New Ducklings: Help with identifying breed

[WannaBeHillBilly]

Still go with White Layer for the large one and Fawn&White Runner for the two small babies.

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

Oh hey @FortCluck - peas are rich in Niacin too and almost all ducks love those green »pearls«.

 

[chickens really]

Two have a fleshy bill color and one is light orange... Funny how they couldn't tell us the breed. Now it's got us wondering what they are one walks hunched over (it has deformed legs) and the other two walk upright. One of the smaller ones loves zooming around like a loony, it hits it's turbo button and the chickens look at it all confused.

Not Pekins. They are a smaller type of egg and meat bird. Here old timers call them Alberta meat Ducks.

 

[FortCluck]

Still go with White Layer for the large one and Fawn&White Runner for the two small babies.

I hope you're right, we have been wanting runners, but have been unsuccessful at finding them locally. Either way they're fitting right in. The chickens seem to find entertainment in watching them and the ducklings splash water at the chickens which they like during this heat.

 

[FortCluck]

Oh hey @FortCluck - peas are rich in Niacin too and almost all ducks love those green »pearls«.

I actually gave them peas yesterday in the morning and at night when I fed the chickens their daily veggies. They were eyeballing them from their pen so I put a handful in, they ate them quite fast.

 

[chickens really]

Dandelions and other grasses are rich in niacin too. Plus certain feeds. I have never supplemented a Duckling with niacin.

 

[FortCluck]

Dandelions and other grasses are rich in niacin too. Plus certain feeds. I have never supplemented a Duckling with niacin.

Their feed is a flock raiser and it has enough niacin in it. That duckling was like that at TSC when we bought it so we are trying to correct it. I honestly didn't notice it until it tripped and fell in the run. I just asked for them to pick us 3 out of the bin since they all looked almost the same. Each day it's walking better and it's legs are straightening out so we are quite hopeful that it'll recover.

We will give them our grass clippings next time we mow, we give it to our chickens every week. Thank you for all the advice!

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

Dandelions and other grasses are rich in niacin too. Plus certain feeds. I have never supplemented a Duckling with niacin.

Usually you don't have to, if the ducklings can spend time outside and have a good feed, but @FortCluck said the large one was already in bad shape when she got it.
The other case when it does make sense to supply extra niacin is when you are raising heavy breed ducklings (Pekin, AppleYard, Rouen, Saxony) or super heavy Jumbo Pekin. The level of Niacin in the store-bought food is calculated for medium breeds and the heavy breeds just need a little bit more.

 

[chickens really]

Usually you don't have to, if the ducklings can spend time outside and have a good feed, but @FortCluck said the large one was already in bad shape when she got it.
The other case when it does make sense to supply extra niacin is when you are raising heavy breed ducklings (Pekin, AppleYard, Rouen, Saxony) or super heavy Jumbo Pekin. The level of Niacin in the store-bought food is calculated for medium breeds and the heavy breeds just need a little bit more.

I know all this..Thanks for letting me know.
High protein actually isn't good either for Ducklings a person us raising as pets or breeding stock either so definitely finding out what each breed requires is needed. Balance is needed.

 

[Miss Lydia]

@WannaBeHillBilly i didn’t realize White layers are meat duck I thought they were developed for being layers? OP please get your little one on a good supplement for its little legs liquid b complex is best but any good plain niacin would be better than none. Give it a chance to get it’s legs better. They sure are pretty little things!