Follow Along While I Raise Endangered Breeds

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So I have a few "issues" so far. One of them being the snowy drake hookbill. He has started cornering one of the females and keeps her away from the rest of the flock. He has been put into "drake jail" and will stay there for a few days. If that doesn't work, I'll build another pen and run for him and some of the hens he gets along with to live in.
Another issue is that almost every day I notice one hookbill outside of the fenced in run. I have no idea how they get out. They never go far, hugging the fence trying to get back in. The fence isn't very tall, so maybe I need to put in a taller one.
The Buffs are doing well. They are still trying to figure out the kiddie pool. The hens occasionally get in it, but the drake can't figure it out. Eventually I will be replacing the ponds with concrete mixing tubs. Then I will build them a ramp to get in.
 
RossBantams said:
So I have a few "issues" so far. One of them being the snowy drake hookbill. He has started cornering one of the females and keeps her away from the rest of the flock. He has been put into "drake jail" and will stay there for a few days. If that doesn't work, I'll build another pen and run for him and some of the hens he gets along with to live in.
Another issue is that almost every day I notice one hookbill outside of the fenced in run. I have no idea how they get out. They never go far, hugging the fence trying to get back in. The fence isn't very tall, so maybe I need to put in a taller one.
The Buffs are doing well. They are still trying to figure out the kiddie pool. The hens occasionally get in it, but the drake can't figure it out. Eventually I will be replacing the ponds with concrete mixing tubs. Then I will build them a ramp to get in.
Click to expand...
My buff hen loves the pool. My little male is still figuring things out, but the hen heaves herself into the pool whenever it's empty
 
Today I'm delivering ducks to my friend up in Kentucky. I'm bringing him some runners from a reputable breeder and a pair of hookbills from my group. I was originally supposed to get a few hookbills but ended up with a few too many for right now. So I decided to sell him a pair. The more people that have them and are committed to breeding/showing them, the higher chance of increasing their population and getting them admitted to the standard. One of the problems I've faced is that I can't tell which one of the "brown" ones is a male. I have three males, one snowy, one golden snowy, and one brown. But the brown one doesn't have a curl and none of them quack enough for me to tell the difference. My luck I'll end up giving him two females accidentally :he
The day has been really rough so far, emotionally, so I'm just hoping everything goes well today with the delivery.
 
RossBantams said:
Today I'm delivering ducks to my friend up in Kentucky. I'm bringing him some runners from a reputable breeder and a pair of hookbills from my group. I was originally supposed to get a few hookbills but ended up with a few too many for right now. So I decided to sell him a pair. The more people that have them and are committed to breeding/showing them, the higher chance of increasing their population and getting them admitted to the standard. One of the problems I've faced is that I can't tell which one of the "brown" ones is a male. I have three males, one snowy, one golden snowy, and one brown. But the brown one doesn't have a curl and none of them quack enough for me to tell the difference. My luck I'll end up giving him two females accidentally :he
The day has been really rough so far, emotionally, so I'm just hoping everything goes well today with the delivery.
Click to expand...
I didn't know you had runners too.
 
RossBantams said:
Hello everyone! I have been slacking when it comes to posting on here. Life has just been ridiculously busy lately. I had to run a 5 day poultry show at the county fair. Now I'm back to a somewhat normal schedule again.
But now for exciting news! I have acquired 2 new duck breeds! The reason I have them is because a lady I know had a medical emergency and had to get rid of her whole flock. I took in what I had space for.
The first one is the Buff Duck (Orpington Duck). I saw the pictures and knew I had to have them. I got a blue head male and two buff females. They are beautiful and so much fun to watch. They are the biggest ducks I have ever owned, so this will come with a learning curve. They are listed under "watch" by the Livestock Conservancy. Watch means that there are less than 10,000 worldwide and less than 5,000 breeding birds in the US.
View attachment 3935447

The second breed are Dutch Hookbills! They are extremely rare here in the US. They are listed as "critical" by the Livestock Conservancy. This means that there are fewer than 200 registered birds in the US and less than 500 globally. I'm not sure how I am supposed to register or let the Livestock Conservancy know how many I have, but I'll figure it out. I initially wasn't going to get them, but the person that was going to get them backed out. So now I have 8! It's a mixed flock but the male to female ratio is good for now. Two of the birds are babies, so I have them seperated for now.
View attachment 3935454
View attachment 3935455
Note: Hookbills come in three different hook types - Extreme, Moderate, and straight. These hookbills are slightly straight, so I will be breeding them to restore a moderate or extreme curve.
Click to expand...
What color is the light young one?
 

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