Choc-A-Block

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Valntyn

Valntyn

Chirping
7 Years
Jun 11, 2012
251
12
96
Central Maine
We are T-minus 5 days until our first Muscovy ducklings get processed. I'm okay with it -- I've known all along they were for the freezer. Unfortunately, one in particular has kept my eye and I'll be sad to see him go. I just wanted to post a few pictures of him... sappy, I know, but to celebrate how handsome he is and how sad I'll be to see him go.

After processing, we'll have one Muscovy drake and five Muscovy ducks... two Ancona drakes and two Ancona ducks... and one Buff Orpington duck (all together), equaling 3 males & 8 females. We didn't think it really smart to keep another drake when one wasn't really needed.

Hatch day


The fluffy, sunny bundle in the foreground


Getting his feathers


I loved seeing his tail feathers all open like this. The charcoal & white next to him is his sister, the only other of the group who had color and the only one of the group we're keeping (for color-fun and gender-ratio).


Pretty little boy.


Lately his coloring has been changing (again), turning more grey with brown undertones. Is there a name for that? (His father was white with literally only a couple black feathers on his face and his mother is chocolate & white.)


My husband teases me because I keep going back and forth on whether we're keeping him. I named him Choc-A-Block because he is/was chocolate and he's headed to the block.
roll.png


(P.S. If anyone thinks I'm crazy for getting rid of him, please feel free to speak up. Enablers welcome.
big_smile.png
You've just gotta give me a good enough reason I don't regret it later, so my husband doesn't make even MORE fun of me!
lau.gif
)

Otherwise, thanks for looking.
frow.gif
 
Valntyn said:
We are T-minus 5 days until our first Muscovy ducklings get processed. I'm okay with it -- I've known all along they were for the freezer. Unfortunately, one in particular has kept my eye and I'll be sad to see him go. I just wanted to post a few pictures of him... sappy, I know, but to celebrate how handsome he is and how sad I'll be to see him go.

After processing, we'll have one Muscovy drake and five Muscovy ducks... two Ancona drakes and two Ancona ducks... and one Buff Orpington duck (all together), equaling 3 males & 8 females. We didn't think it really smart to keep another drake when one wasn't really needed.

Hatch day


The fluffy, sunny bundle in the foreground


Getting his feathers


I loved seeing his tail feathers all open like this. The charcoal & white next to him is his sister, the only other of the group who had color and the only one of the group we're keeping (for color-fun and gender-ratio).


Pretty little boy.


Lately his coloring has been changing (again), turning more grey with brown undertones. Is there a name for that? (His father was white with literally only a couple black feathers on his face and his mother is chocolate & white.)


My husband teases me because I keep going back and forth on whether we're keeping him. I named him Choc-A-Block because he is/was chocolate and he's headed to the block.
roll.png


(P.S. If anyone thinks I'm crazy for getting rid of him, please feel free to speak up. Enablers welcome.
big_smile.png
You've just gotta give me a good enough reason I don't regret it later, so my husband doesn't make even MORE fun of me!
lau.gif
)

Otherwise, thanks for looking.
frow.gif
Click to expand...
All I can say is he is gorgeous!
love.gif
 
Well, Miss Lydia, I don't think that you "need" a reason to keep something that makes you happy. Husbands just LOVE making fun of their wives and vice versa, so that goes with the territory.

Truely, I am getting old apparently, because I feel if something makes you happy or even gives you a smile for the day and losing that something would make you feel, bad, sad or unhappy then just don't do it. It is one out of how many? It isn't like you are talking about the WHOLE flock right? Just one little boy. That sure you could do without, but if it brings you joy, what is the harm in keeping it?

That's my sappy two cents. Life is short and anything that brings happiness is worth hanging on to!

Now, on the other hand, if that is the last duck on the planet and you are starving for food, then by all means, he goes on to the table. Are you starving? Can you not afford to feed him? Does he make you happy?

Those are the questions you need to ask. :)
 
Something tells me Choc-a-block isn't ending up in freezer camp. IMO, sometimes we just get some that we don't really NEED, but we can't get rid of. I have a few hens that are worthless layers, but I just can't get rid of them. They tug at my heart strings, we have room, therefore they stay.
love.gif


Is that enough enabling?
big_smile.png


Edit: Ali707...I'm just up the road from you in Rocklin! Howdy neighbor!
 
Last edited:
Thats how I ended up with an extra drake this past spring, gosh I already had 2 that would get at each other plus a gander to add to the mix, then I let one of my ducks hatch ducklings, out of 8 eggs she hatched 4, 1 didn't make it then I sold 2 and had this 1 duckling who was just the sweetest, should have known from experience if they eat out of your hand right off they have to be drakes, anyway by the time we knew well what can I say he's here to stay. I'll deal with spring and mating season in the spring. Sometimes your heart knows best.
big_smile.png
 
clap.gif
Thank you for the wonderful enabling! *laugh*

Yesterday, we sorted the ducks, putting those going to 'freezer camp' in the smaller pen for the next couple days. I didn't say anything about Choc-A-Block as we caught and moved the others, figuring I'd wait to see what my husband would do. (Hehe!) When it was Choc-A-Block's time, he asked what was going on with him, then almost immediately replied, "No, he's not going anywhere."

love.gif


This half surprised me. He loves to make me happy, but I was hoping he'd be the strong one and keep me level. Haha. He'd been telling me all along we could keep Choc-A-Block if we got rid of one of the other males, but I really don't want to get rid of our head drake Muscovy and we like both our male Anconas too much. Besides, if things don't work out, we can always change our minds later. (Kinda hard to do once he's been eaten...!!)

Our three year old daughter was a huge help, too. After all the others were caught, she said, "Now Choc-A-Block!" When I explained how the ducks we were moving were ducks we were going to eat, then asked if she wanted to eat Choc-A-Block, she said no.
wink.png
That's my girl.

Now I'm laughing at myself -- I hope I don't do this with EVERY hatching!
hide.gif
 
Valntyn said:
clap.gif
Thank you for the wonderful enabling! *laugh*

Yesterday, we sorted the ducks, putting those going to 'freezer camp' in the smaller pen for the next couple days. I didn't say anything about Choc-A-Block as we caught and moved the others, figuring I'd wait to see what my husband would do. (Hehe!) When it was Choc-A-Block's time, he asked what was going on with him, then almost immediately replied, "No, he's not going anywhere."

love.gif


This half surprised me. He loves to make me happy, but I was hoping he'd be the strong one and keep me level. Haha. He'd been telling me all along we could keep Choc-A-Block if we got rid of one of the other males, but I really don't want to get rid of our head drake Muscovy and we like both our male Anconas too much. Besides, if things don't work out, we can always change our minds later. (Kinda hard to do once he's been eaten...!!)

Our three year old daughter was a huge help, too. After all the others were caught, she said, "Now Choc-A-Block!" When I explained how the ducks we were moving were ducks we were going to eat, then asked if she wanted to eat Choc-A-Block, she said no.
wink.png
That's my girl.

Now I'm laughing at myself -- I hope I don't do this with EVERY hatching!
hide.gif
Click to expand...
Congrats on making the right decision, he is just too gorgeous to eat..
 
Congratulations on your freezer camp fail...lol. Lets just hope that Choc-a-block has his drake halo on.
lol.png


I ended up with a drake, when I planned on keeping only ducks...but he's just too darn sweet.
 

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