New to raising Peking Ducks and need advise.

[Sara Ranch]

*hugs* Hoping the rest make it!

I love my duckies! And yes, they will eat styrofoam. And yes, they make a wet, wet mess!

Please remember they can't float until they develop their oil glands. Please don't put them in the tub or the sink or a pool right away!

 

[Omikse]

The Styrofoam would be used as insulation and would be between plastic and cardboard as make shift walls secured by small wood beams so they could not peck at it on my porch so we can put the duck outside when they get too big for the brooder. I don't have the money to build a pen in the yard and it may have to wait until the late winter, early spring before I can start to build one. I don't plan on putting them in water until I know they are able.

 

[Clucksworth12]

Ducks will eat Styrofoam and anything like that, so make sure it is covered by palstic wrap. I have never incubated my own ducks, but I do buy mine a day or so old locally. You can move them to your brooder immediately after hatching as long as it is equipped with a heating system. Buying a dof house and filling it with valnjets for your bsck porch will also help on cold nights!

 

[Omikse]

Ducks will eat Styrofoam and anything like that, so make sure it is covered by palstic wrap. I have never incubated my own ducks, but I do buy mine a day or so old locally. You can move them to your brooder immediately after hatching as long as it is equipped with a heating system. Buying a dof house and filling it with valnjets for your bsck porch will also help on cold nights!

Valnjets?

 

[CarleeAnn]

I believe Clucksworth meant Blankets...?

 

[Clucksworth12]

Yes I meant dog house and blanket! Mt device upadted and mt new keyboard and I disagree!

 

[Omikse]

Thank you for the clear up. It was a little confusing as to what you meant. So here we are a week later and I forgot to tell you all the out of the 23 eggs we had 10 hatched but only 8 survived. We have them separated into to 2 different brooders and they are doing fine. I can not believe how fast the are already growing. They have already doubled in size. So now I have a new question. All of them are yellow but 2 of them have some of their tail feathers turn black and one duck has a black spot on its head. Does anyone know if this is normal or if it something I should worry about. They seem heathy and active so right now I am not in a panic.

 

[CarleeAnn]

Perhaps not fully Pekin? Can you post pictures?

 

[chickens really]

Sometimes Pekin are hatched with black in the yellow down and as they mature and feathers come in they are replaced with white...

 

[Omikse]

trying to post pics but can upload some