Beginner in Ducks: Need Flight Info, please!

[Gresh]

Hi everyone.

My family and I purchased some Mallard ducklings back in April and we have enjoyed watching them grow up on our mini-farm. They are the first ducks we have ever raised and it has been breathtaking to see them fly (something our chickens cannot do!). But as much as we like Mallards, we're thinking about more domesticated ducks.

I would like some general info on the flying capabilities of domestic ducks. I want a breed that is more domesticated than the Mallard but I want it to be able to fly sufficiently well so that it can escape most predators. I have heard on one site that domestic ducks can fly (the particular breed was said to not be able to fly more than 100 feet) but the general absence of any info on other sites about domestic ducks flying has made me wonder just how much domestic ducks can fly.

Could anyone give me some info on this? Even more specifically, I would like to know the flying capabilities (or lack thereof) of the following duck breeds:

1. Runner
2. Cayuga
3. Swedish
4. Khaki Campbell
5. Magpie
6. Black East India

Thanks to anyone who can help!

God bless,
~Gresh~

 

[Amiga]

Hey, Gresh!

I have runners and buffs, and their "flight" is more like wing-assisted jumping! As far as predator protection, it would be a big NOPE.

And from anything I have seen, read or heard, none of the breeds on your short list could fly its way to safety.

And, uhm, not to worry you, but even flying ducks get nabbed by predators at night. Some ducks sleep so very soundly, they never see trouble coming. What kind of setup do you have for shelter for your duckies?

 

[nickie]

My cayuga can fly, sorta. Like Amiga said, its mostly flight assisted jumping. He does the running fly very well though.

 

[Ilovemyduckies]

The only ducks you have listed that I have had experience with are Cayuga and Khaki Campbell. Neither of them have been able to fly at all, but I'm not sure about the others.

 

[fowlman01]

The only ducks on that list that can fly are the East Indies and they can fly very well, so you need a top on the cage. The rest might be able to get 3 feet or so on a good day, but most folks would not say that they can fly.

Walt

 

[Gresh]

Thanks, everyone, for the response!

I was afraid that most domestic ducks couldn't fly. I can't afford to have flightless birds do to the fact that we have had a few dog "raids" before and I would hate to have my flock wiped out if that happened.

I have heard that East Indies were good flyers. They are a very beautiful duck. Anybody know a good breeder here in NC?

As for where we keep our ducks, we keep them in a "stall" in the garage at night. We'd like to make a duck coop sometime that we can lock up at night. Anybody have some suggestions for that?

EDIT: Can anyone give me some info on the East Indie Duck? Info like broodiness, tameness, hardiness, etc. would be helpful

God bless,
~Gresh~

 

[Habibs Hens]

i have campbels and runners

runners dont fly

campbels are crossed with runners but also have mallard blood in them

they both dont fly

also pekins dont fly

and aylesburys are just to big and lazy to fly

all great for backyards

 

[fowlman01]

Thanks, everyone, for the response!

I was afraid that most domestic ducks couldn't fly. I can't afford to have flightless birds do to the fact that we have had a few dog "raids" before and I would hate to have my flock wiped out if that happened.

I have heard that East Indies were good flyers. They are a very beautiful duck. Anybody know a good breeder here in NC?

As for where we keep our ducks, we keep them in a "stall" in the garage at night. We'd like to make a duck coop sometime that we can lock up at night. Anybody have some suggestions for that?

EDIT: Can anyone give me some info on the East Indie Duck? Info like broodiness, tameness, hardiness, etc. would be helpful

God bless,
~Gresh~

This is what I use for Indies..in this pic I was growing a bunch of different ducks but normally have a 6' wading pond in there. You don't have to put a rood on the wire side, I do cuz I show the Indies. Mike Johnson in CO or Holderread Waterfowl in OR have good Indies.

Indies are very beautiful ducks, but they have almost zero personality. The females start to turn white after the first year or so and can end up mostly white. If you have one white feather on an Indie at a show it is a DQ. If you breed that white out, they turn into dull black ducks without the green sheen. If you show and have good ones you can many times beat the chickens. There are a lot of good ones around.

They are not very tame, they are extremely hardy and mine will start a nest but never follow through and they make terrible moms if they are show type small Indies. Mine are terrible moms, but that could be just my strain. I have had them since the early 70's.

This is one of mine.



Walt

 

[Miss Lydia]

This is what I use for Indies..in this pic I was growing a bunch of different ducks but normally have a 6' wading pond in there. You don't have to put a rood on the wire side, I do cuz I show the Indies. Mike Johnson in CO or Holderread Waterfowl in OR have good Indies.

Indies are very beautiful ducks, but they have almost zero personality. The females start to turn white after the first year or so and can end up mostly white. If you have one white feather on an Indie at a show it is a DQ. If you breed that white out, they turn into dull black ducks without the green sheen. If you show and have good ones you can many times beat the chickens. There are a lot of good ones around.

They are not very tame, they are extremely hardy and mine will start a nest but never follow through and they make terrible moms if they are show type small Indies. Mine are terrible moms, but that could be just my strain. I have had them since the early 70's.

This is one of mine.



Walt

He's beautiful, Walt.

 

[Gresh]

This is what I use for Indies..in this pic I was growing a bunch of different ducks but normally have a 6' wading pond in there. You don't have to put a rood on the wire side, I do cuz I show the Indies. Mike Johnson in CO or Holderread Waterfowl in OR have good Indies.

Indies are very beautiful ducks, but they have almost zero personality. The females start to turn white after the first year or so and can end up mostly white. If you have one white feather on an Indie at a show it is a DQ. If you breed that white out, they turn into dull black ducks without the green sheen. If you show and have good ones you can many times beat the chickens. There are a lot of good ones around.

They are not very tame, they are extremely hardy and mine will start a nest but never follow through and they make terrible moms if they are show type small Indies. Mine are terrible moms, but that could be just my strain. I have had them since the early 70's.

This is one of mine.



Walt

Thanks for the info, Walt. That is a very handsome drake! Too bad East Indies aren't broody-prone. I prefer poultry that is fairly self-sustaining.

I have another question. Is there much of a difference between hatchery Mallard ducks and breeder Mallard ducks? I know that, in the chicken world, the "original chicken" (Red Junglefowl) is very often polluted by hatcheries (and even ethical breeders don't always have the purest stock), but I'm not sure if that's the case with the "original duck." Our Mallards are from a hatchery and they are only about three months old but they don't look any different than any other Mallards I've seen.

God bless,
~Gresh~