Muscovy questions:

[Bejavee]

This is my first experience with any ducks, and like so many others new to ducks, I am anxious to know if I have male or female.

I have two groups of Muscovy. The older ducks are about 9 weeks old and the younger are about 4 weeks. How old are they when the males definitely outgrow the females. Some from the older batch were brooded elsewhere. They were exposed to a bacteria or something that stunted their growth making it really difficult for me tell simply judging by size. So, if one hisses at about 9 weeks, can I be sure it's a male? If one the same age squeaks, can I be sure it's a female of will the males still squeak once they've started hissing?

Any tips will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[Miss Lydia]

This is my first experience with any ducks, and like so many others new to ducks, I am anxious to know if I have male or female.

I have two groups of Muscovy. The older ducks are about 9 weeks old and the younger are about 4 weeks. How old are they when the males definitely outgrow the females. Some from the older batch were brooded elsewhere. They were exposed to a bacteria or something that stunted their growth making it really difficult for me tell simply judging by size. So, if one hisses at about 9 weeks, can I be sure it's a male? If one the same age squeaks, can I be sure it's a female of will the males still squeak once they've started hissing?

Any tips will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Keep posting till you can post some pics, that will help others guess what sex you have. My drake was larger than my adult ducks at about 3-4 months. Drakes have thick legs also where ducks are more feminine.

 

[Bejavee]

Thanks Miss Lydia.

 

[Bejavee]

I'll try to get pics posted tomorrow. Will it still be possible to judge by size considering some were stunted early, up until about three weeks old?

 

[Bejavee]

Why do Muscovy grow so much slower than Pekin? I have four Pekin the same age as the younger Muscocvy. The Pekin are twice the size of the Muscovy. It's really odd the difference in their sizes.

 

[jdywntr]

Pekin were breed for fast growth, muscovy weren't. Muscovy aren't technically a domestic duck since they are still in the wild. In time, people could breed them to mature quickly. At 3 weeks females will weight about 1/3 less than males and by 12 weeks about 1/2 as much, according to Storey's Guide.

If you think about chickens, the Cornish cross (typical grocery chicken) was bred for about 50 years to achieve 8 lbs in 8 weeks.

 

[Going Quackers]

Probably by 3mths you'll know.. my first pair of hens actually starting laying by 4mths but before that is was quite obvious the sizing differences(I had a 50/50 with my original flock) Pics will help for guessing....

Not sure if i have any pics of mine kicking about...

Here is one of my pairs at 4mths old... drake is on the right... hen on the left.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Probably by 3mths you'll know.. my first pair of hens actually starting laying by 4mths but before that is was quite obvious the sizing differences(I had a 50/50 with my original flock) Pics will help for guessing....

Not sure if i have any pics of mine kicking about...

Here is one of my pairs at 4mths old... drake is on the right... hen on the left.

Big difference, but with stunted growth it may be harder. although leg size might still tell ya something.

 

[Bejavee]

It is so hard to get a good photo of a duck.

 

[Bejavee]

We have taken pictures for two days and I'm still not happy with any of them, but I'm going to post some anyway.