Saxony ducklings - Different colours at birth

[Papaye]

Hi!

@Papaye I’m treating her for niacin deficiency.

I thought you also meant physical rehabilitation - but like... with exercices and/or massages!

But if treating Niacin deficiency alone is sufficient, then that's better - for you, and also for her (since less stressful, and at least meaning her condition is not the worse it could be).

I really hope she will get to walk again...!
(She is lucky to have you!)

There’s a sticky thread on that if you’re interested in learned about it. It mostly involves giving liquid b vitamins, poultry cell and water therapy.

Thank you, but I have probably learned all about it - I hope so at least!!

I have already heard/read a lot about Niacin deficiency (also on this website), since there are great people AND I thought it was important to know - just in case, you know...?

We don't - really, really don't - learn about it in France... I had never even heard about Niacin deficiency before hearing and reading about it in ENGLISH!
(I don't know why, since it sounds like a serious, and apparently pretty common (?), health issue in ducks... in America at least?)

 

[Luv Ducks]

View attachment 3940977Here’s Willow (standing) and Gemma. Gemma has been significantly smaller since they were babies and sadly she stopped walking about 10 days ago so I’m trying to rehabilitate her. I’m also new to the breed and ducks in general. We have two Silver Appleyards who are a few months older. Willow is the sweetest of our ducks, fingers crossed that Gemma keeps getting stronger!

Absolutely Beautiful!!!

 

[Papaye]

Hi.

Update on my Saxony ducklings...!!

Here they are, at 2-months-old :

In their juvenile plumage, they still are differently coloured : the darker Saxony still looks too dark for a Saxony...

...Even his wing speculum looks very dark for the breed... and given he will still have these feathers with his nuptial plumage, that means he will always looks different from "normal", lighter coloured Saxony ducks...

As we can see on the picture, the underside of the darker Saxony's wings is white and pretty dark grey/blue coloured...

That's different from my lighter coloured Saxony's wings, that look white and LIGHT blue/grey coloured underneath... :

...I am not sure what exactly they are going to look like once adult...

The lighter Saxony looks ordinary enough :

But the darker one already looks like he is going to be darker than normal :

Both of them are boys - or they sound like they are, at least -, so I don't know if I will eventually get to see them in their adult plumage : I have too many drakes, and I have no other choice than to get rid of some of them...

Given I am not interested by the idea of keeping Saxony drakes if I don't have Saxony girls for them : I plan to give them away if possible...

...But if ever I still have them once they get their nuptial feathers, I will post pictures of them - just to let people know if the differences in colours at birth actually means something for the adult appearance of the(se) ducks...

 

[Luv Ducks]

Gosh they sure are pretty. With my breeds the ones that had the darker chests were drakes and the ones that had the lighter ones were my hens. It would be funny if that is what is going on. Did you get them from a hatchery or CL or online somewhere? Just curious. I hope you can keep them until you either see the drake feather in both of them or you know for sure they are both drakes. My East Indies ducks had me fooled. Two got really big, but one had an eye tumor and stayed so much smaller. I thought for sure 2 drakes and a hen. At three weeks the big ones started quacking! I was shocked. Now at 6 weeks the smaller one only lets out a quack occasionally but I am thinking it is a hen also. Sometimes it just hard to tell for sure until you either see a drake feather or an egg, lol.

 

[Quatie]

Where did you get the ducklings? Because honestly I would say the darker one is not a pure bred saxony. Even it's size looks off, like one is parents was a smaller breed of duck. I would personally even wonder about the other one being a pure bred.

 

[Papaye]

Gosh they sure are pretty.

Thank you.

I am really happy to see you posting, because I am following what is happening in the United States, and I worry so much because of these hurricanes...
(Especially considering what is really happening...!)

I am not writing to any of you here who are hit by the hurricanes or their remains, because I don't want to bother you... but I don't forget to pray.

...Stay strong.

With my breeds the ones that had the darker chests were drakes and the ones that had the lighter ones were my hens. It would be funny if that is what is going on.

What is funny is to see girls growing so big, so fast, we are persuaded they can only be boys... ah, ah!

(My smaller Duclair duckling is a boy!! And he really is so small...!!)

...I first thought my lighter Saxony was a girl, but given this one does not quack anymore... I'm pretty sure he is a boy.

But then again : I am not lucky with voice sexing, so the duckling could still be a she...?

Did you get them from a hatchery or CL or online somewhere? Just curious.

They are from the last eggs I have bought online in July.
(You know, from the seller that refuses to reimburse me the broken eggs I had received home...?)

I hope you can keep them until you either see the drake feather in both of them or you know for sure they are both drakes.

I am thinking about it. Because I'm so curious about the darker Saxony...!!

My East Indies ducks had me fooled. Two got really big, but one had an eye tumor and stayed so much smaller. I thought for sure 2 drakes and a hen. At three weeks the big ones started quacking! I was shocked. Now at 6 weeks the smaller one only lets out a quack occasionally but I am thinking it is a hen also. Sometimes it just hard to tell for sure until you either see a drake feather or an egg, lol.

Yes.
Some of my Duclair ducklings were so late to quack I was persuaded I got only 1 girl from them...
Now, it sounds like I have 3 Duclair hens instead...!

I'm hoping here my light Saxony is just a girl late to quack...
(I love Saxony hens : they are so pretty to look at...!!)

Where did you get the ducklings?

I have bought the eggs online, from a seller living in Northern France.

Because honestly I would say the darker one is not a pure bred saxony. Even it's size looks off, like one is parents was a smaller breed of duck. I would personally even wonder about the other one being a pure bred.

I actually have wondered about it, but... these Saxony ducklings looks purebred to me? (Apart for the colour of the darker one, I mean!)

I have watched videos of Saxony ducks just to be sure, and I could only notice that physically, they actually really look the same - with their so funny look and gait...

(The ducklings on my pictures here are 2-months-old to 2-and-a-half-months-old, and my 2 Saxonies are already the biggest of them!)

...I am not an expert about Saxony ducks, and finding informations is hard...!!

Thank you very much for your opinion!!
I would like to ask the seller, but he has not replied to me since I have asked - kindly - he reimburse me the last eggs I have bought from him, and I then received so broken I had to send them back...

 

[Quatie]

I actually have wondered about it, but... these Saxony ducklings looks purebred to me? (Apart for the colour of the darker one, I mean!)

I have watched videos of Saxony ducks just to be sure, and I could only notice that physically, they actually really look the same - with their so funny look and gait...

(The ducklings on my pictures here are 2-months-old to 2-and-a-half-months-old, and my 2 Saxonies are already the biggest of them!)

...I am not an expert about Saxony ducks, and finding informations is hard...!!

Thank you very much for your opinion!!
I would like to ask the seller, but he has not replied to me since I have asked - kindly - he reimburse me the last eggs I have bought from him, and I then received so broken I had to send them back...

At least he was willing to refund you for the other eggs.

Either way they are beautiful ducks. From my experience the one looks like a hybrid. Hybrids can be just stunning.

I have a hybrid Saxony that would be a struggle to tell that she was. Other than different coloring as a duckling, her only big difference is she smaller than the an average Saxony.

 

[Papaye]

At least he was willing to refund you for the other eggs.

Ah, ah!
He did not, actually.

The last eggs I have bought from him are the ONLY ones that I received broken, thankfully...

I choose this seller specifically because he is a professional, and so, refunding was (supposed to be) guaranteed if the eggs were broken during the shipping process...
But after his refusal to refund me, I decided to not buy from him anymore.

Either way they are beautiful ducks. From my experience the one looks like a hybrid. Hybrids can be just stunning.

Thank you.
I take very good care of them.

Still : I did not think they would end up being so big, so early...!
At 2-months-old, they already are bigger than my (almost) 4-months-old Cayuga and Khaki Campbell ducks!

I have a hybrid Saxony that would be a struggle to tell that she was. Other than different coloring as a duckling, her only big difference is she smaller than the an average Saxony.

What about her eggs production?
Does she lay as many eggs as a purebred Saxony?

...Do you have a picture?
I like to see hybrid ducks...!

 

[Quatie]

Ah, ah!
He did not, actually.

The last eggs I have bought from him are the ONLY ones that I received broken, thankfully...

I choose this seller specifically because he is a professional, and so, refunding was (supposed to be) guaranteed if the eggs were broken during the shipping process...
But after his refusal to refund me, I decided to not buy from him anymore.

I must have misread that before. That is really annoying that he refused to refund you. That definitely makes him more suspicious.

Still : I did not think they would end up being so big, so early...!

They are a big breed. Those boys do grow fast . Slower than Pekins, but still they are big boys. Most of my ducks usually take a good year to reach full size.

What about her eggs production?
Does she lay as many eggs as a purebred Saxony?

...Do you have a picture?
I like to see hybrid ducks...!

I don't know if she lays as many. I have a lot girls, that is pretty hard to tell at this point who lays the eggs. I have wondered if she lays one of the more unique colored eggs.

You can see the duckling at the top has a more sooty coloring. She is the hybrid.

This is her full grown. But you really can't tell. But she has her dad's eyes and walks like him too. Her personality is different from the other saxonies too.

 

[Papaye]

Hi.

That definitely makes him more suspicious.

Still : I got Cayuga, Khaki Campbell, and Duclair ducklings - among others - from the fertilized eggs I bought from him, so I at least can't complain about that... especially since - in my opinion - the ducks look purebred.

And honestly, I also had chosen to buy eggs from him because he is at least being careful : he does NOT vaccinate his birds for Avian Influenza...

They are a big breed. Those boys do grow fast . Slower than Pekins, but still they are big boys. Most of my ducks usually take a good year to reach full size.

Yeah...?
My Saxonies are already big enough, I think! Ah, ah!

You can see the duckling at the top has a more sooty coloring. She is the hybrid.

She looked different from the others!

This is her full grown. But you really can't tell. But she has her dad's eyes and walks like him too. Her personality is different from the other saxonies too.

She is still beautiful...!
But yes : she really does not look like she is mixed...

What breed is she mixed with, exactly?