Muscovy keepers share your pics!

[Miss Lydia]

I think I'm getting close to 75?

-Kathy

wow

 

[Miss Lydia]

Carla a traded for female duck, just hatched eight of her eggs she stole from other scovy, abandoning her nest she setted already.

you too pics when you can.. Congrats!!!

 

[Alice28]

My son just loves Kristof (Muscovy) he tells me she is his and the anconas are mine. lol. Love the duckies

 

[Alice28]

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Kathy very exciting, thats alot of duckling hatching at your place so far this year, have you been keeping count?
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Yay to all the ducklings! Can't wait to see pics

 

[Miss Lydia]

My son just loves Kristof (Muscovy) he tells me she is his and the anconas are mine. lol. Love the duckies

They are adorable.

 

[laughingdog]

I was told by breeder of scovy close to me that only should have one drake per ten ducks (meat breed scovy). I cut the one drakes nails and seems he can't get on females as great and can't grapple at other males, so maybe try that on more aggressive drake. trimming his nails down good, sharp tipped edge of bean, and pluck flights so can't strut and beat other with whole or broken parts, may help even your drakes out. you could also pen your two drakes away from seeing ducks together and then they'll not fight so bad and after month both buddied up will share females.

my lead male went to bottom of pecking order after i penned him with females for month or so. now stays close to dogs or us as we break up others and let him share snacks others don't steal then. huge female shepherd, that basically raised them from hatchlings, still lets them eat from her mouth as she is eating even, and anything that messes with them is in big trouble, but each other she tosses with muzzle, or pins down and mouths etc till they submit. its weird how scovy and dog communicate and are so close of body language, than my maybe layer hybrid mallard types are to scovy.
The mallards are so close to our body language. scovy and dogs read our body language and act like they are putting up with us stupid creatures. the shep recently raised the mallard hybrid layers, and she just rubs or licks them like she does us when they don't get what she means when she tries telling them something.

 

[TherryChicken]

Laughingdog, well I want them to be able to breed easily though. I also don't have a way to seperate them at this time.

 

[laughingdog]

Well you cannot raise up and or keep more than your situation allows, so breeding isn't really the best to do, knowing that half or more could grow up to be males.. females that are too young can't be kept with an over population of hormonal males, especially aggressive ones on top, so to speak. maybe wait to breed till you have more space to divide up what you have now, that you otherwise cannot sell give away or cook. you don't want older males maybe tearing up badly maybe killing young ones cause all crammed into one small space they can't all at once even eat or not mearly exist constantly fearing being attacked .

yes I'm seemingly mean one because ill hand someone their sign, that no one else will.

 

[TherryChicken]

Well you cannot raise up and or keep more than your situation allows, so breeding isn't really the best to do, knowing that half or more could grow up to be males.. females that are too young can't be kept with an over population of hormonal males, especially aggressive ones on top, so to speak. maybe wait to breed till you have more space to divide up what you have now, that you otherwise cannot sell give away or cook. you don't want older males maybe tearing up badly maybe killing young ones cause all crammed into one small space they can't all at once even eat or not mearly exist constantly fearing being attacked .

yes I'm seemingly mean one because ill hand someone their sign, that no one else will.

they are all adults.

 

[laughingdog]

Yes, and not trying to be mean in any of this its just most don't look too far ahead, but you say you won't trim your aggressive male a very temp thing, because it want him breeding your females. breeding leads to eggs, that you say you don't eat the eggs or extra ducks, can't and don't want to rehome any, and you get new ones.. you have no space you say to temp even seperate your male that's terrified and attacked, and your trying to breed them which leads to ducklings that need more space and can't be cramned together in small pen with all adults together with them, them nowhere to get far enough away to be even feel safe from other females and aggressive drake. all these statements are now conflicting to what would leave me to think your duck numbers are going up.

You can try gently but firmly forcing dominant drake to submit much like with dogs, trying to build confidence of brother beat on, but space trouble will conflict over onto your females eventually too. a blood feather torn out wrong can kill a duck in minutes supposedly, especially if this duck is weakened by not eating (check for full crop and feel for bone on chest, you should feel feed in crop on bottom of neck, and shouldmt feel bone on chest).

i cut down from seven to four males recently, roaming on nine to twelve acres (only three constantly foraged and grazed on), and all is greatly improved. knowing that do you think two males will suddenly get along now that not usedto constantly being penned, when they used to best bros? i actually had to kill two of meanest in this free range (no fences at all) situation they were raised in with all but two recently added new females that attack them, otherwise nothing changing and these two were very aggressively hurting females and males etc. so now think that two of, how many males to balance scales out, grown up free range, with probly many more females all been together to work out pecking order from ducklings, and had older ducks and parents to put in line when got too bad, and put them in small area I'm sure they can see out, with new females as well I'm sure, and they will have problems. if they didn't work it out in a week to month, sadly it may not happen, but then interfering in initial fighting may make/made worse trouble. i coddled Ferdinand and now he got soft, but he stillis preferred breeder to ladies as lets them eat brings them feed, protective of them and young that not even same species, etc. one original mean drake defends female came with from preds too, but was aggressive father of known young of his he was only other duck around since female laid.