Another male duck problem

[flock mom]

Hi folks,

Looking for advice on a male duck. I got two ducks this spring- a khaki-campbell and a cayuga. Intended for egg production, but also of course they are pets. The cayuga turned out to be a male. I am worried that he may cause problems for my one female by overbreeding her. I have read that you are supposed to have a 1:3-5 male:female ratio. I have the opportunity to trade the cayuga with a friend who is raising meat ducks (they are female). Not as productive, but she would still lay. I am unsure what to do. Will introducing a new female to my khaki be stressful (along with ditching the male she grew up with)? Or would keeping the male cayuga be worse? The khaki appears more aggressive than the cayoga, I don't know if that would help her.

Thanks in advance for your advice!

 

[GitaBooks]

Welcome to BYC!

I myself don't have ducks yet (I'm hoping to get some soon) but I have read a lot about them. Meat breeds sometimes have health problems and shorter lifespans. You could try getting one and introducing the Khaki and her together, I'm not sure how they would react.

As for the male, you could try keeping an eye on him and see how it works out. You could also try getting a few more females for him, if you have the space.

Sorry I couldn't be more helpful. Best of luck to you!

 

[Amykins]

It's really up to you, in the end. You could wait and see, but with two drakes and one hen, yeah, odds are very good that you'll wind up with a lot of fighting and a very miserable hen!

Your duck may be wary of a new bird being introduced because ducks are creatures of habit and don't take kindly to having their environment changed. But given time I think everyone will adapt. The question now is is you're too attached to your drakes and can't decide to do the swap or just get more ducks!

 

[Debs Flock]

Hi folks,

Looking for advice on a male duck. I got two ducks this spring- a khaki-campbell and a cayuga. Intended for egg production, but also of course they are pets. The cayuga turned out to be a male. I am worried that he may cause problems for my one female by overbreeding her. I have read that you are supposed to have a 1:3-5 male:female ratio. I have the opportunity to trade the cayuga with a friend who is raising meat ducks (they are female). Not as productive, but she would still lay. I am unsure what to do. Will introducing a new female to my khaki be stressful (along with ditching the male she grew up with)? Or would keeping the male cayuga be worse? The khaki appears more aggressive than the cayoga, I don't know if that would help her.

Thanks in advance for your advice!

I believe it's always possible for a drake to be okay with just one female. Are they very similar in size?

If you add a buddy for the female or more females to go with what you have already, the key to successful introductions is doing so gradually. Let them be near each other, where they can see one another, but not gain direct access.

Good luck & welcome to BYC!

 

[Amykins]

I believe it's always possible for a drake to be okay with just one female. Are they very similar in size?

If you add a buddy for the female or more females to go with what you have already, the key to successful introductions is doing so gradually. Let them be near each other, where they can see one another, but not gain direct access.

Good luck & welcome to BYC!

It's possible, but not ideal. And I say that as someone who has only one drake and one hen. You may have to separate them during mating season if things get too rough, is all.

 

[flock mom]

Thanks so much for the advice. The drake (cayuga) is quite a bit bigger than the hen (khaki campbell). I don't imagine that would help the situation.

 

[needlessjunk]

Thanks so much for the advice. The drake (cayuga) is quite a bit bigger than the hen (khaki campbell). I don't imagine that would help the situation.

No, it will not be helping at all. I had rehome my drake due to over matting. I have 5 hens and he would only mate with my 2 small girls. He ended up tearing them all up and everyone was miserable! As soon and he was gone there has been so much more happiness. I never want another drake unless I need one. He wasn't a bad duck or anything but it's so frustrating when there isn't anything you can do expect to separate them and listen to him cry all day. The min he was out he would do nothing but mate 2 ducks all day long and case them down incessantly.

 

[Amykins]

No, it will not be helping at all. I had rehome my drake due to over matting. I have 5 hens and he would only mate with my 2 small girls. He ended up tearing them all up and everyone was miserable! As soon and he was gone there has been so much more happiness. I never want another drake unless I need one. He wasn't a bad duck or anything but it's so frustrating when there isn't anything you can do expect to separate them and listen to him cry all day. The min he was out he would do nothing but mate 2 ducks all day long and case them down incessantly.

Yeah...drakes are often narcissistic bullies in general. Wobbles is the size of a pigeon but he seems to think he's a real Guido, harassing all my other pets and even attacking my six foot tall fiance!

 

[flock mom]

My drake is really sweet right now, but maybe that is just because the hormones haven't kicked in yet.

 

[casportpony]

My drake is really sweet right now, but maybe that is just because the hormones haven't kicked in yet.

Many will never be aggressive.

-Kathy