age and breed info needed please

[nuttinfancy]

I was given these as a gift and was told the yellow/white are Pekin but not sure of the black ones. Does anyone care to approximate the age of them also? They were purchased from a breeder and he said they were 7 weeks when this photo was taken but they look small compared to some I have seen pictured here. Thanks for any help you can give
Vickie

 

[learycow]

It looks like you have some white pekins and some black swedish.

If there are feathers on the chest (it's too hard for me to tell in the pic) then yes, 7 weeks sounds about right. But I agree, they do look small.
If you can, keep food out for them 24/7. Let them eat what they feel they need and be sure they have fresh clean water available 24/7 too. That will help them put weight on and keep it on, and aid in growing.
And be sure you give them plenty of space as they grow. They will grow VERY fast! And you don't want them to get overcrowded as that can cause stunted growth and injuries as well

 

[nuttinfancy]

Thank you for helping. I have moved them to a large pen so they can move around more and I keep feed out for them. I have never had ducks before and have quickly learned how fond of water they really are (for drinking and swimming). If you don't mind another question- will the 2 breeds mate or will they stay with their own breed? I am supposed to have a male Pekin and a male Blk Swedish and listening to them I definitely have one of each "quacking" while the others "tweet" . I have been reading lots of posts trying to learn as much as I can and you have already been a great help. Thanks again
Vickie

 

[learycow]

No problem Happy to help!
They will NOT stick to their own breed when it comes time to mate. The males will basically mate with any female they can catch. They don't care about size or color! So if you want pure ducklings, then separate the ducks by breed. Otherwise any that hatch will most likely be cross-bred.

And yes, if they have a loud "quack", then they are females. If it's more quiet and raspy sounding, then it's a male. I would wait another 2-3 weeks before you can voice sex them for sure though as Ive found that when young, they tend to go through what I call "duck puberty" where males and females change sounds and can easily be mistaken
And around 12-16 weeks, males will get a curly feather at the base of their tail (it comes in early for some males, late for others which is why I gave such a large gap in weeks). SO if you have a hard time with the voices then just sit tight and wait for curly tail feathers

 

[nuttinfancy]

Oh no! Time to decide if I want them "crossing" I suppose. At this stage though I haven't even decided if I want to hatch any. I have a friend that wants to buy the eggs for cakes so that will be okay.
I hope to train them to return to their coop at night but free range at our pond during the day. For now they only get out of the run for an hour or so and I haven't shown them the pond yet. I feel I should keep them in for now as they aren't as friendly to me as I would like. I hand feed them and talk to them but if I make a sudden move, they run.
I will keep watching for a curly feather! Maybe I won't have to change any names!
Here's an updated pic- I am amazed at the size difference 2 and a 1/2 weeks has made.


Thanks again! I love learning all that I can about them.
Vickie

 

[Miss Lydia]

Oh no! Time to decide if I want them "crossing" I suppose. At this stage though I haven't even decided if I want to hatch any. I have a friend that wants to buy the eggs for cakes so that will be okay.
I hope to train them to return to their coop at night but free range at our pond during the day. For now they only get out of the run for an hour or so and I haven't shown them the pond yet. I feel I should keep them in for now as they aren't as friendly to me as I would like. I hand feed them and talk to them but if I make a sudden move, they run.
I will keep watching for a curly feather! Maybe I won't have to change any names!
Here's an updated pic- I am amazed at the size difference 2 and a 1/2 weeks has made.


Thanks again! I love learning all that I can about them.
Vickie

They are so cute and grow up so fast.

 

[wafflechicken]

The males will basically mate with any female they can catch. They don't care about size or color!

Heck, they don't even care about species!

 

[learycow]

Heck, they don't even care about species!

So true!
I had a call duck drake that would chase one of my wyandotte hens around the yard. He would TRY to mate once he caught her but she was easily 3 times larger than him so I don't think he ever succeeded. But it was still funny to watch him try!

 

[nuttinfancy]

So true!
I had a call duck drake that would chase one of my wyandotte hens around the yard. He would TRY to mate once he caught her but she was easily 3 times larger than him so I don't think he ever succeeded. But it was still funny to watch him try!

 

[wafflechicken]

So true!
I had a call duck drake that would chase one of my wyandotte hens around the yard. He would TRY to mate once he caught her but she was easily 3 times larger than him so I don't think he ever succeeded. But it was still funny to watch him try!

Hahahaha! Sounds about right!

I had a scovie drake (past tense, it pains me to say. I think I loved him more than my house pets) that would try to top my GEESE (American Buff). Not only were the geese opposed to this but so were the ganders! I would see him out there spattered with blood. I've had some daytime mink problems so the first time I was all panicked and out there in the chair with the rifle. But no. There wasn't a mink bloodying him. He was getting his bill totally raked by the geese (and anyone whose seen a toothed goose bill and toothed tongue knows...) as he tried to have his way with them. He would back off for a day, long enough for things to scab over and then he'd be back at them! After a week or so he actually had a dished bill - a noticable dent in the middle where it had been scraped off. And still he tried - even though he had 4 ducks of his own.

Anyone who says the survival instinct is the strongest drive has clearly never known birds.

On a side note, I don't know that much about call ducks - are they really that small or do I just not know that much about Wyandottes? I've been looking for a DP breed (through some raccoon issues I have only ISA Browns for eggs and obviously I can't breed those with my one survining RIR roo and get anything expected) Are Wyandottes really that big? I mean that sounds like roaster size. I mean not like puny roaster but like you're going to fill your roaster pan!

I don't mean to offend if you only raise for eggs and I realize I'm off-topic on the duck board but... If Wyandottes are that large and lay well... I may need to get some.