from a number of hatcheries, or you can contact the American Silkie Bantam Club via their website at http://www.americansilkiebantamclub.org/ and ask for a list of breeders in your area who sell chicks or hatching eggs. But be prepared, once you've gotten bitten by the Silkie bug, it's hard to resist keeping them in all the many colors they come in. They're a lot like potato chips, you can't have just one.

Other colors in Donna's pen include, Calico (above left), Partridge (above right), and Charcoal. (right)

Laura Haggarty has been working with poultry since 2000, and her family has had poultry and other livestock since the early 1900s. She and her family live on a farm in the Bluegrass region of Kentucky, where they have horses, goats, and chickens. She is a certified 4-H leader, co-founder and Secretary/Treasurer of the American Buckeye Poultry Club, and a Life Member of the ABA and the APA. See her website at www.pathfindersfarm.com and read her blog at farmwifesdiary.blogspot.com/.

To learn more about the American Bantam Association, visit: www.bantamclub.com; write: P.O. Box 127, Augusta, NJ 07822; or call: (973) 383-8633.