advice on choosing Muscovy ducklings?...pics of the 3 I picked added

[jamband]

I am picking up 3 tomorrow. They are 10days - 2 weeks old and there are 14 of them. I would like to have one drake and 2 hens. Is there any sign I can look for at this age or is it a coin flip? Also any advice on color at that age? I read something about bill color? Thanks. I can't wait to get them.

ok here they are....the 3 new muscovies 2 weeks old. The yellow ones bill is different than the other 2

 

[duckyfromoz]

Early this year I had a rescue duckling that was a scovy- and I tried to get it a mate, I had no idea the sex of the first one....... So when picking up a friend from a breeder I asked of I could get a female. Better to have a pair than two males at least was my thinking. She picked up a few and looked at them pointed at a few others- saying if they were male or female. She was mainly looking at the body length. She swears by the fact that the males are longer in the body even at such a young age. Sadly - I cant tell you if she was correct as the little ones soon found a loving new home...... but just thought I would at least mention what I had been told.

 

[jamband]

has anyone had luck with that?

 

[PlumTuckered]

When my 6 scovie ducklings were 2 weeks old I guessed that I had 4 girls and 2 boys. I looked at the body length, leg thickness, foot size and chests. They are now 12 weeks old and I had guessed right on the sexes.
Hope that helps

Michelle

 

[jamband]

any chance you have a pic at that age?

 

[jamband]

any thought on color prediction?

 

[PlumTuckered]

Here are mine at one week:

here they are at 2.5 weeks of age:

here they are at 4 weeks of age:

here they are now:
The boys, Shadow and Nibbles

The Girls, Willow, Sudi, Cocoa and Bleenie

I wish I had taken shot just for sexing comparison as they grew up.

Michelle

 

[jamband]

wow thanks....they grow fast......i saw the babies at about 4 days and they were all the yellow with darker areas on them. does that mean white?

 

[BarredBuff]

If you want a male get the largest duckling there. Then for females get the smallest ones. Thats how I got my quartet of them even as day olds.

 

[ThePolishPrincess]

When I picked out mine, they were a week old, and there were 5 of them. 2 black, 2 whites, and 1 brown. I was going to take home 2 and wanted to get both girlies. I carefully picked out the two smallest, and now I have two beautiful hens.

I didn't know it works that way with ducks, but perhaps luck helped?

All yellow duckies should come out white. Yellow and brown tends to be chocolate or chocolate bibbed, as yellow and black usually is black or black bibbed. As for 'all colors in between' I'm not sure...