Muscovy duck Q&A

[crandal]

Hello all I just purchased grown muscovies from someone 2 months ago.
I do have many questions but I will start with the most pressing. I have 4 female and 3 male. For the last couple weeks I've noticed them breeding like crazy but.... No eggs. Seems like they are done molting as they have been flying,. Also I am pumping them with high protein feed. Am I doing something wrong,. Shouldnt they be laying eggs if they are breeding.

Also,. There is one big alpha male that doesn't seem to be breeding but he's beating up the other 2 for trying. And they all have been together their whole lives there's a momma an alpha poppa. And the rest are the offspring to them. Could the alpha male be causing to much stress for them all to lay eggs should I separate him for a while

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

Other than they separated into 3 groups when they use to be together they have some political crap going on right now, I always thought it was because the group with alpha Drake wouldn't let the rest in coop,. But now even they aren't going in at night. They all use to go in between 7:30 and 9 on their own,. Now I have to push them all in and shut the door. I'd hate to leave them out at night because of the predators,. But am I doing the right thing. Some say to never force them into a coop

If the alternative is to have them get eaten by predators, I'd say that forcing them into the coop is the better approach. I'd rather they went in on their own, but I can understand why it's not exactly a draw for them. I think there are ways to make the coop more attractive to them so that they want to go in at night, but mine are ok with being herded in. They're pretty smart - they know when it's time to go in, but that doesn't mean they'll do it.

 

[Ravynscroft]

http://www.valuepetsupplies.com/exo...be16-YNc_b3EbNEjwQGO54X8tZsti2XiN8aAnB38P8HAQ

Anyone have any thoughts on this incubator?

I actually have the ReptiPro version of that bator... it is excellent!!
You can either turn the eggs by hand or you can purchase their turner for it... the turner is small, think it holds 16 eggs?? But other turners won't fit in it... I use mine without one... but it holds temp like a champ and humidity is no issue for hatching...

 

[Miss Lydia]

In a nesting box inside of a coop my coop has a big door to enter in and on the other side a square cutout for them to have access to a large yard " run" that is fully enclosed with chicken wire ceiling and walls and the walls of chicken wire are buried a foot under ground. There are 2 small tunnels in this run that it seems like a mouse or something has gained access to,. But not big enough to haul off an egg
During the day I open big door and they free range at night they go into coop and I close big door and they either remain in coop or venture into the protected fenced in yard

Chicken wire will not keep out predators It will only keep birds inside but raccoons can and will reach through the wire and grab a duck by the neck and try to pull it through the fence which means you may find a headless duck one morning. Weasels and Minks can get through a 1" opening and I have heard raccoons and other preds can rip open chicken wire. The best way to protect is using hardware wire[cloth] expensive but it can either be put from bottom 3' up all sides and gate or used solely all over.

 

[Ravynscroft]

Thank you what do you use for yours. The article I read they use pine shavings and diatomaceous earth. Whatever that is and don't know where I can even get that. They say the D.E. helps to speed up the drying of the poop.

Most feed stores carry diatomaceous earth... and while it does help dry out the poop quicker for the most part, the fine dust particles can be much more harmful if regularly inhaled by the ducks...

Might look into Sweet PDZ or 'Stall Fresh' instead... it's more granular and not as dusty... but really, I prefer to keep it just plain shavings myself as well...

 

[rachelsflock]

Thank you. And I just wanted some first hand accounts.
Ive also read that their meat is leaner and almost beefy. Is this true?

I raise muscovy for meat, but they've also won me over for their personalities. Most people here shy away from talking about them for meat because they ARE very intelligent and love eye contact. They are very quiet. Honestly to me they seem to be halfway between ducks and geese. The females mostly just coo or trill, and when stressed their quack is like a quiet honk. The drakes hiss and dance for you. They will even dance WITH you, lol. I love it.

While processing them is hard because their smart, having too many males can really, really hurt your girls. The drakes are so big they really squish and pound the girls. Mating isn't always consensual either, if you will, so it's best to keep the male-female ratio female heavy and low on males, so therefore you cull hard and there is usually a market for females for people to balance their flocks. One male to up to six females is okay. Depending on the drake you can go as low as two or three girls if they're easy on them. Sometimes this is best when you're first starting because at least my girls try to make nests with around TWENTY eggs each and most, if not all, of them hatch. And they try to do up to three rounds of ducklings each. That's a lot of ducks.

Processing is best done between 8-16 weeks. Meat gets tough much later than that, and getting feathers out gets harder as they age. I'm just a girl, so culling is hard and emotionally intense so I usually can't do more than three without taking a break for a day or two. I love my ducks, but this way I can guarantee my ducks had a life-long duck party up until the very end. Waxing with a hot soapy water scald is your friend. Sometimes you can find a processer that will take them. The one near me charges $8/bird to do it so I've never taken any. The birds can be breasted out and quartered, and there's a really good video on youtube on cooking duck breast on Foodwishes youtube channel that brings awesome results. Yes, it tastes just like beef. I think it's better. If your birds were free range the legs will be a little tougher and should be cooked slowly, but with younger birds you will have less of an issue. Also, I can't emphasize it enough, with older ducks, waxing is basically mandatory unless you want to spend hours plucking. Birds can also be roasted whole like turkeys.

They do need to be shut in safely at night otherwise you will eventually start losing birds when keeping them. Nesting moms especially need to be protected in their nests. I have them nest in big black or blue Tupperware tubs with holes cut in them and shavings or straw stuffed in so the nests can be moved a little bit to clean their coop. Free feeding while free ranging produces happy, big, content ducks that forage for much of their grow out food anyway. Contrary to what you may be told, they do like a wading pool when it's not freezing, and must have deep enough water to flush their nares year round-at least a bucket.

I love my Muscovy. Now I never want to be without them. They're like "better" geese for me. Just don't baby your drakes too much or they might see you as someone to be dominated and if you do have aggressive behavior with them cull and find a new male. They get big enough to cause a problem and their nails are huge and sharp. There's also a translucent spike on the joint of the wing, but that's not usually an issue.

Also, if you're worried about them flying away, pinioning at 3-7 days prevents that. It's not very traumatic compared to the yearly duck rodeo of wing clipping, and I've done about 50 ducklings and not lost one after the procedure-reminds me of ear piercing in humans, it's probably less traumatic than that because it's cartilage with even less circulation at that phase. Do it too late and it could really hurt. The ducklings are focusing on growing big and strong instead of making flying wings at that stage. It makes it so they can fly 3-4 feet up instead of across the yard, over your house. Cool to see, but big ducks aren't always road safe. If you do pinion, make sure you do it right though. I'm not sure what would happen to the baby if you do it wrong.

And my computer tries to correct Muscovy to Muscovite too, no biggie. Feel free to bug me with any more meat related questions either personally or on the form if no one else minds.

 

[Ren2014]

Quick question: I have a Muscovy female who has been having watery, runny stools. Could coccidiosis be a potential culprit?

check out this http://www.midamericaagresearch.net/instructions.php

A duck's poop is directly related to what it is eating. Any changes in food? Does it free range. Intestinal parasite infestations usually show them selves as lameness/paralysis. Is she eating/drinking and preening?

 

[Adalida]

I agree with Miss Lydia about keeping just your passive drake. I used to have three drakes and now only have one. So much less drama and the girls are so much happier. I kept the bottom-of-the-totem-pole drake because of his passive personality. He probably isn't the best flock guardian compared to the two dominant drakes but he treats the girls better.

 

[Ren2014]

I would choose drake #3 because once the other 2 are removed his personality will shine and you will have a drake that won't mind you getting close to him. I love Muscovy's. and Drakes are the coolest but I want one who is the best with the girls and me. @crandal Welcome to BYC!!

x2 I had two girls hatch babies this year and a lot of drakes from them. Unfortunately I've had a predator problem and lost some. One of the males I chose to keep was low man on the totem pole. Turned out he's been the nicest and the sweetest to his ladies and the easiest to pen up at night.

 

[Ren2014]

It's a normal behavior He is excited probably. My drake does it when he sees my husband. They have a love hate relationship. [Just kidding] but my drake also does it when he is telling my gander to back off.

Most ducks would prefer not to be touched. Just their nature.

x2 mine do this when another male gets too close to his girls. My girls also do this when they are fussing amongst themselves in a heated fashion.

Something else I've noticed when they seem to be discussing something is they raise their heads and continuously open and shut their mouths like they are catching flies or something. It really looks like they are yapping, lol.