Indian Runner: Boy or Girl?

[Daffydowndilly]

So my fawn and white runners that I bought at TSC are growing up really fast. They are about two weeks old (or so I am guessing) and I am beginning to notice a difference. One of my ducklings, (the biggest one) has a distinct pink bill, while the other three have orangy brown bills. I am thinking that Dos, the big pink billed one is a boy and all the rest are girls. But I am afraid it could be the other way around. Anyone have any experience? Thanks in advance ~Chs

 

[animalloverabh]

I don't think that beack color tells you the gender. As they get older you will notice that if there are any boys in this group, then they will start to get a raspy quiet "wakkk", but the girls in the group should get a more duck-like loud "quack". Also, they boys will get tiny feathers on the end on their tails, that curl upwards. Hope this helps

-Animalloverabh

 

[tia]

I have to laugh at myself every time someone asks this about runners. I ordered 8 eggs from Metzer. I incubated them and seven hatched. I listened and listened for a difference in their voice and couldn't find any. They ended up all being females, which I hear is highly unusual. When I did get a male from Holderread's I could see what they were talking about. There is such a difference. The females have a quack and the males voice is totally different - very raspy and low. I had no experience with ducks, so didn't figure it out until they all started laying eggs. Good luck!!!

 

[DuckLover179]

Beak color has nothing to do with telling the gender. I have 2 females, one has a pink beak, the other has an orange. They are still both females, though. Size also doesn't matter in gender. You can tell the difference in quack, or wait till the feathers come in. Some people get mistaken, and think that their 2 or 3 week olds are males, because their tails start to curl, but they can still be females (Mine also have a slight tail curl). You will have to wait until they get ALL their feathers, or wait until they quack.

 

[AdamD77]

I was in the same situation as tia, but I got two boys! We planned for a girl and a boy (even though we bought them unsexed, so we could have had anything), and were waiting and waiting and realised eventually that they were both boys. The best way I can describe their voice change as they got older is:

Peeping/Cheeping ---> Sort of Whistling ---> Squawk/Raspy quack

When we got the girls a year later we could really tell the difference, they're so much louder!

They just went from peeping and cheeping to the odd quack here and there to full quacking, although one of them, Lily, does more of a squeak than a quack

 

[animalloverabh]

Quote:
I was sort of in the same situation too. When i got my runners, i picked them out of about 7 other day old ducklings, and ended up aving all 3 of them turn out to be girls.