Amber Waves is proud to offer exquisite bearded bantam

silkie chickens for sale. Committed to continuing its long-

standing tradition of breeding beautiful, conformationally

correct chickens, these silkies are perfect as pets and for

show. Whether you are interested in raising silkies to enjoy

their fresh eggs, welcoming silkies into your life as pets,

showing silkies, or perhaps a combination of the above,

Amber Waves can provide you with top quality birds to get

you started .Once you decide to purchase silkie chickens your

relationship with Amber Waves is only beginning because

your birds come with Lifetime Support. Amber Waves

provides silkie chicken enthusiasts with the information they

need to successfully raise their birds. In addition to having

access to the plethora of articles hosted on their site, silkie

chicken support can always be obtained by contacting

Amber Waves directly.

Silkie Chickens

Silkies are a very old breed, thought to have originated

in Southeast Asia sometime before 1200 AD. The Silkie

(sometimes spelled Silky) is a breed of chicken named for

its unique, fluffy plumage, which is said to feel like silk.

Since Silkies don’t have usual feathers, they cannot fly, so

they are easily contained, and won’t venture very far if

kept in the yard.

They come in bearded and non-beaded varieties. The

American Bantam Association accepts six standard colors

for Silkies. They are black, blue, buff, white, partridge,

splash and gray. There are also some other non-standard,

but, popular colors. They include red, lavender, porcelain

and cuckoo. Silkies are one of the most broody breeds of

chicken and are frequently used to raise other varieties of

small birds. They make wonderful mothers and adapt well

to both cold and hot environments.

In addition to their distinctive physical characteristics,

Silkies are well known for their calm, friendly temperament.

Among the most docile of poultry, Silkies are considered an

ideal pet. Silkies are quite affectionate towards their owner,

and realize that we will not harm them. They will talk to

you with their little, chicken clucks, and can be made so

tame, that they will fly up into your lap if given the chance.

Silkies are great layers of fairly large sized bantam eggs,

and will lay well in winter, when other breeds of chickens

have quit. In fact, winters don’t bother Silkies, because their

fluffy down “coats,” keep them warm.

Silkies can anticipate a life span of about nine years and

they tend to maintain their beautiful appearance throughout

their maturity.

Bantams were formerly known strictly as a fancier’s delight,

for pleasure and pets, but they are now proving their

commercial value and are adaptable as a backyard flock.

ABOUT SILKIES

Introducing New Birds to a Flock

An established flock considers their present housing to be

THEIR home. They will fight to maintain dominance over

the “intruders”. Existing flocks have an agreed “pecking

order.” The chicken “society” has been established and

each bird “knows” where they fit in this pecking order. The

dominant hen gets the first food, the best grass, the best

spot on the roost, her favorite nest box, etc. The lowest

hen on the pecking order usually gets picked on by all the

others. This sound mean, but it’s the way chicken society

functions. Roosters consider the hens in the flock to be “his”

and he will protect them from new roosters. To minimize

conflict when introducing new birds:

1. Put them ALL in a new enclosure,

2. Partition an existing enclosure,

3. Use a temporary cage within the main enclosure,

4. Maintain the age and physical size of birds in a flock as

close as possible,

5. Avoid combining cockerels/roosters,

6. Keep them busy or distract them,

7. Do it in the dark

Chickens in The City

Join the “urban chicken movement” and raise your own

backyard flock. Chickens are both fun and useful to keep.

Don’t expect to keep a breeding flock with noisy roosters,

but your hens will earn their keep and provide enjoyment by

laying eggs for you. Chickens can provide you with healthy,

home grown eggs and meat, quality nitrogen-rich fertilizer,

pest control and companionship. Perhaps surprisingly, a

reasonable number of chickens can adapt very well to the

constraints of an urban environment. It is even possible to

keep chickens indoors through the use of diapers.

Check local laws and regulations. Some municipalities

enforce restrictions on the type and/or number of birds that

can be housed within their boarders. Some cities limit the

number of chickens you can have on specified acreage.

Since roosters are perceived as noisy, they are usually

subject to your city’s noise/nuisance ordinances. While

hens are normally very quiet, they may still be subject to

nuisance ordinances. In areas that were recently rural

or have a strong farming culture, no law or license may be

required to keep chickens. All is not lost if chickens are illegal

in your area. Many towns such as such as Madison, WI and

Ann Arbor MI have managed to pass pro-chicken ordinances.

First 60 Days:A Young Chick Brooder - Can be as simple as a sturdy cardboard box or a small animal cage such as one you’d use for rabbits. A flooring of pine shavings works best and a temperature of 90 to 100 degrees is ideal for the first week. After the first week, decrease the temperature by five degrees per week. A 100 watt bulb in one corner (not the whole brooder) works well. Provide starter chick crumbles and a chick waterer.

Play with your chicks when young to get them accustomed to being around people. Section off an area in your yard where the chicks can explore and scratch. Make sure you can catch them when it’s time to come in.

After First 60 Days:Care for the silkie chicken is similar to that of other chickens, although their diminutive size and inability to fly require special attention to feeding and sheltering.

Once feathered out you’ll want to move your chickens into a chicken coop! Include a roosting house with roosts no higher than three feet from the ground. The rule of thumb is about two to three square feet per chicken inside the coop and four to five square feet per chicken in an outside run.

Provide your silkie chickens with grit in their coop if they are rarely free-range. Clean your silkie’s coop at least once a month, using fresh pine shavings on the floor. Sprinkle diatomaceous earth everywhere, except around food and water, to control fleas, lice and mites.

Check your silkie chickens every week for mites and lice. If you notice pests on your chickens, use an avian pest-control spray on the chickens. Spray again in a week. The best prevention for mites is to keep your birds in a clean environment and check them frequently.

Silkie chickens need no special diet. They eat seeds and grains, bugs and vegetation just like any other hen. Feed silkies the same food as all breeds of hen and give them a layer complete food when they are of egg laying age to ensure they get all the nutrients they need for good egg production.

If you are purchasing a commercial feed I recommend a 24% grower that you often use for starting chicks compared to 16%. Besides commercial feed and access to green grass and insects that crawl and fly during good weather I also supplement their diet.

Feed your silkie chickens layer crumbles. Often the pellets are too large for silkies to eat. You can also feed them a mash

CARE OF SILKIES

made of bran, grated apple and carrot mixed with meat meal and a little vegetable oil once or twice a week. Toss out table scraps such as vegetables and bread for your chickens.

Provide fresh water for your silkie chickens, and scrub out the water pan every week. Keeping their water supply fresh and readily available is one of the most important aspects of chicken care, because chickens can easily become dehydrated.

Silkies and MitesMites are just a fact of silkie-keeping and you need to be diligent in checking your birds for these nasty critters. A really bad mite infestation can kill a bird, or at least weaken it so that it is susceptible to any illness or infection. Silkies should be checked at least twice a month for mites, and it is automatic to check for mites every time you handle your birds. Mites look like tiny specks of dirt or pepper, and their droppings are dark as well. They are easy to see on a white bird but much harder on dark birds.

Their mouth parts pierce the skin and they live on blood. After the crest, the vent is the most popular place for mites to congregate. They will attack chicks as well as adult silkies. If you find one bird with mites, check and treat every bird in your flock. The best prevention for mites is to keep your birds

in a clean environment and check them frequently.

Sexing Silkies

Silkie chickens take longer to mature than many other

chicken breeds, often as much as eight to nine months.

Unlike sex-link chicken breeds and chickens bred to be

feather-sexed, silkie chickens show little difference before

they reach maturity. According to the American Silkie

Bantam Club, experienced silkie owners develop ways to

identify the sex of their chicks by about eight to 12 weeks,

but can be wrong as much as 50 percent of the time.

Amber Waves Offers Buyers a Warranty

We you purchase a Silkie from Amber Waves you have the

option to purchase a Hen Warranty. This ensure that you

have the one-time right to exchange your bird within six

months should it turn out to be a rooster. The buyer’s only

cost is for applicable shipping expenses.

The National Poultry Improvement Plan (NPIP) is a

national program in collaboration with state and federal

departments of agriculture and industry representatives.

The main objective of this program is to use new diagnostic

technology to effectively improve poultry and poultry

products throughout the United States. Through this work,

NPIP provides certification that poultry and poultry products

destined for interstate and international shipments are

disease free. In order to be a NPIP flock, requirements

include annual P-T testing, AI testing, annual premises

inspection and annual records audit.

In all, 48 U.S. States have Official State Agencies working

with USDA–APHIS to manage the Plan. The NPIP Technical

Committee is made up of Industry, State, and Federal

members and meets biennially to provide oversight.

The NPIP has certified 130 authorized laboratories

nationwide to perform the various tests necessary to make

sure that Plan flocks and premises are properly maintained.

The NPIP’s General Conference Committee assists USDA

in planning, organizing, and conducting the biennial

NPIP Conference. The Committee recommends whether

new proposals should be considered by delegates to

the Conference and— during the interim between Plan

Conferences— represents the cooperating States in

advising USDA with respect to administrative procedures

and interpretations of the NPIP provisions in the CFR.

What is the National Poultry Improvement Plan?

Committee members also help USDA evaluate comments

received from interested persons concerning proposed

amendments to the NPIP provisions. The Committee

recommends to the Secretary of Agriculture any changes

in the provisions of the Plan necessitated by unforeseen

conditions when postponement until the next NPIP

Conference would seriously impair the operation of the

program. Finally, the General Conference Committee

serves as a forum for the study of problems relating to

poultry health and makes specific recommendations to the

Secretary concerning ways in which USDA may assist the

industry in solving these problems.

Participation in the NPIP is open to all producers who can

make their poultry, game-bird, ratite, or waterfowl facilities

meet Plan requirements. The first step is to demonstrate, to

the satisfaction of the applicant’s Official State Agency, that

his or her facilities, personnel, and practices are adequate

for carrying out the applicable provisions of the NPIP. Once

accepted into the Plan, participants have to maintain in

the Plan all of their poultry hatching-egg supply flocks and

hatchery operations in a given State.

A leader in the bearded bantam silkie chicken breeding

industry, Amber Waves is proud to offer exotic,

conformationally correct silkie chicks for sale. Ornately

colored and covered in fluffy, silk-like feathers, silkie

chickens are among the most beautiful of the chicken

breeds and provide companionship, top-quality eggs, and

the opportunity to exhibit them at poultry shows. Known for

their docile, friendly nature, silkie chickens are an excellent

choice for poultry novices and experts alike, silkies make

an excellent present for that special someone on your list.

Amber Waves sells white, blue, black, buff, splash and partridge,

colored silkie chicks year round. All our birds exemplify the

highest quality and health.

You will never be alone while raising your silkie chickens;

each silkie chicken purchased from Amber Waves comes

with Lifetime Support, meaning you have a knowledgeable

resource at your disposal should you ever have any questions.

Established in 1982 in Norco, California, Amber Waves has

produced award winning bearded bantam silkie chickens that

are highly sought after for breeding, showing, and as family

pets. Recently featured on The Tori and Dean Show on the

Oxygen Network, the silkie chickens of Amber Waves made

quite an impression during their television debut.

Amber Waves ships silkie chickens that are at least one

month of age nationwide. Visitors are welcome at Amber

Waves by appointment, and customers may pick up chicks

younger than one month during their visit.

To purchased Bearded Bantam Silkie Chickens

from Amber Waves and for more information

on the breed in general, visit:

http://showsilkies.com

⌦http://silkiesforsale.com

or call:

⌦(951) 736-1076 Home

⌦(951) 233-4231 Jim’s Cell

⌦E-mail: info@showsilkies.com

You can also book an appointment on line at:

⌦http://amber-waves.genbook.com

⌦

⌦Jim and Debbie Hosley

Norco, California, United States of America

In addition to selling Bearded Bantam Silkie chickens,

Amber Waves also breeds African Pygmy goats and

Blue Slate Turkeys which are for sale.

Silkie Chickens Available for Purchase

Partridge Bearded Silkie

Black Bearded Silkie

White Bearded Silkie

Splash Bearded Silkie Buff Bearded Silkie

Blue Bearded Silkie

Amber Waves1320 Mountain AvenueNorco, CA 92860