beginner question!

Laci D Hill

In the Brooder
6 Years
Jun 26, 2013
34
6
31
How do I sex my ducks? They look to be a Magpie cross. All ive read from the breed page is females are smaller...is there a more physical and definite way to tell? Mine are 5-6 months old and not laying. I don't even know when they're supposed to be able to start laying.
 
400
 
How do I sex my ducks? They look to be a Magpie cross. All ive read from the breed page is females are smaller...is there a more physical and definite way to tell? Mine are 5-6 months old and not laying. I don't even know when they're supposed to be able to start laying.

Welcome to the duck forum!!!

At 5 or 6 months, you should be able to tell their sex by their voices. Females will make a distinct "Quack" and the males will make a quieter "murrp" sound. Also, the males will have their curled drake feather on their tails.

It is not surprising that your girls are not laying yet. The days are getting shorter and colder (unless you are in the southern hemisphere!!). Very productive layers (like Khaki Campbells) will start laying in the fall when they are 6 months old. Others, including some good laying breeds, may wait until Feb or March when the days start to get longer to start laying eggs.

Your magpie crosses are very handsome!! I've never had magpies, but I understand them to be decent layers. I would expect that you'd start to get eggs from them in the early spring, and they will probably lay until fall.
 
Do my eyes betray me, or are they all just getting their flight feathers? They actually look a lot younger than 5 or 6 months, in which case drakes would not have developed their sex curls yet.
When did you get them?

But you should be able to tell duck from drake by their voice. Are they quacking loudly or rather rasping quietly?
 
The flock pic is from a few months ago. Just to show ya'll their coloring. The one I'm holding is from a month ago. I just looked it up n they hatched June 20. So they're only 3months old. Gosh! I sure thought they were older!
 
Thank u for the link and the tip on the quack differences. I definitely have a few females if a loud QUACK is a key. Lol.
 
i'd originally labeled them Magpies, in my ignorance. and they still have the main markings of them, but this one hen has barred feathers and one of the drakes has a green head. the other drake is solid white. all from the same clutch of eggs from the same hen who was a perfect black and white. the drake with her was a match to her. any ideas on what the breeds are in this flock? the tan hen was given to me from my cousins. i'd like to know what she is also.



 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom