If you want to know more about the Silkie breed and its history, check out the Silkie Facts Chart. Can you eat Silkie eggs? How many do Silkie hens lay? What color eggs do Silkie hens lay? What size eggs do Silkie hens lay? The Silkie Egg Comparison Chart shows the nutritional value of different types of eggs. You can also learn about keeping Silkies for eggs, their nesting boxes, how to care for them, and how long the eggs need to be incubated before they hatch.
Which came first, the chicken or the egg? This is an egg-sestential question, but let’s say the egg came first for the sake of this article.
So, you’re here because you want to learn about Silkie eggs? Yes, these little fluffy chickens are also capable of laying eggs for you and your family, that’s part and parcel of what makes them such highly sought-after family pets.
Or perhaps you’re just a fan of these cute little critters and wondering what they’re like in the egg production department? It doesn’t matter what brought you here, what’s going to keep you here is the fact that myself and my poultry peeps collectively have more than 30 years’ experience with these fantastic little birds and can truly consider ourselves Silkie Chicken Experts! So, we can tell you all about this breed along with all the delicious details regarding their adorable eggs.
Silkie chickens are known for their characteristically fluffy plumage said to feel silk- or satin-like to the touch. Their feathering sets them apart from regular chickens, but Silkies are also unusual in the sense that they have black skin, blue earlobes, extra toes and an inability to fly.
Silkie chickens are cheeky little heads-turners, and their owners love them for their cute looks, friendly personalities, docile personalities, and ability to adapt. If you’re looking for a really special and out of the ordinary chook to add to your backyard flock, you cannot go wrong with these fluffy beauties.
By the end of this article, you will be dying to add a Silkie to your flock – or to just run out and buy more because they are some of the best backyard additions you could hope for!
Dogs and cats called Silkie chickens are known for being calm and fluffy, like cotton. But the color of Silkies’ eggs is something else that makes them stand out. Most chickens only lay brown or white eggs, but Silkies can lay eggs of many colors. How about these colors for Silkie eggs? Let’s take a better look.
Typical Silkie Egg Colors
The most common Silkie egg colors are
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Cream – Ranging from off-white to light beige. This is the most frequently seen Silkie egg color.
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White – Pure bright white shells. This is a common Silkie egg color, though not as common as cream.
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Light Brown – Milk chocolate or taupe colored shells.
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Pink – Very light pastel pink shells. Very rare; only a small number of Silkies have it.
Standard egg colors for most chicken breeds are white and brown. However, Silkies have a wider range of egg shell colors because of their genetics.
What Causes Different Egg Colors?
The main factor that determines egg color is the breed and genetics of the hen. But there are some other elements that can affect shell color too:
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Diet – What a hen eats can slightly alter egg color over time. Diets rich in carotenoids from plants like marigolds or red peppers can produce darker yolks and deeper shell colors over time.
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Stress Levels – Stress can cause a hen’s eggshells to fade and become paler. A relaxed, happy hen usually lays more vibrantly colored eggs.
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Age – As hens grow older, their egg color often lightens gradually. Younger hens tend to lay eggs with more saturated, deeper shell hues.
So while diet and environment play a small role, genetics are the main determinant of Silkie egg color.
Why Do Silkies Lay Colored Eggs?
The reason Silkies lay such a variety of egg colors comes down to their genetics. All chicken eggs start out with white shells. Pigments called biliverdins are deposited onto the eggs as they develop in the shell gland. Different biliverdin variations result in different egg colors.
Silkies have genetics that allow for more biliverdin shades than other chicken breeds. While this is not completely understood, it seems to be linked to their Asian origins and ancient chicken breeds that Silkies are descended from.
This expanded biliverdin palette is what gives Silkies the ability to produce eggs in shades of white, cream, brown, and occasionally pink. No other breed has such egg color diversity!
How To Get Darker Egg Colors
While you can’t change a hen’s basic genetics, there are some tips to help your Silkies lay richer, more vibrant egg colors:
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Feed a varied diet – Give them lots of fresh greens, produce scraps, and even occasional treats like paprika, red bell peppers, or marigold petals.
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Reduce stress – Make sure they have a predator-safe coop, ample space, and flockmates. Stress and anxiety can cause pale egg shells.
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Give oyster shell supplements – This provides extra calcium for strong, well-pigmented shells.
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Let eggs sit for a day or two before collecting – The shells continue to develop pigment even after being laid.
Following these tips can help bring out your Silkie’s best and most vibrant egg hues, but their genetics are still the determining factor.
Do Eggs Taste Different?
While Silkie egg shells come in an array of colors, the interior quality and taste remains the same. Egg color does not affect the flavor, nutrition, cooking properties, or quality of the inside. You can rest easy knowing that your rainbow basket of Silkie eggs will all taste delicious!
Other Chicken Breeds That Lay Colored Eggs
If you love colorful eggs, Silkies aren’t the only option. Here are some other breeds known for multi-hued egg shells:
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Easter Eggers – Lay blue, green, pink, and brown eggs. A mixed breed.
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Ameraucanas – Lay blue or green eggs.
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Cream Legbars – Lay sky blue eggs.
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Marans – Lay deep chocolate brown eggs.
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Welsummers – Lay reddish brown eggs.
So while Silkies have the most color diversity, those other breeds are also great choices if you want some egg bowl variety!
Can You Predict Egg Colors?
With most chicken breeds, you know what color eggs to expect. But with the most diverse options, Silkies can be more of a surprise. Is there any way to predict what color your Silkie will lay as an adult?
Unfortunately there is no guaranteed way to know in advance. However, there are some clues you can look for:
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Look at parents/lineage – Silkies that come from predominantly light colored breeding lines are more likely to lay cream or white themselves. Darker brown lineages often produce brown eggs.
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Ear lobe color – Silkies with light colored ear lobes tend to lay lighter eggs than those with dark blue-black ear lobes.
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Feather color – While not foolproof, white and light colored Silkies usually lay lighter eggs than those with darker plumage.
There are always exceptions, but those clues can often provide hints about what egg color you may get. The only sure way is to wait and see!
Can You Breed for Specific Egg Colors?
If you’re planning to breed Silkies and want to try to produce certain egg colors, it is possible with careful selection. The basics include:
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Select your best laying hens with the desired egg color.
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Choose a rooster from bloodlines known for those shell hues.
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Each generation, keep breeding from those that exhibit the color you want.
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Cull non-conforming eggs colors from the breeding pool.
It may take a few generations, but breeding two birds with similar egg colors will eventually produce more consistent results in their offspring. With diligence, you can develop your own flock known for specific beautiful egg tones.
The Appeal of Silkie Eggs
For backyard chicken keepers, opening the coop to find a rainbow of different colored eggs is an amazing experience. Silkies are the only breed offering such delightful variety. Their eggs are beautiful little works of art – an edible palette of nature’s colors!
Beyond being beautiful, Silkies are also sweet pets, docile flock members, and dedicated broodies. Their fluffy feathers and friendly nature have made them one of the most popular ornamental breeds.
So if you’d love to be surprised by a rainbow of eggs every morning, Silkies just may be the perfect chickens for you. Once you’ve experienced their charming personalities and colorfully creative eggs, Silkies may just become your new favorite breed!
What size eggs do Silkie hens lay?
Just as there are many different chicken breeds, there are many different sizes of eggs. Egg sizes can range from 1.25 oz to 2.5 oz (35g – 70g) per egg. Commercially, an extra-large egg is any egg larger than 2 oz (59g) and jumbo anything above 2.2 oz (66g). However, some breeds – especially those bred as layers – lay consistently large eggs for you to enjoy.
Silkies lay extra small to small eggs. According to the UK standards, a small egg is an egg that weighs less than 53g. In the US a small egg will weigh 42. 5g or less and a peewee or extra small egg will clock in at less than 35. 4g.
Tell us in the comments if your Silkie has ever laid an egg that was the biggest of its kind. We love hearing about your backyard flock!
Background Information on the Silkie Breed
Silkies are a ubiquitous breed and there is no doubt about it that it is a very old breed that was first discovered in China.
The first documented account we have of a Silkie chicken is Marco Polo who encountered what he termed a “furry chicken” on his famous and fateful thirteenth-century travels.
Ulisse Aldrovandi, a famous Italian author, wrote about Silkies again in his book about chickens. He said that the Silkie is a “chicken with hair like a black cat.”
We cannot be one hundred percent sure where Silkies first scratched around, but we know that they have a long and complex history dotted across the Asian landscape, and that they were traded on the Silk Road which is most probably where the Silkie name came from.
Some early travelers, like Marco Polo and Aldrovandi, talked about how the Silkie chicken’s feathers were different. But once these little chickens got to Europe, there were many myths about their feathers. There were many rumors that the Silkie chicken was created by crossing a chicken with a rabbit. Silkies were even shown in sideshows and were called bird-mammals. Even though the satin-like coat of a rabbit and the fluffy feathers of a Silkie look a lot alike, we know for sure that these little chickens are not mammals at all. They are just a very special kind of chicken.
Now that we know where they come from, let’s take a quick glance at the facts.
So, now that we’ve done a little background research into the truly special Silkie chook, we’ve rounded up the fast facts for you so that you can have all the important info available at a quick glance.
Silky Chicken – What You Need To Know – 101
FAQ
What color eggs do Silkies lay?
Silkie chickens primarily lay cream or white-colored eggs. Some chicken experts say that some Silkies may lay eggs with a light tan or even a pinkish tint. The most common colors are white and cream.
Can you eat Silkie chicken eggs?
silky eggs are delicious, just not white shelled. That COULD put off some people. Silkie eggs are fine to eat, unless the birds have been recently medicated, then you need to let that pass through their system first.
Can Silkie eggs be blue?
Do you love silkies but also love colorful eggs? Now you can have both! Hatching eggs now available from our colored egg laying silkies. Yes- silkies that lay blue, light and dark green eggs!.
What is the rarest Silkie color?
The rarest Silkie chicken color is generally considered to be lavender. This color comes from a recessive gene, which makes it hard to breed plants that look like lavender all the time.