Getting muscovies and have questions

[pascopol]

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Yes, clipping wings is unnecessary and prevents birds to escape danger.

Contrary to popular believe Muscovy drakes fly also.

At least mine did. Muscoveys like roost on trees since they are eqipped with claws unlike mallar derived ducls species, if they feel they are at home they will fly around but not fly away just like Guinea hens.

 

[Caprice_Acres]

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It would probably be easier to trim wings as you unload them. And less stressful. Just a thought...

 

[pringle]

For me the females only use to fly.The two males I have currently just dont fly lol

 

[bufforp89]

I currently have 8 muscovys but have had 20+ this past summer.

Muscovys will fly off. Learned that the hard way when I first got mine a few years ago. A female got out of the enclosure and flew off never to be seen again. In my experience drakes will also fly some. Not as much as the females but mine manage to make it up to the roof of my house daily

Mine are never bothered by hawks and I have some pretty tiny hens. I think the size of the two males discourages the hawks.

I dont clip my muscovys wings, I kept them penned when I got them and after a few days they stuck around. I quite like to see them flying around the yard.

 

[Captain Carrot]

I have 7 muscovys at the moment, never clipped a wing. My drake is huge and have never seen him fly. My ducks often fly up onto the roof of my house (2 story's) and like to roost at night. I've never lost a duck to hawks, but I have had a couple of fox attacks, nothing serious. One was bitten and was found up a tree, and I saved one from a fox who had the duck in its jaws, until I shot at it with my bow. The fox let the duck go and it flew back to me.

Muscovys are extremely hardy birds, they manage well in warm weather and even better in the cold. They where in the stream today in minus 10 degrees, they had little ice cubes on their tail feathers, but didn't seam to mind at all.

Great layers and fantastic mums. My best duck raised three clutches last year, and didn't loose a single one of her 63 ducklings.

 

[Bleenie]

I have come to the conclusion that my drakes are all just too big, I have had more than a few people tell me "He's Huge!!" when they saw one of my boys, so I guess that's why mine never really fly... they just do the running flap thing, lol. I don't know if I would be able to believe it if I saw one of the boys up on the top of the house.

 

[TheNewMrsEvans]

I had a trio of ducklings given to me a long while back...some kids found them on the street, no adults around...they turned out to be muscovies, two hens and a drake...they waddled around the backyard, never flew more than 6" off the ground, but I raised them there. With bringing home adults, like when I got my calls, I clipped wings once. By the time they molted this was home. Since then I've had one fly into the front yard, but she came running back and couldn't get in to her friends...hmmm

I wish I could have big wiggle butt duckies again!

 

[ThebigE]

Since they are adults I agree with the wing clipping, but once they grow back and you hand feed them and not just throw the food in a trough and runaway they will stick around.

 

[RockwaterFarm]

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thats exactly what i do