Welsh Harlequin

We got our Welsh Harlequin hen (Lucy) last summer. Lucy is so sweet and very loving to both people and to the other ducks. She has been a very good layer and lays beautiful big eggs!

Lucy

Cackle Hatchery and Holderreads have wonderful birds. They added color to the flock with out sacrificing egg production. The Khaki campbells from Mcmurrays were the only ducks I have seen to out lay these pretty girls.

I have owned my two harlequins for 6 yrs. They are docile and alert. Very sweet natured. They love following me in the paddleboat on the pond. They eat out my hand and come to see me when I am in the yard. They are curious about animals that may come to the pond and will quack to alert me. They will also quack if they want a treat. They like stomach pats. They are easy to pick up and carry during their winter transition from the fenced pond to the fenced yard and heated house. I recommend them to anyone as they are a pretty edition to a flock and are very easy to tame and to interact with if you follow a daily routine.

I have 3 Harlequin hens purchased earlier this year from Metzer's. They are the most friendly and personable ducks I have ever owned. Used to have Mallards which were nice by they can fly off on you on a heart beat.

My hens are now laying at least one egg a day even though it's winter. They are kept indoors in a pen in the barn during the winter with lights during the day.

Very pretty birds!

PS The one in the middle is a hen. She changed color later than the others.

I have some Welsh Harlequins that I ordered from Metzer farms and they are very calm and quiet. Some of mine have been shy and others extremely friendly and always come running when they see me and they greet me with soft gentle squeaky sounds... I can't explain the sound too well but it's a very soft sweet sound. I love these ducks their temperament is wonderful and even my one drake is very respectful of me and keeps his distance. He never gets too close to me and won't eat from my hand unlike the girls which makes me have a lot of respect and love for him because I feel totally and completely safe and not threatened at all whenever I go in the duck pen. This will be my first spring with them as adult ducks so I am hoping my drake doesn't change too much but I am prepared for anything.

I am definitely in love with this breed of ducks and am going to be hatching a few eggs in my incubator very soon so that I can have a few more of these sweeties. The girls do lay well. They have been laying throughout the winter. The egg size I am getting is about the size of a Large chicken egg? Maybe even a bit larger. I don't particularly like the taste of duck eggs so I don't eat them the way I eat chicken eggs, but I do use them in baking and they make an amazing french toast and delicious homemade pancakes! The ducks are not quite as large as my Cayuga duck and defintely smaller than my Pekin girl. They are a light breed of duck but I would say they are definitely not too small to eat either if you are looking for a dual purpose duck. On top of all this I find them to be beautiful animals. I really like the contrast of a dark bill and dark legs on a lighter colored duck. If you are considering Welshies as a layer, dual purpose duck, or even just for backyard pets, I think you will be pleased with them and I do highly recommend them.

I had 2 gold phase girls and 2 silver phase. These are the gold girls.

Whisper


Cookie

I bought my welsh for her sheer beauty but recently read that they are on the critically endangered list. This duck provides hours of enjoyment. Not to mention she keeps the weeds and bugs in my garden and around my house, at bay. She is also a prolific egg layer. Definitely a species we need to save!

We've had Welsh Harlequin for 10 years now and have tried other breeds before and during this period. None has compared with the overall calm disposition and heavy laying combination of our Welsh Harlequin. From time to time I take fancy to a different breed but have never completely replaced my WH, and good thing since I always go back to the mainstay great layers.

I love my two Welshies. They follow me and cuddle up with me, and they get along well with my Khaki Campbell and Indian Runner. According to Metzer Farms, Welsh Harlequins are the calmest bird on their farm - and they raise many different breeds of ducks, geese, chickens, pearl guineas, and quails. The only downside is that they will get attached and peep when you're not there, but mine have actually learned not to peep when my boyfriend and I are asleep. All in all, this is a great breed for beginners and pros alike.

I've owned a few Welsh Harlequins over about a year and a half. They continue to impress me with their sweet temperaments and absolutely stunning colouring. Another plus is their laying ability---one of my females rivaled my sexlink chooks in rate of lay, giving me one egg almost every day until I had to euthanize her prematurely due to a predator. Every flock should have a welshie or two in it.

The hens are prolific layers of white standard large size eggs, which make these delicious eggs easy to incorporate into any recipe. They are also excellent brooders and mothers when the need arises. The ducklings are very robust and you can sex them during the first 3 days with fairly good accuracy. The drakes are docile towards the hens and ducklings, quickly "giving up the chase" when in amorous pursuit or pecking order dominance. They are very friendly to humans as well. Adult birds that were not human-socialized when we brought them home were literally eating out of my hand within a few weeks. Although they are considered a dual purpose fowl, we haven't eaten any of ours. I'm sure they wouldn't provide as much meat as a Pekin since they're only half the size. But then, for a backyard, their compact size is just another a bonus!

These birds are absolutely wonderful and are my favorite birds in my flock. They have very nice temperament and are very friendly and like to be social and playful. They do not fly and are not loud compared to other ducks so they make a good duck to have if your neighbords live close but they do make some noise.

They make great mothers and will hatch out their own eggs so you don't need an incubator. This treat is great for homesteaders who want to raise animals who naturally rear their own young.

They make a wonderful table bird of a medium size and clean up nicely due to their white feathers. They lay a lot of eggs up to 350 eggs a year.

I sell hatching eggs and ducklings from my show quality stock from time to time. If your interested feel free to check out my profile to see if I have any for sell or contact me.

I love this breed, beautiful birds, very friendly. I paid $100 for my frirts four, plus the other 6 im getting next month, I have had mine for 6 months, my 3 hens give me 3 eggs a day. They follow me around the yard as i do chicken and duck chores, my favorite breed by far! Very good breed for a first time duck owner

I love my Harlequins. There such lovly birds. Elegant and statly, from the name to the feathers.

I have two drakes, Lamorak and Amorok, and three hens, Lucia, Gillis, and Caillean. They are very pretty and some of my quieter ducks. The two drakes are inseparable. The females and males both get beautiful markings that look like they have been painted on. I have yet to get eggs, but they are still young.

I use my ducks as true multi-purpose ducks. They are excellent as herding ducks for training and working herding dogs as they are medium sized, hardy, not prone to fly, yet not so heavy they can't move. They are rather smart and learn where they are supposed to be quickly. They are not as flighty as Call Ducks or Indian Runners, but not as heavy as Blue Swedes or Rougens...They are very winter hardy and friendly ducks, even if worked with dogs. They are not easily intimidated or overly borthered by dogs unless you have a really green dog that is overly pushy with them. They are not overly loud either.

They are great layers and good meat ducks. They can be broody. Being beautifully colored is just a bonus. The males are not as aggressive as some other males during breeding season. Overally, one of my favorite ducks.

When I decided I wanted to get ducks I did lots of research and decided that Welsh Harlequins were for me. I wanted a duck that would lay lots of eggs, plus be a good duck for the table. I ordered mine from Holderread's, and they are absolutely gorgeous. I would recommend WH's to anyone looking to raise ducks. They are funny and smart, and a joy to have around!