Turkey turned purple and gasping

[Paully3]

Our next venture will either be pigs or Muscovy ducks. I am very interested in Muscovy because of what I have read about their meat qualities...but too much poultry gets to be rather difficult, and smelly. Then again, pigs don't particularly smell like roses either...

 

[casportpony]

Our next venture will either be pigs or Muscovy ducks. I am very interested in Muscovy because of what I have read about their meat qualities...but too much poultry gets to be rather difficult, and smelly. Then again, pigs don't particularly smell like roses either...

I haven't raised pigs, but I do raise Muscovy ducks and they are super easy to raise.

-Kathy

 

[Paully3]

And have you processed any? Is it truly like roast beef, as I have read? I've also read that it can be ground and used as a replacement for burger. Beef is so darned expensive these days and if I can raise Muscovy and use it as a healthy alternative, I would be all about it...

 

[casportpony]

I haven't processed any yet, but have many repeat customers.

-Kathy

 

[dotporter]

And have you processed any? Is it truly like roast beef, as I have read? I've also read that it can be ground and used as a replacement for burger. Beef is so darned expensive these days and if I can raise Muscovy and use it as a healthy alternative, I would be all about it...

I eat Muscovy all the time, and I've found that the flavor and texture depends greatly on the feed and age of the bird. I like processing some in fall, of course. Young hens are generally the most like poultry (chicken or turkey depending on what they've been eating). Young drakes and older hens are a bit like pork. But then the real treat is in the spring. I feed my ducks extra corn all winter because it increases their metabolism... so in the spring before they go on pasture and before the spring molt, we'll get some of the one year drakes processed. THOSE are like good beef. If you cut the breasts across the grain into steaks and grill them, you would NOT know that you aren't eating beef steaks. But, Muscovy is very low in fat and takes special care when cooking or it can get dry and tough. Some people say that you can cook it medium rare like beef, but I find it to be a little rubbery that way. But, with older drakes you can make steaks, then use the rest of the carcass to make beef stew, and you would NOT know the difference. Slow roasted you can even make mushroom gravy that is comparable to beef gravy (but again, the meat can dry out if you aren't careful). And, for the final treat, if you ever have to butcher older birds... it's a lot like venison. Especially if it's been on pasture.

The first time I ate a one year old drake it took SO much getting used to, looking at something that looks like a small turkey and tasting beef. It was Weird. I literally can't cook an older drake whole because I just never got used to expecting the taste of poultry and getting beef. But, don't expect the same beefy flavor if it's a hen or if they're butchered young. But, personally I love the fact that it's never the same meat twice. We get poultry, pork, beef, and occasionally venison all from one bird.

lol, sorry for going on, but I LOVE how versatile my Muscovy are. Oh, and if you do butcher a good year or older drake, and you can debone the breast whole (both sides without separating them)? Cut it VERY carefully into steaks and it makes the CUTEST heart shaped steaks for valentines.

 

[Paully3]

Doesn't the meat get tough like chicken or turkey at 1 year old? I am very intrigued...to say the least. What about upkeep? I don't have a pond and I know ducks need a pond or pool in order to eat. I understand that Muscovy is not related to the other species of domesticated ducks, so do they also need water to swallow their food? I'm concerned about the messy stinky water....

 

[dotporter]

Since older birds are more like beef or pork, they Should be a little "tougher" to mimic the texture of beef or pork. You cut it across the grain just like you would non-poultry meat, and for the same reason. The grain can be a little tough or stringy, but no more so than if you cut beef along the grain instead of across it.

They don't need a pond. While many people say that their Muscovy do well with water, Mine Sink. They have inadequate oil glands and get waterlogged. They're better off with normal water dishes. They do LIKE water, and they like being sprayed with the hose, appreciate a kiddie pool if it has a way in and out.. but they do not NEED it, and sometimes it's a tragedy when babies get in and can't get out.

Babies can hop a couple of feet in the air, and CAN get into buckets, pools, rain barrels.. you name it.

I'm going to be honest that raising Muscovy can be ridiculously easy, or ridiculously hard. If you treat your breeders like dogs, you'll have no problem at all. They like treats, they like attention, and you have to train them. They learn very quickly, and then they teach any newcomer by example. So, it's not a huge process. But, Muscovy which are Not trained are flying, garden munching, neighbor annoying beasts. I have around two hundred ducks right now (that will be down to fifty for winter). I can move all of them just by clapping my hands and telling them to "Get back in the barn". Ok, not all. There are always two or three trouble makers. But, basically I can move every duck on the farm by myself with basic commands.

(that may sound difficult, but in reality, training my ducks involved a broom and swatting them in the direction they needed to move then giving them treats when they got to where they belonged)

My ducks are free ranging right this minute, not one is in the front yard. They know better. If I went out and clapped my hands, they'd all be up here in a heartbeat though.

If they don't bond to you and see you as the big duck, they can be a pain. Hens are excellent fliers and are NOT against looking for a better home if they feel that theirs isn't up to expectations. A good flock of breeders properly trained and cared for are easy to take care of.

They do HAVE to be locked up at night. Especially hens with babies (if they don't go in at night, you'll notice a baby or two gone every single night till there are none. every predator on the face of the planet loves to snack on baby muscovy more than on any other poultry I've ever owned). Every new Muscovy owner who has ever bought birds from me always comes back with the Same story. "I had them out in the yard, and then in the morning the hen/drake was just gone." Usually it's the hen. They're easy prey. If you don't lock them up at night, it's really just a matter of time before something eats one or all of them.

But, the trade off is that a hen will hatch out up to twenty eight babies (usually closer to twelve or fifteen) three times a year. They free range well. They eat mice and snakes. They are QUIET (yay). And, mine even do well in Michigan winters (had one hatch a baby in twenty degree below zero weather last December. He weighs about eighteen pounds right now). If you don't want a million baby ducks, the eggs are good for eating too.

I know this is a long response, but I'm trying to be completely objective. I wouldn't want to just say "Oh, ya, they're so easy to keep" and then have someone wondering why their hens flew south. I love my ducks, but they are NOTHING like any of my other poultry. I mean, I have one hen who hatched out her babies and decided that since I have so many ducks, she'd just move to the neighbors where there's more privacy. Penning them up is a pretty difficult proposition because they ARE messy. And it can get stinky if they don't have enough room. But free range with a place to lock them up at night usually does pretty well.

Sorry if that's longer than expected... but, they are a strange duck.