The Duck Thread

[jenniferlamar70]

Can anyone tell me when I should be able to voice sex my Pekin ducklings? They are almost a month old and are starting to go from peeping to quacking. I think one is a boy but when they're this young in not sure what gender sounds like what. Also I read that drakes tend to have their tales parallel with their body while hens hold them up. Is this accurate or just a myth?

At 4 weeks I had one out of eight anconas start quacking. I thought I had 7 drakes. By 10 weeks 6 ducklings were quacking. I would wait until Adleast 10 weeks. As for the other methods I wouldn't use any except voice sexing or the drake curl. I think those are the most accurate.. good luck.

 

[Lamaremybabies]

At 4 weeks I had one out of eight anconas start quacking. I thought I had 7 drakes. By 10 weeks 6 ducklings were quacking. I would wait until Adleast 10 weeks. As for the other methods I wouldn't use any except voice sexing or the drake curl. I think those are the most accurate.. good luck.

Alright! Thanks. I few of them are starting but one just doesn't sound like the others so I'm hoping that that one is a drake and the others are girls because I'm only keeping girls.

 

[babychicks7]

I have Ancona ducks. They lay pretty much every day... but this summer was extra hot and my one duck old enough to lay went broody. Broody duck (she wants to hatch eggs instead of lay them) and the heat meant no eggs for the last 45 or so days. I expect her (and the ducks hatched in March) to start laying about six eggs a week (each) by the end of September.

Duck eggs when scrambled or boiled seem to taste the same as chicken eggs to me. BUT when I bake cookies or cakes with them they make the baked goods delicious. Even my sister-in-law would ask what I did different to my chocolate chips cookies because they were so much better. Duck eggs have more fat in them thus making them richer in baked goods.

Since I started eating duck eggs, my cholesterol has dropped from 205 to 185. The only change I really made was the type of eggs I ate. They have the "good" cholesterol in them.

thats interesting about the duck eggs i did not know that ! i didnt care for the eggs fried maybe because they are richer in taste to me.. never tried them in baking will have to try that when my little bugers start laying again. i never thought about the heat as to why they weren't laying i thought it was because she hatched out 10 little ones and they were keeping her busy they have started mating again tho so hopefully she will start laying again and it is starting to cool off a bit here in Missouri extremly hot and humid this year

 

[MandyJ]

thats interesting about the duck eggs i did not know that ! i didnt care for the eggs fried maybe because they are richer in taste to me.. never tried them in baking will have to try that when my little bugers start laying again. i never thought about the heat as to why they weren't laying i thought it was because she hatched out 10 little ones and they were keeping her busy they have started mating again tho so hopefully she will start laying again and it is starting to cool off a bit here in Missouri extremly hot and humid this year

The feed that you give them makes a difference in how the eggs taste.
Good luck!

 

[WVduckchick]

thats interesting about the duck eggs i did not know that ! i didnt care for the eggs fried maybe because they are richer in taste to me.. never tried them in baking will have to try that when my little bugers start laying again. i never thought about the heat as to why they weren't laying i thought it was because she hatched out 10 little ones and they were keeping her busy they have started mating again tho so hopefully she will start laying again and it is starting to cool off a bit here in Missouri extremly hot and humid this year

My momma duck just resumed laying 3 days ago, after hatching babies June 6th -- the babies are 12 weeks old. So, the 2 weeks that she gathered eggs, plus 4 weeks of incubation, its been 18 weeks since I had a duck egg to eat!!

 

[MandyJ]

Since we have been having the bobcat problem (still haven't caught it), I have been leaving my 2 Pekin ducks penned all the time. Does anyone know of any toys or distraction stuff that I can make for them? It must be terribly boring to spend all day AND all night in that 10 x 10 enclosure, even if they do have their kiddie pool to float around in.

Thanks!
Mandy

 

[Miss Lydia]

Since we have been having the bobcat problem (still haven't caught it), I have been leaving my 2 Pekin ducks penned all the time. Does anyone know of any toys or distraction stuff that I can make for them? It must be terribly boring to spend all day AND all night in that 10 x 10 enclosure, even if they do have their kiddie pool to float around in.

Thanks!
Mandy

Hang a head of cabbage or lettuce I use romaine in with them just make sure what you use to hang it on they can't eat accidentally.

 

[MandyJ]

Hang a head of cabbage or lettuce I use romaine in with them just make sure what you use to hang it on they can't eat accidentally.

Would you just cut a slice almost through the head of ??? and hang it with a string? Romaine I guess you would just hang it from it's base?

I have also heard about using a plastic drinking water bottle filled with bird seed, you cut slices in the bottle, when they peck at it it rolls around and gives them seed. Would this work? Or is the seed bad for them?

Thanks, this is a good idea!

Glad to report, when the bobcat got the last duck, it somehow got ahold of one of the adults, there were tiny blood marks on each side of her shoulders. Once I was finally able to get my hands on the ducks, I checked her out, didn't see anything at all, but I know she had to be hurt, there was blood, she was also limping a little. I notice that since they have been penned up for 2 days with their pool, she is no longer limping. I was really concerned that that Blank Blank Blank bobcat had gotten her as well!

Set the trap out yesterday, nothing on the game camera and the trap is still there with the bait.

Mandy

 

[Miss Lydia]

Would you just cut a slice almost through the head of ??? and hang it with a string? Romaine I guess you would just hang it from it's base?

I have also heard about using a plastic drinking water bottle filled with bird seed, you cut slices in the bottle, when they peck at it it rolls around and gives them seed. Would this work? Or is the seed bad for them?

Thanks, this is a good idea!

Glad to report, when the bobcat got the last duck, it somehow got ahold of one of the adults, there were tiny blood marks on each side of her shoulders. Once I was finally able to get my hands on the ducks, I checked her out, didn't see anything at all, but I know she had to be hurt, there was blood, she was also limping a little. I notice that since they have been penned up for 2 days with their pool, she is no longer limping. I was really concerned that that Blank Blank Blank bobcat had gotten her as well!

Set the trap out yesterday, nothing on the game camera and the trap is still there with the bait.

Mandy

Sorry I did type out a reply but BYC didn't send yesterday for me..

I use a piece of plastic fencing I tie wrapped the 2 ends and stick the head of lettuce or cabbage inside and hang it on a large hook so they can pick at it and it keeps them busy for a while. I will cut the cabbage into 2 pieces. . This plastic fencing is sold at Lowes and I had a piece left over that has squares 2X2" so it's perfect for them.

Don't let your guard down @MandyJ as long as your keeping your girls secure the bob cat or Coyote won't come around but first time you let them out they will know. if not first time it won't take long. They are sly and cunning. Glad to hear your one girls is doing much better now.

 

[MandyJ]

Sorry I did type out a reply but BYC didn't send yesterday for me..

I use a piece of plastic fencing I tie wrapped the 2 ends and stick the head of lettuce or cabbage inside and hang it on a large hook so they can pick at it and it keeps them busy for a while. I will cut the cabbage into 2 pieces. . This plastic fencing is sold at Lowes and I had a piece left over that has squares 2X2" so it's perfect for them.

Don't let your guard down @MandyJ
  as long as your keeping your girls secure the bob cat or Coyote won't come around but first time you let them out they will know. if not first time it won't take long. They are sly and cunning. Glad to hear your one girls is doing much better now. 

Thanks! I understand about not letting my guard down. I feel sorry for the ducks but they are safe in their pen. They will stay there until this animal is caught.it has already gotten 5 hopefully I can keep it from getting the last 2.
Today is the first day they have shown any desire to get out. They have been very traumatized by this.