Make money with Ducks?

[bwmichaud]

As others have already mentioned, $30 is really expensive for feed. Last year I was getting it for around $9 for 50 lbs but this year it's way up to $12 or $13 for the same bag. Check around for an Agway store or another farm store.

If you plan to keep them contained all of the time, you'll have to figure on a lot of bedding material. Ducks are extremely messy and foul their bedding quickly, especially if you have water in where the bedding is. My ducks live outside all summer which eliminates the bedding cost. I do winter over a quad for breeding but the food and water stays outside of the house.

If you can't find people to buy your duck eggs, give some away to people who bake a lot. Once they try them, you'll have a paying customer.

You can eat them but please understand that there is not a lot of meat on even a large duck. Wild ducks are much smaller in comparison and people eat them all the time. The breast is where the majority of meat is. The legs, thighs and wings are pretty small. The meat is, in my opinion, some of the best meat available and a great way to wow your friends when they come over for dinner. Just don't roast it like it's a chicken.

 

[mandelyn]

I've only ever seen duck eggs for $1 or two dollars more than chicken eggs, but they're much more work. Not sure if it's worth it from a profit stand point. Get ducks because you want ducks. If you make a profit, that's awesome. If not, at least you love your ducks.

They drink 3 times as much water ( a lot of it is waste water), and because of all that water, they make 5 times the mess of a chicken. So all that extra cleaning, depending on how you've set up your management system. You can't give them an auto feeder, you need to be out there daily. They go to the water, go to the food, repeat. They get moisture in the feed. In an auto feeder you think is low maintenance... you'll soon have a little mold farm. The smell from the wet food... ick. Add poop and mud... yuck.

Took me 2.5 tons of pea gravel to regain control over the duck area. I go through one bale of pine shavings a week... so... $5 a week on that for 14 ducks. Not sure how much feed I go through... how ever many pounds fit into a 5 gallon bucket, and I go through that bucket in a week. Since I'm not making any money... I'm not really keeping track. LOL I'm spending about $14 per bag.

If you need to buy ducklings, that's 6 months right there at least with all the work and expense and you haven't even gotten an egg yet. Add in cost of their enclosure, and it really is a hobby more than a business.

Do it because you love ducks. Mine are a riot, even on the days they hate me. I laugh every time one of them gives me that sideways look. They're also louder than chickens. How many hens do you want quacking at you as soon as they know you're bringing the hose out? They talk A LOT when they get excited. They thrive on routine, you don't want to hear the quacking when you're running late. They don't want to hear that you had a late night and wanted to sleep in, they want new water NOW. (only the NOW sounds like QUACK... just one really loud QUACK to let you know you're taking too long)

The quickest way to shut them up is to throw a handful of cat food or frozen peas at them.

Unless I'm the only one with obnoxious ducks? All ducks are messy... but are they all really obnoxious? haha. More personality than a chicken, that's for sure. My hens are fairly stable and sane compared to the ducks.

 

[greymane]

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I would agree completely. Between feed, shelter, time, and everything else involved...if you aren't doing it because you love them (and how can you not?) you probably don't want to do it.

 

[BuddyT]

I didn't mean to give any impression that id didn't just flat out want ducks... I really want ducks regardless if i can make a lil money off them... I just figured if there was a possibility Why not? my uncle has ducks but im not really close to him and he lives really far away but when i do get to visit i love watching them all scurry around.

 

[njduck]

you need alot of ducks to make a little money. I get $15 for a full grown drake muscovy. Lucky to get $10 for a hen. That is the meat market. However the eggs bring alot more then chicken eggs here.