I had the most exciting and rewarding experience today. First let me say that my first experience with Muscoveys were several years ago when visiting family in a residential community with a pond behind their house. Several muscoveys were fed by the pond by the residents of the community. They were once wild but became people friendly. I fell in love!
FF to today. I always drive down our country road to where I keep my horse and variety of chickens. Every time I go down the road, I see Muscoveys at the roadside. I've stopped on several occasions to let them cross the road. Today I stopped at one house where I frequently see them. As I walked up to the door...a momma was walking around the side of their house with about 15 little ones following closely behind. She brought them down to a pond out back and I watched them all get in the water and paddle along with Mama. I was completely in awe! Come to find out when I talked with the owners, she had been still sitting on the eggs as of last night under their porch and when they went to look when I told them what I saw...I had just witnessed mom bringing her brood out for the very first time!
I asked the gentleman if he wanted to place some of the babies. They told me, if I could catch them, I could have them. Well that Mama was not going to let me any where near her babies!
He then said to me that the next clutch of eggs that were played by any of his muscoveys, he would give me the whole clutch to hatch myself. All of his were mostly wild. I can't wait to begin my new project of hatching and raising my own hand raised Muscovey beauties!
