one more duck? please just ONE?!

[TheDuckCrew]

so i'm hatching some pekins, and i currently have 4. 3 drakes, 1 hen. (bad bad BAD!) so my parents agreed to keeping two girls that hatch but i think 3 would be SO much better. the top drake would be very mad if the two other ones have the same number has he does. he's also been being pretty rough on the one girl he does have. when should i spring the question to keep one more girl? i was thinking when they see the cute little babies...how could they resist???

 

[DuckLady]

You are better off keeping one drake and adding 3 or 4 ducks.

 

[Goat_Walker]

I had the same problem!
It was easy for me though. I told them that my 3 boys were being too rough on my one girl, and that I couldnt get rid of the boys becuase I love them too much and they all need their own girlfriends.
But... maybe it was the mentioning of all the fluffy duckling butts.

 

[TheDuckCrew]

Quote:
i couldn't get rid of them. i love them wayyy to much. they are all so cute. the top drake i think would be better with two girls, and the other two would be fine with just one each. they are so well bonded i don't think they would fight. they never do when i let them out with my girl.

 

[Heather J]

I actually expected to see my drakes fight during mating season because I have a female Cayuga, and a khaki drake, and two White pekin drakes. But I haven't had a single problem. One of the pekins has a crooked neck and is never able to catch the hen, and almost all of the babies look like they are pekin hybrids, so I guess the khaki has been relegated to sometimes swain!

 

[TheDuckCrew]

wow. lucky. two of my drakes beat the crap out of each other. when the fighting first started, they were both bleeding pretty bad. the top drake was the worse on his wing. while he was holding the other one by the front neck feathers, it would reach around and pull on its wing feathers. if they are put together, they instantly grab each other and if they are in the pond they will be holding each other and using their wings like clubs. just wacking each other. their neck feathers are still growing back and they have been seperated for weeks. little stinkers.

 

[tofuranch]

I haven't had any problem with a group of 3 females and 3 drakes, they are Khaki Campbells. They are my first group and do really well together, everyone has a girlfriend

 

[TheDuckCrew]

hopefully it will work out the same with mine. i've been thinking about how to introduce the new girls to the establish mini flock. although i've got a couple months, i don't want to give the girls to the top drake first for him to think they are his. but i'm also afraid that if i give them to the two good drakes and then let them out again with the top drake and his girl, there will be fights. i'm still wokring out a plan in my mind. i'm taking in account personalities and hostility to the wild ducks and just plain terriortial aggression.