Guess who just found someone in the area willing to unload a trio of mature Muscovy ducks for $35?
They're going to be picked up on Sunday. I'm probably going to lock them in my duck coop for a month or two to get them used to my farm. But here's my 4 problems:
1: What kind of feed do they eat? I know naturally, Muscovies love to forage for their food. But I'd prefer for them not to run/fly away. If nothing else, this'll just appease my mind, closing them in for a month or two. I have standard Nutrena Naturewise All-Flock pellets (that's what I feed my ducks/geese).
2:Is there anything special Muscovies need? This is other than food. My other ducks literally just need pellets and water. Do Muscovies need anything different than what I do for the normal ducks?
3: How do they get along with my other ducks? There's a reason I've considered buying ducks in the first place. I had 22 ducks or so at one point. I gave five away to a neighbor. And I've steadily lost the rest to foxes or whatever other predator is causing this. My numbers are now down to 5 (all female, if their could ever be a silver lining to this duck massacre that's been taking place). Needless to say, my geese are really ignoring their duties. But the problem is that the geese want to go far around my property, while the ducks don't go that far from the barn, which is where I'm assuming the predator gets them. I'm wondering if the Muscovies would cooperate with my other ducks. For one, I don't want fighting ducks. And for two, maybe the Muscovies can go with the ducks and their presence could deter predators.
4: Would they get along with geese? I have this male goose that acts like every male goose in the history of the world. He is very arrogant and all those other male goose characteristics. I've heard Muscovies can be up to 15 pounds and I know my male African is probably around that weight. Is there any potential for bad fighting, especially in the coop where each male would have 2 nesters to defend (2 Muscovy females I'm getting for the Male Muscovy to defend and 1 African and 1 Embden goose for the male African to defend)?
Any other tips for Muscovies also would be appreciated.
1: What kind of feed do they eat? I know naturally, Muscovies love to forage for their food. But I'd prefer for them not to run/fly away. If nothing else, this'll just appease my mind, closing them in for a month or two. I have standard Nutrena Naturewise All-Flock pellets (that's what I feed my ducks/geese).
2:Is there anything special Muscovies need? This is other than food. My other ducks literally just need pellets and water. Do Muscovies need anything different than what I do for the normal ducks?
3: How do they get along with my other ducks? There's a reason I've considered buying ducks in the first place. I had 22 ducks or so at one point. I gave five away to a neighbor. And I've steadily lost the rest to foxes or whatever other predator is causing this. My numbers are now down to 5 (all female, if their could ever be a silver lining to this duck massacre that's been taking place). Needless to say, my geese are really ignoring their duties. But the problem is that the geese want to go far around my property, while the ducks don't go that far from the barn, which is where I'm assuming the predator gets them. I'm wondering if the Muscovies would cooperate with my other ducks. For one, I don't want fighting ducks. And for two, maybe the Muscovies can go with the ducks and their presence could deter predators.
4: Would they get along with geese? I have this male goose that acts like every male goose in the history of the world. He is very arrogant and all those other male goose characteristics. I've heard Muscovies can be up to 15 pounds and I know my male African is probably around that weight. Is there any potential for bad fighting, especially in the coop where each male would have 2 nesters to defend (2 Muscovy females I'm getting for the Male Muscovy to defend and 1 African and 1 Embden goose for the male African to defend)?
Any other tips for Muscovies also would be appreciated.
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