Hi, I have 2 silkie hens and a very large run. I was considering adopting 2 Muscovy ducklings that are still not feathered in but I can tell one's a drake/ones a hen. They were rescued orphans and very friendly. I live in town and if I got a duck/ducks wanted to make sure they were very quiet which I hear muscovies are ? My other questions are: Will they be ok with my silkies ? I was hoping that if they are young and brought up with them it might work ? I let my hens free range in my yard while I'm around to watch, Can I let them free range too or will they fly away (I have a 6' tall privacy fence) ? Would one muscovy be ok (hen), I'm concerned about getting such a big duck in a drake, but would be concerned a duck would be happy if the sole one ? do they need a pond to be happy ? Thank you for any input.
If they are ducklings they should be fenced off from you chickens until big enough to be able to handle any aggression a chicken may want to hand out. Plus if not feathered in they will need to be kept where it's warm with some kind of heat till they do have their feathers. I would not get just one Muscovy they really do better if they have one of their own. And these 2 ducklings I am sure have bonded very tightly.
