Could I use weight in sexing Muscovy ducklings?

[DuckLoverJake]

I just purchased about a week ago 5 Muscovy ducklings they are really healthy but I'm concerned about gender. I think the woman said they are 3 weeks of age. Could I use a scale and weigh the babies to see a difference and maybe figure out the sex of them? Does that sound like a dumb idea or will it maybe work?

 

[Miss Lydia]

I just purchased about a week ago 5 Muscovy ducklings they are really healthy but I'm concerned about gender. I think the woman said they are 3 weeks of age. Could I use a scale and weigh the babies to see a difference and maybe figure out the sex of them? Does that sound like a dumb idea or will it maybe work?

I'm thinking going by my own that hatched here 10 weeks ago, that at 4 weeks they are still going to be about the same size. Usually around 6 weeks you start to see the draklings out growing the ducklets. and then it begins to be obvious, But try it and see if you notice much difference I'd like to know.

 

[DuckLoverJake]

Okay because I noticed one was really heavy compared to the other. So I'll let you know

 

[Miss Lydia]

Okay because I noticed one was really heavy compared to the other. So I'll let you know

I have 2 ducks and 1 drake 10 weeks old my one duckling from hatch has always been larger than her sister, I felt for sure she was a he, so sometimes you cannot go by size YET. But I have noticed other tell tale things too, from previous hatches over the years also, my drakes at about 5-6 weeks old will lay down a lot, they aren't near as active as their sisters are. This will go on for about 2-3 weeks then they seem to get their legs under them and don't do it as much. I don't know if it's because they are growing so fast but I have had duckling hatch the last 3 years and it was this way on all my drakelings. Other ways to tell duck from drake. legs drakes will be thick and set farther apart under body, ducks will have thinner legs and almost step on their own feet when walking the ducks bodies will be shorter and rounder than the drakes he will be longer from tip of bill to tip of tail. most of my females just have a feminine face.

 

[DuckLoverJake]

I'll look for all of those thanks

 

[wafflechicken]

Miss Lydia gave some good info (as always). The only thing i would say about the weight thing is - are you certain that all of your ducklings came from the same hatch?

I've gotten ducklings before that I was told were 2 weeks old. I had one two week old duckling at home that I hatched from an egg so I KNEW the hatch date on that. Of the 4 that I got, 2 feathered out much earlier (10-14 days earlier) than my known 2 week old duck. One was about the same as that one and one feathered out much later (about 7 days later).

Basically what I'm saying is - when some people say "3 weeks old" that means "the first (or last) batch hatched out three weeks ago, I've had two other batches hatch out since then and I keep them all together". So weight might not work in that case.

 

[DuckLoverJake]

The woman said they all hatched together. And I've seen minor differences in the sizes. I hope I'm right and there are two males and 3 females! Fingers crossed!

 

[Miss Lydia]

The woman said they all hatched together. And I've seen minor differences in the sizes. I hope I'm right and there are two males and 3 females! Fingers crossed!

you'll need more ducks