general drake advice

[Stacey Adele]

Hi everyone,
we got our first ducks in April - 3 to start - and, very sadly, I'm quite sure 2 are drakes. We really don't want to part with 1, but it seems it is necessary (we want them all to free range together as much as possible). Our males seem to be one Black Swedish and one Welsh Harlequin, and the female is (mostly?) Welsh Harlequin. Just last week we purchased a 1 year old white layer duck. It's wonderful to be getting an egg every day! She is integrating well and they spend their days playing in or near the river (and are securely in the predator proof, spacious run/coop overnight). She is quite a bit smaller and it has me thinking about which male we should keep (we also plan to get at least 1 more female, though 2 at max because I never wanted to have more than a few ducks!). I read this morning that Harelquin Welsh drakes are smaller than Black Swedish, which I thought is a point for keeping him, but then I read that they have particularly voracious sexual appetites which is a point against keeping him. Does anyone have advise on whether a Harlequin Welsh drake or a Black Swedish drake is better for being part of a small flock, with some small hens? Or is there really much difference? Or is either inappropriate to keep with a white layer hen? We could look at eliminating both males from the flock, though I'm sure our original girl will be devastated to lose her hatch mates. I had no idea there was so much loss associated with raising ducks, even outside possible predation. Thanks for any advice!
Stacey

 

[CoriM]

I also was surprised at the loss and health issues I encountered when I started raising ducks. It can be hard, especially when emotionally attached. If you're going to keep just one drake why don't you wait and see which one has the most calm and gentle personality? I have two black swedish females and I am surprised at how light they are, though they look bigger than my welsh harlequin girl. That said, both breeds are laid back and calm, but I only have experience with the females.

I did order 3 females from a hatchery a few years back and was sent two males and a 1 female accidentally. I didn't end up keeping the males because they were terrorizing my older pekins that were my first ducks and those girls were scared. At the time I was also worried about the one girl, Dolly, losing her baby-mates and being sad. She did alright with the older remaining ducks I had, and the next spring I bought another female Duclair and the two ended up being best friends, even though a year apart in age

. Here is a picture I took of them this morning. I think your girl will make new friends quickly!

 

[HollowOfWisps]

Agreed size doesn’t matter unless you are trying to mix a full sized drake with a call sized duck. Any of the full sized breeds will be fine together. See which one treats the girls best although with your max amount of ducks you may need to get rid of both drakes. Many times the young ones need a good 5+ females to keep them happy. I personally would just re-home both and order a couple more females.

 

[Stacey Adele]

I also was surprised at the loss and health issues I encountered when I started raising ducks. It can be hard, especially when emotionally attached. If you're going to keep just one drake why don't you wait and see which one has the most calm and gentle personality? I have two black swedish females and I am surprised at how light they are, though they look bigger than my welsh harlequin girl. That said, both breeds are laid back and calm, but I only have experience with the females.

I did order 3 females from a hatchery a few years back and was sent two males and a 1 female accidentally. I didn't end up keeping the males because they were terrorizing my older pekins that were my first ducks and those girls were scared. At the time I was also worried about the one girl, Dolly, losing her baby-mates and being sad. She did alright with the older remaining ducks I had, and the next spring I bought another female Duclair and the two ended up being best friends, even though a year apart in ageView attachment 3887953. Here is a picture I took of them this morning. I think your girl will make new friends quickly!

Awe, they are so cute! Thank you for the encouragement. It does help that our new duck seems very happy with lots of tail wagging and I see how the original ducks, though they are a teeny bit snobby with her, definitely look out for her and make sure she stays nearby.

 

[Stacey Adele]

Agreed size doesn’t matter unless you are trying to mix a full sized drake with a call sized duck. Any of the full sized breeds will be fine together. See which one treats the girls best although with your max amount of ducks you may need to get rid of both drakes. Many times the young ones need a good 5+ females to keep them happy. I personally would just re-home both and order a couple more females.

Thank you for the advice. Maybe we will do this. It does seem like less stress. Although, I've also head that a drake will protect the flock. With them free ranging, is this something I should consider? I was hoping that with so much space, they would all do fine with a 1:3 or 1:4 ratio.

 

[KathiQuacks]

Thank you for the advice. Maybe we will do this. It does seem like less stress. Although, I've also head that a drake will protect the flock. With them free ranging, is this something I should consider? I was hoping that with so much space, they would all do fine with a 1:3 or 1:4 ratio.

I recommend 1:4 or 1:5 personally. A 1:3 could potentially work, especially with only one drake. Space should help, too.. But 1:3 is bare minimum. I’d still strive for at least a 1:4, if you can.

Drakes will not protect the flock, no. Drakes will lead the flock and alert them of danger, but they aren’t equipped to fight like other male birds.

 

[Stacey Adele]

I recommend 1:4 or 1:5 personally. A 1:3 could potentially work, especially with only one drake. Space should help, too.. But 1:3 is bare minimum. I’d still strive for at least a 1:4, if you can.

Drakes will not protect the flock, no. Drakes will lead the flock and alert them of danger, but they aren’t equipped to fight like other male birds.

Ok, good to know, thanks. So, I won't hang onto a male for the purpose of protection.

 

[Yardmom]

Personally I like the bonds I get in a 1 hen to 1 drake flock, but an all hen flock would be calmer.
I have had several drakes over the years and have never considered any of them protection against predators.

 

[HollowOfWisps]

Thank you for the advice. Maybe we will do this. It does seem like less stress. Although, I've also head that a drake will protect the flock. With them free ranging, is this something I should consider? I was hoping that with so much space, they would all do fine with a 1:3 or 1:4 ratio.

You could always try it and see, but it really depends on the drake. Drakes are absolutely useless for protection other than sounding a quite wimpy alarm when a predator is near. Honestly I hear my hens getting honky over a predator long before I notice my drakes ribbity rasps.

 

[Evadig]

My 2 cents:
I've got a 1 drake to 2 hen ratio...but of course that doesn't work for everyone . I think having a drake is nice, especially if they're one with the bright green head. Like the others said, maybe you could just keep both and rehome the one you don't like when they get older?