Duck Breed Focus - Hook Bill

[sumi]

With their elongated, downward curving bills Hook Bill ducks look a bit different from other domestic duck breeds. This breed has a history of more than 400 years, making them the oldest domestic waterfowl breed in Europe. Charles Darwin even described hook bills in his books and kept them in his backyard pond. The origins of the Hook Bill is uncertain though. Old texts suggest they originated in Asia but they were developed further and kept extensively in The Netherlands at one point, on the canals where they were let out to feed and come back home at night. It is rumoured that the white-bibbed Hook Bill was bred to help duck hunters identify them from wild Mallards. They are good layers of blue eggs, tame very easily, are quiet compared to some other duck breeds and are very inquisitive.
Hook Bill ducks were first admitted to the British Waterfowl Standards in 1997. They were imported into North America by David Holderread in 2000 and are not yet admitted to the APA's Standard of Perfection. They are generally called ‘Dutch Hookbill’ in America. Dusky Blue, Bibbed Dusky Blue, ‘Dirty White’ (non-standard colours in the UK) can be found in Holland and Germany.
Details:
Purpose: Exhibition; Utility: meat and eggs.
Eggs: 100 to 200 Blue Eggs annually
Origin: Asia(?)
Weight: Drake: 4.5 lbs, Duck: 3.9 lbs
Classification: Light
Colours: Dusky Mallard, White-bibbed Dusky Mallard, White.

Pic by @Birch Run Farm


Pic by @Birch Run Farm


Pic by @Birch Run Farm

BYC Breed Discussion:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...about-their-dutch-hook-bills-or-saxonese/0_30
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/231933/some-hook-bill-photos/0_30

Do you own Hook Bills? Are you a Hook Bill breeder? If so, please reply to this thread with the your thoughts and experiences, including:

· What made you decide to get this breed?
· Do you own them for fun? Breeding? Some other purpose?
· What are your favorite characteristics about this breed?
· Post some pics of your birds; male/female, chicks, eggs, etc!

 

[apricotvalleywf]

Perhaps I can weight in with some information.

They are definitely not a calm breed such as the WH. They are smaller than WH and with that seem to inherit more of the wild mallard demeanor. They can fly up to 6-7 feet in the air if they wish to. They are perfectly content staying in their pens, drakes breed very well and hatchability is fairly good as well. They are lovely birds and would definitely recommend them.

 

[DuckLoverZach]

We received our hook bills from Holderread last week! Unfortunately only 6 out of 11 made it but we're getting 10 more next week!

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[HollowOfWisps]

1. Do you own Hook Bills? Yes!

2. What made you decide to get this breed? I was intrigued by their head shape and I absolutely fell in love with their curved bills.

3. Do you own them for fun? Breeding? Some other purpose? I own a small flock that I currently use for just eggs as I've been working on diversifying my flock, but this spring I'm planning on hatching Hookbills. My goal is not to just breed for conservation, but for quality over quantity. I plan to work towards the European standard of the breed and my focus will be on breeding for correctness in small hatches that I hope to one day be able to offer to the public.

4. What are your favorite characteristics about this breed? Their bill shape and looks may have been what won me over originally, but they are also extremely smart and all have such different personalities. Definitely my favorite breed by far!

 

[Isaac 0]

They're Gorgeous!

 

[333113]

I have a small flock of Hookbills. My sister gave them to me a couple years back when she downsized her flock, along with the rest of her runners. I still have runners, too. I acquired a few more Hookbills from another breeder, too.

I have showed the Hookbills; since they are not a recognized breed with a standard, they show under the category, "All Other Breeds of Duck."

This summer's hatch, all from the incubator, so far, includes three from Blair Jantz, nine from my snowies (or, I thought they were snowies, but not all the ducklings are snowies), and one gray, or gray mix, from a gray drake and a dusky hen, hatched in August.

Here are the three month old ducklings playing in the side barnyard earlier today:

And the gray mix with his little sibling pal (he was a solo hatcher):

I have a mix of colors, and I am still trying to figure out the connection between the kippenjungle calculator and the duck colors.

I have been steadily selling Hookbill hatching eggs on poultryshowcentral.com, and I have a waiting list of 28 people right now. Blair and I exchanged hatching eggs by mail, and that's how I have three ducklings from her.

I do find that when they hatch their own, the Hookbill parents (and siblings) are more proactive than I expected in helping the hatchlings get out of their eggs. I have one pair setting now, and another pair is accumulating eggs and setting up the nest.

 

[RezChamp]

I did spell it correctly. I don't know how to put a link on here or I would. Enter on the green (looks like green feathers or leaves) box then scroll to ducks & click
then scroll to

• Hook Bills (Kromsnaveleend)
  
• Kromsnaveleend & click.

Wow. According to The Domestic Waterfowl Club of Great Britain there's even Crested Hookbills.

 

[DuckLoverZach]

???

Gray

 

[apricotvalleywf]

[QUOTE="DuckLoverZach, post: 18408927, member: 393837"

Snowy? Yes

Snowy? Yes

Appears to be Aleutian

Appears to be Aleutian

Appears to be Aleutian[/QUOTE]

 

[DonnaSueL]

Can they be housed with Welch Harlequin, runners,and khaki camble or do they need there own housing