duck questions

[Duck mommy 2019]

ok so at the moment i have a pekin drake, a khaki campbell girl, and then two babies who i think are also boys (probably will be rehoming)

so... what is your duck to drake ratio? is there any risk having a 3-4 pound hen with a 10 pound drake?

also, i’m hoping to get some more girls but that won’t be until next year. do you think my drake would be fine having just one hen until we get some more and they have time to grow up?

and this might be a silly question, but is there an amount of hens that is too much for a drake? like that u would NEED to add another drake?

 

[Magnolia Ducks]

You can monitor and see. How old are they? Do they have a pool deep enough to swim?
Some drakes are terrible, some are not, you have to keep a close eye. I did have a drake squish a hen to death. She was KC mix and small and he was Pekin mix. It's not ideal.

 

[mfoth54]

I think it is definitely a risk having one drake and one hen. This is because the drake will continuously "wear down" the hen and it will most likely be too much for her to handle (especially since he is 10lbs and she is 4lbs). My drake to hen ratio is 1:2 currently but that is because I am just starting. I recommend 1:3 if you can. I don't think you need to add another drake unless you notice him being overwhelmed but I doubt that would happen. I strongly recommend adding at least another hen. Best of luck!

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

You can monitor and see. How old are they? Do they have a pool deep enough to swim?
Some drakes are terrible, some are not, you have to keep a close eye. I did have a drake squish a hen to death. She was KC mix and small and he was Pekin mix. It's not ideal.

pekin is 1 year, and khaki is about 15 weeks. they have 3 kiddie pools. he was really mean to his brothers in the spring which is why i’m worried. we are keeping him on a farm until we move in a few months but then he will be back with our girl

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

I think it is definitely a risk having one drake and one hen. This is because the drake will continuously "wear down" the hen and it will most likely be too much for her to handle (especially since he is 10lbs and she is 4lbs). My drake to hen ratio is 1:2 currently but that is because I am just starting. I recommend 1:3 if you can. I don't think you need to add another drake unless you notice him being overwhelmed but I doubt that would happen. I strongly recommend adding at least another hen. Best of luck!

i’ll definitely get more girls next year, i just can’t this year. he is being petsit until we move though so he most likely won’t be with us until late summer (will mating stop anyways by then?) and she is with some babies but i think they are both boys so we will have to rehome them

 

[chickens really]

You don't need a Drake. Having only Hens is way easier.

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

You don't need a Drake. Having only Hens is way easier.

i know that, but my one drake i’m keeping is my favorite of all the ducks. him and his brother who passed away. they would always go on walks with me and love car rides. so i want to keep him.

 

[chickens really]

i know that, but my one drake i’m keeping is my favorite of all the ducks. him and his brother who passed away. they would always go on walks with me and love car rides. so i want to keep him.

Understandable. Although keeping livestock isn't always easy and many decisions need to be made for the wellbeing of the animals. We can't always keep everyone because it doesn't always work that way.

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

Understandable. Although keeping livestock isn't always easy and many decisions need to be made for the wellbeing of the animals. We can't always keep everyone because it doesn't always work that way.

that’s why i’m keeping just one drake

 

[chickens really]

that’s why i’m keeping just one drake

Okay.