Need advice on Muscovy duck!

[chickenlover432]

Hi guys,
Now this is a long story, so I'm going to run through it as quickly as possible:
We've had a neighbor living diagonally behind us. We've known for a a long time that he's a drug dealer, but we had no idea that he had a duck. So, the other week, This man was arrested, and immediately sent off to jail. Our other neighbors, living directly behind us, alerted the police that there was a duck in the backyard, but they told him to leave it. A week later, my OTHER neighbor was walking past the empty house, and noticed a "goose" out the front. We decided to go out and help the "goose" which was actually the duck. So now the duck is in our backyard, sleeping peacefully (we gave him food and water as he hasnt had a drink or eat all week).
So we also have to hens, now that we have a duck as well, can you give e some advice on how to feed it, introduce it to the chooks etc. Answers ASAP would be greatly appreciated, thanks

 

[jennifleur]

It sounds like your drake is raising his crest in a good way.

 

[Virus]

That's quite the story! With introducing him to the hens you already have, I would suggest putting him in a pen or something close to them so they can see each other without you having to worry about them fighting. Now when you do put them in the same area there will probably be a few fights but as long as the fights don't have blood shed or last for more than a minutes that's fine, they just need to get that out of there system. I feed my duck the same food I give my hens, just make sure it can be fed to both chickens and ducks. My drake lives with my hens relatively peacefully, my barred rock chases him sometimes but nothing serious. Ducks are very social so make sure you're giving him some love, just sitting outside with him for an hours will make him happy. Good luck!

 

[chickenlover432]

Thanks so much I take it Muscovy ducks are fine living by themselves (with the company of chickens)?

 

[Virus]

Any duck can live by it's self as long as you spend some time with him. Chances are if he was by himself, he was raised without other ducks and may prefer human companionship over the chickens and even other ducks. If you hang out with your chickens already this shouldn't be that much different. So far he sounds very sweet, tell me if you name him!

 

[Amiga]

Glad you are compassionate, and took the duck in

Is it a girl or a boy?

Male ducks you need to be careful of with chickens - if they decide to mate the chickens it could be fatal. Not always, but it's a serious concern. If she's a girl duck, that ought not to be a problem.

I agree, if the duck was raised as a single, it will need some human companionship . . . each duck is unique, so over time I expect if you observe carefully, you will be able to tell when the duck is stressed, and when he or she is content.

Ducks can do okay on poultry food. There is also, if you can swing it, Mazuri Waterfowl Maintenance food. With just the one duck you might need to keep waterfowl food in sealed buckets because it will take a while to go through it. A good poultry maintenance food should work fine, though.

You might get some poultry vitamins for once every week or so for a while - you don't know what the duck was raised on.

 

[chickenlover432]

Well, thats the problem:/ I don't actually know whether he is a boy or a girl. I heard drakes can only hiss, and that's what Leo does (while wagging his tail feathers, which is incredibly cute) and obviously if it was a girl, she would be laying eggs, but we haven't found any. So far, I've been keeping an eye on him and the chickens, and I've noticed that they get on very well, but they tend to stay away from eachother. So could you give me any clues as to finding out what gender it might be? And also, can ducks roost with chickens? Or do I need to get it a duck house?

 

[chickenlover432]

Also, he seems very healthy and happy. He was very thirsty when we found him, but its been three days, and he's drank a lot and even had a swim

 

[Miss Lydia]

He looks pretty identical to this duck.

That's a drake. Handsome boy! Drakes make awesome pets once they realize your not going to be their female it takes time and if they didn't come to you as tiny ducklings you may never have that problem anyway. I have a drake that is just like having a dog he wags his tail loves to come in and visit and has a small snack of dog kibble in the house.
I would seriously consider getting him a few ladies of his own though they really do like their own kind. Some of my Muscovy females roost in the chicken coop some sleep on the shavings.

 

[chickenlover432]

Thanks so much for your reply At the moment, we're just getting used to having one duck, so it might be a step to far to get another one as well, but we will consider it. You are obviously quite experienced with Muscovy's so could you give me some clues as to what his gestures mean? Also what do i feed him? He really is such a cutie and I'm so angry that the authorities completely ignored him and left him behind. Also, sometimes when I come near him, his crest will come up, and I originally thought that was him giving me a warning, but then as soon as i talk to him, he wags his tail, and bobs his head and makes a sound that sounds like he's laughing (he's so adorable) So now I'm confused as to whether he's trying to ward me off, or welcome me.