Mandarin Duck thread ( for posting pictures and discussing)

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

good deal, and good on that nail trimming, if you hadnt and they were in an open box style brooder, they'd be running around the floor when you went back to check on them.
Those little nails are like meat hooks, they can catch the slightest thing and allow them to climb out of virtually anything

 

[chickenlisa]

They're in a Rubbermaid big blue plastic tub with a window screen over the top. So far so good. We put the other 2 in there this afternoon after trimming their nails too. So 7 are together and getting along fine. They ate the crumbled egg yolk and cut up (ewww!) Mealie worms I put on their food, so hopefully they got some crumbles too.
#8 is resting alot. I had to help it zip and get the head out of the shell- it had some shrink wrap going on I think, probably because I had opened the incubator yesterday to get those 5 out and to candle it to see if it was still alive. I hope it makes it- the Yolk was fully absorbed and there was no blood at all.
I took the #9 egg out and opened it up to see what was going on in there- the duckling was fully formed, dead in shell, yolk still there for the most part, but the membrane was really leathery and brownish colored. Poor little thing was lop sided in there too and the air sac was very irregularly shaped. It was hour glass like and went down the long side of the egg with the duckling on the other side, top, and bottom of the egg. Very weird.
I'll post some pics soon.
Lisa
all 7 just sat there and mugged for the camera...too cute!

 

[Dr. Todd]

Not split to white mandarins (sigh, I wish, NO LUCK with them this year

) but here's a clutch of bufflehead and a Baer's pochard teacher duckling. Boring, I know. My apricot wood ducks haven't hatched yet. Fingers crossed!

 

[chickenlisa]

NOT boring! Adorable!

 

[GoatMilker20]

I didn't even knwo people could keep buffleheads in the US, Ive never seen them for sale in the Stromberg catalogh. Where do you live?

Chris

 

[GoatMilker20]

I just pmd dr. todd, nevermind she is in canada. Does anyone know about gettin birds from canada? i have met many canadiens and they are the nicest folks u ever could meet!

Chris

 

[KansasKid]

I wouldn't order any ornamental/migratory bird from a hatchery, even strombergs. Everything you will see in hatcheries like them and mcmurray etc. are always overpriced and just the middle man in transactions.

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

Quote:
That's right,
There are countless breeders of ALL species of migratory wateroflw here in the US. NO need to import, even from Canada it's horrible.
Subscribe to the Game bird Breeder's Gazette, or the A.P.W.S ( American Pheasant and Waterfowl Society) magazines, this is all they do, waterfowl and game birds. Back pages of every issue is loaded with classified ads for waterfowl all over th country. Buffle heads are $500 a pair now just so you know

 

[kangababy]

Quote:
That's right,
There are countless breeders of ALL species of migratory wateroflw here in the US. NO need to import, even from Canada it's horrible.
Subscribe to the Game bird Breeder's Gazette, or the A.P.W.S ( American Pheasant and Waterfowl Society) magazines, this is all they do, waterfowl and game birds. Back pages of every issue is loaded with classified ads for waterfowl all over th country. Buffle heads are $500 a pair now just so you know

I just got my Gazette in the mail last week and I was scared to open it!!

My question where can I find some Comb ducks??

My buffleheads didn;t lay this year but the hens are young, keeping my fingers crossed for next year...

 

[waterdog]

Quote:
That's right,
There are countless breeders of ALL species of migratory wateroflw here in the US. NO need to import, even from Canada it's horrible.
Subscribe to the Game bird Breeder's Gazette, or the A.P.W.S ( American Pheasant and Waterfowl Society) magazines, this is all they do, waterfowl and game birds. Back pages of every issue is loaded with classified ads for waterfowl all over th country. Buffle heads are $500 a pair now just so you know

I just got my Gazette in the mail last week and I was scared to open it!!

My question where can I find some Comb ducks??

My buffleheads didn;t lay this year but the hens are young, keeping my fingers crossed for next year...

Buffeheads don't lay until the second year, and if your Smew layed you shouldn't have a problem getting the Buffleheads to lay. Just have to wait for the hens to mature.