If you had to start ALL OVER raising ducks, WHAT would you get, do over...????

[KaleIAm]

I would hands down avoid pekins, I love mine but its one thing after another, bumble, leg issues etc. I would stick to runners or Khaki Cambells, would absolutely not have drakes, albeit mine has been a pretty good guy, I would just avoid that situation, but I have no interest in breeding, if I need more, ill buy more, besides, like so many of my other interests, these things tend to find you.

My life basically revolves around keeping my pekin alive so... You might be right about it being best to avoid pekins. I adore her, but it is nuts.

 

[Littlefrenchyinbigtexas]

My life basically revolves around keeping my pekin alive so... You might be right about it being best to avoid pekins. I adore her, but it is nuts.

What’s wrong with Pekin ducks? I have a young rescued one here, and others that look like a mix... I wonder what I am getting into...

 

[KaleIAm]

What’s wrong with Pekin ducks? I have a young rescued one here, and others that look like a mix... I wonder what I am getting into...

I'm sure this isn't true of all pekins. Mine has just been especially medically fragile. She's had surgery to save her life multiple times. She has poor feather quality and gets ingrown feathers every year. She has had repeated reproductive issues and is on a strict diet and a 10 hour daylight schedule year around. She used to get bumblefoot regularly before we started using very soft substrate.

I think what is common for pekins is leg and foot issues because they are so heavy. Some of my duck's issues are from being over mated before she came to me. Some of her problems are seemingly random - like why does she keep scraping her right eye? Still I take her to the vet everytime and then give her eyedrops 6 times daily until her eye heals.

It's not like my other ducks don't have medical issues. But my pekin has lot more. She's also the only pekin I've ever had.

 

[Stoney Meadow Maple]

What’s wrong with Pekin ducks? I have a young rescued one here, and others that look like a mix... I wonder what I am getting into...

As @KaleIAm said, they are prone to leg issues, foot issues, reproductive issues, they are bred to be dinner not pets, unfortunately for them they have wonderful personalities and are beautiful, so they are widely popular. Imagine a little kid reaching 400 lbs in 3rd grade, imagine the issues he will have by the time he is 20.

 

[hmarg06]

I, like a couple others have said, prefer Muscovy over the Mallard derived breeds. They are much less messy because they aren't obsessed with water as much as the other breeds I've had. The other breeds purposefully splash as much out of their dishes as they can to make mud and dig huge holes daily. The only time the Muscovy do that is if it's raining, they'll go through puddles like that and dig around. They also forage a little more so eat less feed in summer if you have the space to give them to roam some. One downside for you if you're planning a bachelor group is that the drakes get huge and eat A LOT in winter. If you were to go with Muscovy, I'd recommend going with a hen flock to save yourself a lot of feed. In the summer when I go to close them up at night its so fun to watch them running around eating earthworms.

I think they have great personalities, and they are QUIET. They wag their tails at you when they're happy and make the cutest hissing/chirping sounds. The males have a raspy hiss they make, and the females make little trilling/chirping sounds. I did not miss the constant quacking of my other breeds one bit once I got rid of them.

I had Buff ducks which I also really enjoyed, and would be a close second. They were very messy though like most Mallard types. Less so than Pekins I had, but still very noticeably more than my Muscovy.

Pekins, I would never have again. The drake was always really rough with all the hens, they were super messy, huge so they ate a lot, and just not for me unless I had a huge pond for them to spend the day on all spring/summer, and they were butchered before winter every year.

Mine have a hog panel very large pen to range all day, and get shut in their building at night. I couldn't tell you an exact size, but it's a huge chunk of yard I fenced off between two out buildings on the property. I've had very little predator problems that way with the ducks. The chickens get picked off still, but it's been minimal with the ducks unless they jump the fence, which they rarely do. I rent from my grandma and my cousin also has poultry there and the fence was enough to stop the coyote that picked off ALL of her 20+ poultry over a couple weeks. I only lost one drake that was a fence hopper. The chickens again, didn't fare well since they jumped the fence daily, but the ducks were great. I think if you could do something like this it really helps eliminate mess from the coop, and also just helps keep the area from turning to mud. There is no other wire or anything on it, just hog panels wired to t-posts.

 

[igorsMistress]

Well, having predator ISSUES have definitely made me think about it! And the always hit when you least expect it! That's why we dont free range!

X 2 they strike when you least expect it. Just about when you become complacent and think all is good.

 

[RobertaD1]

X 2 they strike when you least expect it. Just about when you become complacent and think all is good.

And right under your nose..... Aggregating!

 

[Stoney Meadow Maple]

X 2 they strike when you least expect it. Just about when you become complacent and think all is good.

And right under your nose..... Aggregating!

Again

 

[Stoney Meadow Maple]

Again

Disregard

 

[RobertaD1]

Yeah....I can spell....Lol! Lets try aggravating!

And right under your nose..... Aggregating!