Friendly duck breeds?

[PatrickRoo]

I am buying mine from Metzer farms hatchery. Do a lot of ducks die during shipping? Also, do your ducks get your pen all poopy and dirty? I've heard they poop everywhere, all the time, and a lot, and it stinks. How often do you move your ducks?

Actually, it's uncommon for birds to die during shipping, and you usually pick the birds up at your local post office. Rarely do they ever ship to your home. If any of them do die, they usually replace it. We also clean our coop every 4 weeks. It's not that bad. Duck poo isn't that bad either, at least not as bad as chicken poo.

 

[chickens really]

? Lol.....Duck poop is watery and stinks....Shavings work better than straw....

 

[Abriana]

I use shavings now in my coop. Can i just scoop out the duck poop or do i have to change the bedding every two-four weeks?

 

[jofanx]

You can scoop it out but good practice is to always do a full coop clean (for chickens or ducks) every two weeks or so. I used both straw by itself and shavings by itself and I like mixing them (straw under, shavings on top) because duck poop is watery and can compact shavings really quick--the straw helps me lift it out of their coop easily, while the shavings is absorbant.

 

[Abriana]

I clean out my bedding for chickens every third or fourth time i move the coop, which is about once every two to three months, or if water spills or it is abnormally dirty. I guess I had better get into the mindset of having to clean it more often!

 

[jofanx]

If you use a poop board or the deep litter method, that wouldn't be too long between cleanings. But since ducks don't roost, you can't really use poop boards unfortunately. Haven't tried deep littler method with ducks though so can't say much on that.

 

[Abriana]

Well, I'll figure something out. Thanks for your help!

 

[PatrickRoo]

Actually, after getting a good look at my Pekin duck this evening, I believe she may be a Buff duck. She is beginning to get sandy brown feathers near her neck. When we bought her she was labeled as a Pekin. Maybe you could start off with one Pekin and one Buff? With Metzer Farms you only have to get a minimum of two ducks, goslings, etc.

 

[Abriana]

Actually, after getting a good look at my Pekin duck this evening, I believe she may be a Buff duck. She is beginning to get sandy brown feathers near her neck. When we bought her she was labeled as a Pekin. Maybe you could start off with one Pekin and one Buff? With Metzer Farms you only have to get a minimum of two ducks, goslings, etc.[/QUOT
When i read that you could get a minimum of two, i was glad, because i didn't want six or seven ducks, and not one, two or three to start with, as i have never had ducks before. I think i am going to do both Pekins. Is the Buff friendly? I want very friendly ducks.

 

[PatrickRoo]

Well, yes. My duck that I thought was a Pekin that I was saying was very tame, friendly, etc. looks more like a Buff as she grows up.