What breed of duck is this?

[browntownfarm]

I got this ducklings 10 days ago with another that turned out to be a runner. I can't figure this one out though. It's beak is darker than a usual Pekin. Any ideas?

 

[PotatoWaffles]

Could be a buff orphinton. They are yellow with purplish beaks as ducklings. They grow up to look like this:

 

[cymbaline]

I agree, not only because of the different colored bill but it looks like yours also has a very faint eye stripe. My buff boy is on the right below:



And this is him full grown:



That's funny that you also got a runner with your buff. Of course I meant to get two female runners...oops.

 

[browntownfarm]

Beautiful! I'm new to ducks and never knew about these! They are beautiful. I actually have buff orpington chickens. Well I'm excited to see how the coloring turns out. It looks like the first feathers coming in are white. Is that normal?

 

[PotatoWaffles]

Beautiful! I'm new to ducks and never knew about these! They are beautiful. I actually have buff orpington chickens. Well I'm excited to see how the coloring turns out. It looks like the first feathers coming in are white. Is that normal?

Totally normal. Yours looks to be about two weeks old. That's when they first start getting their tail feathers in, about two to three weeks, then along their shoulders and chest, with the back and flight feathers coming in last.

 

[browntownfarm]

Is there any way to sex them this young?

 

[PotatoWaffles]

They can be vent sexed when they are a day old, but yours is probably too old now for thst method to work. Vent sexing is risky and should only be done by someone experienced anyway. You will have to wait until they get their voices in. Girls will do the quacking and honking, boys will do a quiet rasping and the tend to get their voices later than girls.

 

[cymbaline]

You won't have to wait much longer to voice-sex...I could tell my runner was a girl at around 3 weeks, one of my mallards at about 4, and the other mallard before 5, I think.

Ms. Roxy the Runner - I brought them home on March 15 and this was recorded on April 1...no obvious "quacks" yet but I could tell her voice was changing into a female voice.

This was Turkey at about 6 weeks...still some baby peeps but when she wanted to, she could really make some noise!

If you end up with boys, it seems to be the absence of a noticeable voice change that will be your indicator. Theirs is so subtle and gradual and quiet that I hardly notice the change, but I think it happens by 7 weeks or so. If you don't hear loud quacks at all by 6 weeks, I'd say you've got boys.

 

[PotatoWaffles]

You won't have to wait much longer to voice-sex...I could tell my runner was a girl at around 3 weeks, one of my mallards at about 4, and the other mallard before 5, I think. Ms. Roxy the Runner - I brought them home on March 15 and this was recorded on April 1...no obvious "quacks" yet but I could tell her voice was changing into a female voice. This was Turkey at about 6 weeks...still some baby peeps but when she wanted to, she could really make some noise! If you end up with boys, it seems to be the absence of a noticeable voice change that will be your indicator. Theirs is so subtle and gradual and quiet that I hardly notice the change, but I think it happens by 7 weeks or so. If you don't hear loud quacks at all by 6 weeks, I'd say you've got boys.

Cymbaline nailed it on the head with this description.