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Post by flowerpower on May 9, 2011 6:59:14 GMT -5
About 3 weeks ago, a friend of a friend bought 6 ducklings at an auction. I was going to buy 2 of them after they were sexed. Unfortunately, the woman is being investigated for animal neglect at her farm. I did not want the SPCA confiscating the ducks the week before easter, so I bought them from her.
I was told there were 3 each of Saxony and Silver Appleyard. I would assume they are all the same age. I'm pretty sure one of the Saxons is a male. It is much larger than all the others. I see some of them getting feathers. Does that happen at 4 or 6 weeks? I never raised ducklings before. Also, will it be an issue if more than one is a male? I would really like to keep them all if I can.
If anyone else has duckling questions, feel free to post them in this thread.
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Post by mnjrutherford on May 10, 2011 9:49:24 GMT -5
Wow! DUCKIES! We have 2 new goslings and we are hoping to get 2 more at a later date. They are awfully cute and seem to enjoy fresh radish.
I'm wondering how different ducks would be from the geese. We try to add 1 or 2 new things each year. So we have room to add something else. Ducks and quail are on the "pondering" list.
I sort of hesitate with the ducks because I'm concerned there would be care issues involved with maintaining a water feature. At the moment, that is way beyond what we are capable off.
I would love to hear from anyone with dual knowledge of both quail and duck. My girlfriend has already told me she wants us to get the quail because she wants all the eggs.
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Post by seedywen on May 10, 2011 19:00:13 GMT -5
I've bred Silver Appleyards for about six years. The earliest indication in my experience for telling males from females is; the male's beaks get a green hue compared to the orange beaks of the females. However this difference doesn't really show up until they are several months old.
Unlike the Muscovies, which I also breed, where generally the males get larger, faster than the females in a relatively short time, Appleyards stay more or less the same size until around three- four months old. Around this time, the male's heads start to darken until they become green like Mallards and then the black curled tail-feather starts to appear.
Currently I have four males and seven females. Ideally the ratio would be 2 males to the 7 females. However predators abound here so I'm in the habit of keeping most of my birds to maintain a breeding flock. The male Appleyards don't fight with each other. Although the downside of extra males is that they tend to gang-rape the females, and sometimes when this happens in the pond, called,'treading' the female, nearly drowns or gets injured trying to escape. So I separate all my poultry into two sets.
Saxony have a beautiful coloring too. In my area, both breeds are rare. And I'm finding in the case of the Appleyards, there are reasons for this situation.
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Post by flowerpower on May 11, 2011 6:51:46 GMT -5
Thanks for the info on the ducks.  I am thinking that the biggest one is neither Saxony or appleyard. I don't see any colored feathers at all coming in. Maybe it is a Pekin. I'll know soon enough. It really doesn't matter about the breed. All I wanted was a duck that ''quacks''. I have 2 adult hens, a Pekin and a Muscovey. The Pekin drives me crazy with all her quacking. It seems like she is waiting for another duck to answer her. And Muscovies don't quack. lol I'd say the most popular breeds around here are Pekin, Muscovey, & Rouen. Most people want them for meat, not pets |
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Post by synergy on May 12, 2011 21:35:36 GMT -5
I pick up 6 cayuga ducklings this weekend and I still have muscovies in mind too but I am getting ahead of myself as my poultry barn and yard are not really even started and I have chickens and chicks in my horses stall. A geneticist told me Muscovey ducks are actually a goose .
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Post by seedywen on May 13, 2011 10:02:29 GMT -5
People visiting the farm and seeing Muscovies for their first time, often, think they are geese.
This species(Cairina... moschata...like the squash, ha, ha!) was formerly placed into the paraphyletic "perching duck" assemblage, but subsequently moved to the dabbling duck subfamily (Anatinae). Analysis of the mtDNA sequences of the cytochrome b and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 genes,[18] however, indicates that it might be closer to the genus Aix and better placed in the shelduck subfamily Tadorninae. Geese and swans are in the shelduck family. So the geneticist was likely referring to this connection.
Pekin is still a popular meat breed especially for commercial operations. Muscovies are generally favored by small farm holding locals like myself as they are so reliable to raise, for eggs, for meat(the young males dress out nicely) and....how excellent the females are at sitting large clutches of eggs(15-20 not uncommon) and then being excellent mothers. AND...drum roll...here...LOL!
Mine being bred for size, generally don't fly unless threatened and only need deep enough water to immerse their heads for drinking and also preening. In other words, their water needs are minimal compared to other types of ducks who often need ponds for breeding. I provide both of my duckdoms with kiddie pools(currently using two Turtle sand boxes, whose heavy plastic withstands my weekly dumpings of the water for refilling purposes. My farm has a small year round creek with pools but unfortunately cougars and bears are abundant and use the creek course as a transportation route through the forest. So allowing ducks, chickens, goats etc. down there, is just feeding the wild critters.
I'd love to have other types of ducks but breeding stock and selling to others has me, concentrating on Appleyards and Muscovies. Have had Indian Runners, Rouens in the past. I prefer the non-quacking quality of the Muscovies and although the Appleyards do quack, they don't seem to quack often unless distressed.
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Post by flowerpower on May 23, 2011 6:43:19 GMT -5
People visiting the farm and seeing Muscovies for their first time, often, think they are geese. Mine being bred for size, generally don't fly unless threatened and only need deep enough water to immerse their heads for drinking and also preening. In other words, their water needs are minimal compared to other types of ducks who often need ponds for breeding. I provide both of my duckdoms with kiddie pools(currently using two Turtle sand boxes, whose heavy plastic withstands my weekly dumpings of the water for refilling purposes . My Muscovey is all white, The man I bought her from thought she was a Pekin. lol I also have the turtle sandbox for the birds. There is no way I could lift a plastic kiddie pool. The hard plastic is much easier to lift and clean. I just scrub it with baking soda. Yesterday, I let the ducklings explore outside the fence. When they saw the adult birds, the attempted to follow them. The big Pekin ran off crying and the Muscovey hissed at them. lol |
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Post by flowerpower on May 23, 2011 6:44:10 GMT -5
May 1st  |
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Post by flowerpower on May 23, 2011 6:45:46 GMT -5
May 10th They get big so quickly  |
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Post by mnjrutherford on May 23, 2011 6:56:01 GMT -5
They are so adorable! Tommy says they look like our geese and he wants to know why that is. ;o)
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Post by flowerpower on May 24, 2011 5:38:38 GMT -5
They are so adorable! Tommy says they look like our geese and he wants to know why that is. ;o) Tommy, Geese and ducks look alike because they are cousins. Just like horses and donkeys. |
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Post by seedywen on May 24, 2011 9:59:17 GMT -5
Fine looking ducklings, flowerpower. They do grow so fast. It always seems comical to me ducklings grow big feet first while having such tiny wings for a few weeks. News flash! Picked up another Turtle pool at a garage sale on the weekend. That makes three on the farm now.
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Post by ottawagardener on May 24, 2011 11:51:20 GMT -5
Aaaaaaaaaaaw. Cute. My ducklings still don't have any real feathers.
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Post by flowerpower on May 25, 2011 6:22:15 GMT -5
May 24th  |
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Post by flowerpower on May 25, 2011 6:52:04 GMT -5
I find them very cute right now. They are quite comical. They found the turtle pool pretty fast and jumped right in it. I read that the females are a bit louder at this age. And the males will have dark blue-ish heads. So if I had to guess on the sexes, I'd say there are 1 male and 2 female Applewood, 1 each on the Saxony, really not too sure about the Pekin yet. Telsing, what breeds of birds did you get? |
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I am thinking that the biggest one is neither Saxony or appleyard. I don't see any colored feathers at all coming in. Maybe it is a Pekin. I'll know soon enough. It really doesn't matter about the breed. All I wanted was a duck that ''quacks''. I have 2 adult hens, a Pekin and a Muscovey. The Pekin drives me crazy with all her quacking. It seems like she is waiting for another duck to answer her. And Muscovies don't quack. lol
