New Females & Excessive Rape

[Portlandistan]

Hi - I've been searching the forum and don't quite find the right answer to this...

I've only had ducks for 3 months now, started with a pair of adult Indian Runners, male & female, given to me by a friend. They're siblings and a suppose a bonded pair. While I've only seen him mounting her once, she does have consistently fertile eggs (blood in the yolks). Yesterday I got 2 adult Rouens to increase my egg production. The start of Rape Fest 2020! He's gone crazy, instantly - as soon as they entered the run. The 2 Rouens are scared to death and already looking a mess. I made a quickie isolation pen for him and figured the female runner can at least bond with the new 2 girls. But - will that actually do very much to curb his natural instinct?

What if I replaced him with a juvenile drake who can kind of grow up into the flock rather than being the king? The other reason I got the Rouens is meat production, so I do want one drake around....

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

it’s summer time... all drakes are gonna be like that

 

[Texag87]

I used to think my Runner drake was a sweet duck. He is just plain mean now. He bites his children through the fence. A friend gave us a sweet duck to Replace the one we lost to snakebite . He just chased and bit her.

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

I used to think my Runner drake was a sweet duck. He is just plain mean now. He bites his children through the fence. A friend gave us a sweet duck to Replace the one we lost to snakebite . He just chased and bit her.

not all drakes are mean though! my boy loves to come in the house and cuddle, and even goes on walks with us.

 

[Portlandistan]

it’s summer time... all drakes are gonna be like that

But he isn't at all with his sister. I think they just do it at night, quietly. As I said - she has fertile eggs.

So I need to keep him locked up alone until Autumn?

 

[Duckmom27]

If you just got the Rouens yesterday, it would probably be good to do a longer introduction, where the two pairs can see each other for a while without touching. Since he's good with his sister I'd keep him with her for now rather than separate them (unless he starts getting too agressive with her too) and have the Rouens nearby where they can all see each other but not have access. After they've gotten to know each other and become a 4 duck flock, he may be a little less crazy toward them, but if not you could give him supervised time with them in short intervals so you're getting fertilized eggs like you want. I've read drakes sometimes get more mellow as they get older so maybe next year it'll be less of a problem too

 

[TomCahalan]

I would just like to point out that fertile eggs normally don't have blood spots in them.

 

[Portlandistan]

I would just like to point out that fertile eggs normally don't have blood spots in them.

Really?!? I thought that meant they were developing. And sometimes there will be larger blobs of... bloody matter, I guess you'd call it. Like a large bloody booger. I always assumed that was a chick starting to grow.

But now I've found some forum posts about that.... very interesting.... thanks!

 

[TomCahalan]

Blood spots can appear in eggs for several reasons, one of which is a developing embryo. If it is an embryo you will be able to see veins coming from it.

My earlier comment was about fertile eggs that don't have blood spots. I have collected hundreds of fertile eggs from my ducks, and not one had a blood spot.

 

[Portlandistan]

Blood spots can appear in eggs for several reasons, one of which is a developing embryo. If it is an embryo you will be able to see veins coming from it.

My earlier comment was about fertile eggs that don't have blood spots. I have collected hundreds of fertile eggs from my ducks, and not one had a blood spot.

Ah - I see what you mean.

Since my goal is meat production, but I don't have time to deal with brooders & chicks for awhile, does this make sense as a strategy? - eat the male runner now, and then since drakes are so easy to come by for like $5 (at least here in Portland) get a juvenile drake now, or in Autumn, who can grow with the flock and keep things peaceful before sexual maturity, then by late winter/spring he'll theoretically be fertilizing eggs? And if they're a good flock still in summer while I'm raising chicks, he can stay. Or, if he's a pain in summer, I eat him first before his kids later in fall?