The Buff Orpington Duck Thread

[alscatS]

Hi rebcart!

My buff drake has a blue-green/gray bill so I would venture to say you have a boy!

so the orange-ish bills are the girls and the blue-green/gray are the boys - I think I only have 3 girls out of 10 - yikes.!!!

 

[NathanZee]

 

[GoldenFlight]

Here is my trio of buff ducks I got this year. They are so fun and full of personality.

 

[Amiga]

 

[alscatS]

IT TOOK 23 WEEKS!!! But duck eggs every day now - WOW - all three of my girls have an egg for every morning...AND three this morning are going in the incubator - hope all is going to work out - one egg is smaller then the other two - but I am hoping, after getting the incubator temp correct, that I get 2 out of 3..... if this works, I will save a few days worth of eggs and then incubate......Anyone know if ducks breed all year round...For that matter anyone know if ducks lay eggs in winter???? if so do they need a light, like my chickens..?

 

[GoldenFlight]

Yes, ducks can lay in the winter if you use lights.

 

[alscatS]

We went by the sound of the the quack - and ended up with a bunch of girls, I kept 1 drake and three ladies. I should submit pics, wish the drakes silver head came out earlier.

 

[arup]

I just found out I had buffs instead of Pekins (being new to this and all) can someone tell me the temperatures that can withstand both hot and cold. Our winters here get pretty cold in Chicago.

 

[NathanZee]

I just found out I had buffs instead of Pekins (being new to this and all) can someone tell me the temperatures that can withstand both hot and cold. Our winters here get pretty cold in Chicago.

I live in minnesota which is much colder than chicago and many people in minnesota do not provide heat for their ducks, so you should be fine. As long as you don't have drafts and there is plenty to eat and drink they should be okay. Post pics of your coop and ducks if you want!

 

[Amiga]

I just found out I had buffs instead of Pekins (being new to this and all) can someone tell me the temperatures that can withstand both hot and cold. Our winters here get pretty cold in Chicago.

I think you have two ducks, yes? And they probably don't weigh more than 5 pounds - I think it would be difficult for just the two of them to keep themselves warm enough in a really frigid shelter.

From my experience with Runners, I can say that not all ducks have the same cold hardiness. And from threads here, I have found that some folks who say their ducks are fine in extreme cold actually have a shelter available to the ducks that stays closer to 35F to 40F. For me, it's not a question of survival but of thriving. I have a number of Runners who do not thrive below 35F - so they have a night shelter that stays at or above 40F. And when I let the flock outside, I watch them. On a cloudy day that's 25F and breezy, they'll start showing signs of getting chilled, and I bring them in.

I aim to adjust their setup so that they can bring themselves in, but for now they cannot - and I must pay attention to the weather report. During a blizzard, of course, they remain in their night shelter, that is nice and roomy with a little over 100 square feet for 14 small (3 - 4 pound) ducks.

At the very least, have a backup shelter for them - and please keep track. I had an indoor-outdoor thermometer set up to read the temperature inside the duck coop without me opening the door and making it even colder. That is how I monitored them their first winter, and that's how I learned what the threshold of my less hardy ducks is.

Also, there have been some record-breaking low temperatures - ducks do have their limits.