khaki campbell ducks

[hezzie]

Hi, I'm looking for khaki campbell ducklings and would prefer to buy locally in central or southern IL. Would also love to hear from anyone with experience raising these birds for egg supply.Do you need to have a drake around for the girls to produce? How difficult are they to sex as ducklings? Any input would be greatly appreciated! thanks!

 

[headred]

I have had 3 girls around for a year now. I started out with a total of 6 khakis. Re-homed the drakes because I didn't like the mating rituals of the drakes. Seems they are on the females 24/7 and always chasing them. My girls lay daily and they don't need a male around to produce. I think mine are much happier without the drakes. They are easy ducks to keep and very mellow. I had a pekin for awhile and she was high strung! Khakis are easy to keep, fun to watch, and have great egg production. Good luck finding some in your area. I found mine at a local farm store. You might call around and see if any of your area farm stores have khakis. They usually don't know until the day they come in.

 

[hezzie]

Hi and thank you for your input! I have located 4 dark campbell hens locally and should be picking them up by friday,so excited! I'm trying to find good pics of purebreds so that I will know if these are mixes or not when i see them,any tips? I was worried that they won't lay as well if they r mixes.Glad to hear that I won't need a drake around unless I decide to raise some little ones later.

 

[hezzie]

Love ur pics,nice looking husky too.I have 6 Aussies myself,do you have much trouble keeping the dogs from stressing out ur hens? And another question,I've read that the Campbells r most productive at laying for about 4 years but that live 10 to 15 years,so they don't lay at all after 4 or 5 yrs old or just decreases? does that sound accurate to you? thanks again for your help! H

 

[headred]

My hens are 2 yrs. old and going strong as far as laying. Don't know much after that! I have a small pomeranian who doesn't really have much to do with the ducks. Maybe its because the ducks are bigger than she is. I have large dogs in neighboring yards and the ducks don't seem to be bothered by them unless the dogs race to the fence where they might be "napping". That will startle them sometimes. Good luck with your new girls and let us know how it goes!