DONT GET MAD......ducks and freezer camp

[redturtle]

DH and i have 6 mallards that will be going to freezer camp...we bought them on a whim from TSC....we went to get chixn and came home w/ 6 ducklings also....anyways...they are about 5 1/2 weeks old....already outside in their own pen...at what age do ducks usually go to freezer camp

we had thought about getting ducks...just werent as prepared as i would have liked to have been...

they are very skittish (is it just the breed?)...we gave them the same attention as the chixn...just no luck in warming up to us like the chixn...

we were hoping to let them free range w/ the chixn for awhile but it is looking as if they will have to stay in their pen and be fed buggy treats (which we have to toss into their pen because they wont eat out of our hands)...and whatever weeds we pull from the garden and scraps from the kitchen

if we try ducks again i will make sure we are prepared....and do a lot of research on breeds...lol

anyway thanks for not getting mad...and thnx for the info

 

[goosedragon]

Quote:
They are your ducks so why should we care if you send them to camp. Pekin ducks which are big ducks and fast growers often go at 9-12 weeks. by that time they have gained most of the weight amd size that they are going to and are still young and tender. Mallards are much smaller and slower growing I would think they would need about 12 weeks to make it worth your while to pack them up to go to camp. Have you ever sent ducks to camp before? you have to pack them a little differently than you do chickens. I think there are instructions on how to do it somewhere on the BYC forum keep in mind that mallards can fly and they are going to be harder to catch than chickens or flightless ducks. Good Luck!

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

lol no reason for anyone to get mad . . . your on the MEAT bird thread

sorry can't help with ducks, but someone will!

 

[Mom2Cool]

Thank heavens for this thread!

 

[Red&Yellow]

In my experience (I've only had two ducks, and one was mallard) mallards are rather flighty and non-people ducks. I would go with Cayuga, very pretty, rather effeicent layers, pretty friendly, and heavier than mallards for meat.

 

[saddina]

When they big enough to be worth cooking them, but not too big for the pan. 10 weeks should do it, but you're the one cooking them, so how big do you want it?

Sidenote: as a cook I really perfer the muscovy as a dinner duck, easier to pluck, can grow out larger for family roasts, or parted out for some nice cast iron cooking.

 

[redturtle]

thnx 4 all the much needed info...keep it coming....i am guessing to look at them they are about half the size of the ones in the market....will have to find info on how to process if they are different than a chixn...we got them originally on a whim but had been reading how they were good for eating bugs and weeds and such....they just never warmed up...even now i go in their pen and sit for about 30 minutes every day and they never come near me even tho i have treats....i guess i could try to figure out something for hobbling them so they could free range a little bit....maybe get some cheap kitty leashes to put around their ankles then tie to a long rope...dunno...anythoughts on that?

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

Muscovies are our meat duck of choice. And it's easier and much faster to skin them than pluck them.

Boneless Skinnless duck breasts

Duck sausage

Whole dutch oven duck

Steve

 

[Buster52]

Quote:
Mine are going at 8 weeks.

I have read that you want to send them when the pin feathers are at their lowest eb. 8 weeks seems to be the earliest such period.

 

[lnm03]

Quote:
Steve I have never had duck before but those pictures are making my mouth water

I have 6 pekins 2 of which are almost two yrs old and 2 indian runner and 2 Rouen's but I have never really thought about using them for meat.....