Appleyard vs. Welsh Harlequin ducks

[Fisherlmiranda]

She is very pretty!

I just got my 1st Silver Appleyard this Feb. and i love her to pieces!! I was at a cross just like you between these two breeds. i went with the SA because of their temperament and from what i could find research wise that they are not as capable of flying unlike the WH. Currently mine is running the show outside and bossing my 1 yr old Pekin around. She is sassy but completely loveable. So smart too! View attachment 1356429View attachment 1356431View attachment 1356434

 

[Fisherlmiranda]

Wow very beautiful! Mine is a yearling and mostly white.

I've had three WH hens for 2.5 years now. I love my girls. I have an order for more, along with some Saxony, coming from Holderreads (will hopefully be here tomorrow ). They are very sweet and calm. They like to talk to me when they see me coming. Mine have never gotten more than a few inches off the ground. Like maybe six inches max. The only time I've seen them "fly" is when they are heading toward a freshly filled pool. I will say that my girls take a long winter break from laying. When they do lay, it's almost always an egg a day with few days off.

I would think that a larger bird would eat more than a smaller bird. I believe that the Appleyard are bred more for meat even though they can also lay a lot of eggs.

Here are some pictures of my girls.
View attachment 1356753 View attachment 1356754 View attachment 1356755 View attachment 1356756 View attachment 1356757

 

[Fisherlmiranda]

I have Welsh harlequin and Peking ducks. My Welsh is calm and quiet and loving hardly eats any feed after free ranging all day. They fly a little bit off the ground like a chicken. But only when they need to get away from another duck or my rascally little dachshund. The silver apple yard is definitely going to eat more being a heavier duck. My Peking are pigs.

Thanks everyone! Haha, I'm still caught between these too. It seems they each have a lot of fans!

I noticed that onaharley mentioned that their Appleyards didn't fly as much as they had read WH could, but LLee34 said that their WH's didn't fly. I assume this just means that they can fly to varying degrees? I'm okay with a duck that can fly a bit, like a chicken, but too much more than that and I wouldn't be able to contain them!

Temperament would be a biggie for me. Two of you have said that your Appleyards have a nice temperament, does anyone know if the WH's do too?

Also, I noticed on the links you gave me (thanks!), that the Appleyards are quite a bit heavier than the WH's. (8-9 lbs, vs. 5 or so lbs.) I assume this would mean that they need more space? How much space would you recommend for the kind of ducks you have? And do you think the Appleyards would need to eat much more than the WH's due to this? If they both lay the same amount of eggs but one eats significantly more than the other, it might make a difference in the cost/benefit in the long run.

Sorry for all of the questions! The more answers I hear, the more questions I have!

 

[hhill1970]

Thanks everyone! Haha, I'm still caught between these too. It seems they each have a lot of fans!

I noticed that onaharley mentioned that their Appleyards didn't fly as much as they had read WH could, but LLee34 said that their WH's didn't fly. I assume this just means that they can fly to varying degrees? I'm okay with a duck that can fly a bit, like a chicken, but too much more than that and I wouldn't be able to contain them!

Temperament would be a biggie for me. Two of you have said that your Appleyards have a nice temperament, does anyone know if the WH's do too?

Also, I noticed on the links you gave me (thanks!), that the Appleyards are quite a bit heavier than the WH's. (8-9 lbs, vs. 5 or so lbs.) I assume this would mean that they need more space? How much space would you recommend for the kind of ducks you have? And do you think the Appleyards would need to eat much more than the WH's due to this? If they both lay the same amount of eggs but one eats significantly more than the other, it might make a difference in the cost/benefit in the long run.

Sorry for all of the questions! The more answers I hear, the more questions I have!

Hi,
I was on the hedge too, and so I bought both
Now, I'm LOVING the Welsh Harlequins more, and they have slight more beautiful coloring, and the black bill just tops them off. If I had to sum them up, the SA look like a cross between a Saxony and a WH. Of course, I didn't separate them over the Winter, and a coyote got one of my drakes... But, the ringer is is that my wing band came off the other.... Now, I'm scratching my head and wondering which Breed the remaining drake is...
I guess I will have to weigh him before I hatch any eggs as purebreds!
BUT, they all lay daily! Excellent little layers- both breeds!
I ordered another WH Drake, as my SA are just going to be in with my Rouens as a barnyard mix. I only want to concentrate on 2 Breeds this year, and I will be adding Call ducks soon!
BTW, my WH don't fly anywhere at all. Just waddle around foraging.
I don't know if that helps, but maybe this will- The WH are easier to "herd" into the coop for the night!

 

[hhill1970]

Hi,
I was on the hedge too, and so I bought both
Now, I'm LOVING the Welsh Harlequins more, and they have slight more beautiful coloring, and the black bill just tops them off. If I had to sum them up, the SA look like a cross between a Saxony and a WH. Of course, I didn't separate them over the Winter, and a coyote got one of my drakes... But, the ringer is is that my wing band came off the other.... Now, I'm scratching my head and wondering which Breed the remaining drake is...
I guess I will have to weigh him before I hatch any eggs as purebreds!
BUT, they all lay daily! Excellent little layers- both breeds!
I ordered another WH Drake, as my SA are just going to be in with my Rouens as a barnyard mix. I only want to concentrate on 2 Breeds this year, and I will be adding Call ducks soon!
BTW, my WH don't fly anywhere at all. Just waddle around foraging.
I don't know if that helps, but maybe this will- The WH are easier to "herd" into the coop for the night!
Also, they are wicked friendly, and are actually less wary than the SA for some reason? I have different sizes of ducks together, and everyone gets along just fine!

 

[Duck Dreamer]

Thanks everyone! Haha, I'm still caught between these too. It seems they each have a lot of fans!

I noticed that onaharley mentioned that their Appleyards didn't fly as much as they had read WH could, but LLee34 said that their WH's didn't fly. I assume this just means that they can fly to varying degrees? I'm okay with a duck that can fly a bit, like a chicken, but too much more than that and I wouldn't be able to contain them!

Temperament would be a biggie for me. Two of you have said that your Appleyards have a nice temperament, does anyone know if the WH's do too?

Also, I noticed on the links you gave me (thanks!), that the Appleyards are quite a bit heavier than the WH's. (8-9 lbs, vs. 5 or so lbs.) I assume this would mean that they need more space? How much space would you recommend for the kind of ducks you have? And do you think the Appleyards would need to eat much more than the WH's due to this? If they both lay the same amount of eggs but one eats significantly more than the other, it might make a difference in the cost/benefit in the long run.

Sorry for all of the questions! The more answers I hear, the more questions I have!

My Welshies are sweet. Sometimes my drake tries to chase me but I got him more females and he does it less.

They can get about a foot off the ground and fly about 2 feet forward. They do their best imitation flying when being chased.

When I am gardening they like to come hang out with me. They eat grasshoppers, and other bugs.

They talk to me when I come out to feed them or give them water. They really love their pool.