Can you give it a rest for a few minutes!!

[gcovec42]

Thanks for all the replies! Maybe it will be too cold today and they will literaly.."Chill" out. I doubt it though.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I have Muscovies and i don't know about other muscovy owners but mine do take the winter off not only from egg laying to mating. It's a nice break for them all including me.

 

[newbyduckmom]

My drakes were absolutely impossible in August/September. Luckily they have chilled out and now can have the flock together during the day. Still separate the hens and drakes at night though or girls still get beat up. Really am most fond of my drakes - except in Aug/Sept when I was wondering why I refuse to engage a stew pot!

 

[Amiga]

m.kitchengirl,

thanks for your candor.

My approach is generally conservative (with, if you ask my beloved, some remarkable exceptions) with taking on a big project. So I like to hear the full range of experience from others. (Thanks, everybody!

)

It's good, for me, that I read Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks (except the entirety of the sections on colors), because it made me realize that I would be on a steep, steep learning curve with just getting my girls to adulthood.

There are also the sad stories about duck mothers who don't do so well, congenital conditions, and so forth.

Then there are the drake stories. Yowza!

So while I suspect that longer term, I will likely take in a drake, it's good to be able to look out for trouble before it drops in unexpectedly.

One reason I've considered rearing some ducklings here is that there aren't any breeders anywhere near me that I'm aware of (would love to be corrected about that. Who's in southern New England with runners? No rush, just want to know you're there. er, here.)

 

[70%cocoa]

I have two older drakes (plus a bunch of male adolescents). Don't get two drakes, LOL. They don't fight eachother but they do love hunting down eachothers' ladies. Most of the time the groups are totally separated.

One drake would be quite manageable and peaceful. Unless you want ducklings don't bother with a drake though. The girls will do just fine on their own.