Cayuga turning white, how old is she?

[jupiter_moon_3]

I have an older Cayuga. We got her on Craigslist, the family had to get rid of their birds because their dogs were killing them... We have NO IDEA how old she is. When we got her about six months ago, she was solid black with iridescence. She started getting some white feathers about three months ago, and more and more are coming in. I know this is normal, I read about them, and I see that they do turn white when they're older, but HOW old? How old should I assume she is? Do they die soon after "aging" like this? Just preparing myself for it if that's the case...

 

[desertdarlene]

If it's only a small amount of white, then she's probably fairly young, still. I've seen photos of females at about 7 or 8 years old that were almost completely white.

 

[GrannyCarol]

I have a three year old Cayuga (I'm still not convinced she's purebred, a friend got hatching eggs)... she had a few white feathers when I got her at one year, now she's almost half white. Your girl might be pretty young yet.

 

[jupiter_moon_3]

I did realize she DOES still lay eggs. I'm still new to ducks but I am assuming they stop when they're older? I hope she's still young! I have a baby, too, almost five months old, he's solid black with purple, blue and some green, so gorgeous! Our friend's five year old daughter always asks me, "Can I see the duck that lights up?"

 

[GrannyCarol]

My old ducks still lay, just not as many as often and much more seasonal. Pretty much all of my ducks lay in the spring, even the ones that are several years old, so you ought to be able to get eggs to hatch next spring, if you want to. I love a good iridescent Cayuga! Soooo pretty!

 

[zzGypsy]

Quote:
mine are the same, reliable daily layers until their first molt, then less reliable after that. and they started showing some white feathers after their first adult molt... more on each molt.