Pekin Duck Club!

[Jharper]

Just checked on my three out at the cabin. They are all doing just fine. They are staying away from the geese and their four goslings though! Haha

 

[countrygirl74]

My ducks were given to me and for the first 3 days I let them be (I read that somewhere in here) and when I would pick them u[ they would scream like going to Slater. 6 weeks. I sit w/ them as much as possible but I can't be there all day! I do have a life. Right now I love them and find this interesting but I really wish I could get hatchery duck!
I heard at Tractor S. that now my poop compost isn't as good. I used to have just chic. Now I will have them tog. they said that ducks have high acid. Only good for some plants.

IS THIS TRUE?​

Hmmm... I'm not sure about that. However, I can tell you that I pour all their water buckets and drain their poopy pool water out onto all my trees and plants and everything seems to be growing just fine.

 

[PekinMommy]

Out of couriosity, what kind of grit do I need for my ducks? The huge bag they sell at the feed store or will the grit made for cockatiels and parrots at the local pet shop work?

 

[Green Liver]

Out of couriosity, what kind of grit do I need for my ducks? The huge bag they sell at the feed store or will the grit made for cockatiels and parrots at the local pet shop work?

I'm using egg shell grit but Quack-Quack eats the sand used to level his pool more than the grit. I've also starting putting scratch dowwn in the grass cause the worm, slug and bug count has been low out in the yard.

 

[Green Liver]

I'm with you! I've had them since they were 3 days old! And they still put up w/ me! What did you do and teach me! I don't need them tied to my hip but more than just a food source! If I corner one of them and pick it up. I can sit down somewhere w/ them and they don't mind. But hell, thats not what I was told. Do you want mine!

So those of you that say your Pekins are very friendly - did you do something special to get them that way? All of my poultry still runs and hides any time I come anywhere near them, even though I am out there at least a half hour a day to clean out the coop and socialize, usually more than that...

I wonder if the difference is that you have more than one. Like parakeets, if you have only 1 they will bond with YOU but if they have another they will bond with it more. I got Quack-Quack at 2 days old but you wouldn't be able to tell the difference had I been there at the hatching. He's very bonded to my Finacee too but we each have our own time that we spend with him, like my fiancee is at work all day but he comes home and looks for things to eat in the yard with him and then EVERY night he sits by the tub and plays with Quack-Quack while he bathes. This is THEIR time together. Just the other day my finacee was very upset about something and is was like Quack-Quack could sense this because he seemed to be MORE bonded to him than usual, even following him inside when I was still outside, Quack-Quack usually doesn't go in if one of us is out.

 

[Green Liver]

I must say that I am jealous of all of the duck owners that get "duckie loves". Quack-Quack is very attached as in he won't let us leave his sight (but the older he gets the better he gets), he lays down outside at my feet, he has to get on the bed in the morning to finish sleeping next to me and, he will bury his beak in our arms or in my hair sometimes when the diaper goes on. But when it comes to wanting to cuddle or lie down on our laps forget it. Quack-Quack doesn't like to be petted much and will only tolerate it for just a bit and then he's pulling away. He loves us we know because he will give us duckie kisses and he's VERY excited to see you if you have been gone, but no cuddles We held him right when we got him and he used to love to sleep on my shoulder but with in 2-3 weeks he no longer liked to be handled much. What do you think? Did we do something to turn him off of this or is just his personality? He's very talkative though which is cool, he likes to talk to you and for you to talk to him, he especially loves for us to cheer him on when he's playing in his pool and the tub.

 

[Robbo]

Are Pekin's pretty talkative? I have a very very very talkative Female Khaki Campbell who is a bit out of the ordinary anyway as she is super friendly as well and loves being with people. But I noticed my Pekin, Peepers doesn't make a noise usually. Going on 3 weeks old... no quacks yet (which my Khaki was by then) and only does a couple peeps a day... Could this be a usual Pekin or am I possibly looking at a male?

 

[countrygirl74]

Out of couriosity, what kind of grit do I need for my ducks? The huge bag they sell at the feed store or will the grit made for cockatiels and parrots at the local pet shop work?

I don't provide grit for my ducks because they get some supervised free-ranging every day and we have lots of dirt around here - complete with all kinds of pebbles, etc. However, if I know they won't be getting out of their pen for a day or more, I will shovel up a bunch of dirt and drop it on top of their deep litter in the run for them to forage through and grab if they need.

I wonder if the difference is that you have more than one. Like parakeets, if you have only 1 they will bond with YOU but if they have another they will bond with it more. I got Quack-Quack at 2 days old but you wouldn't be able to tell the difference had I been there at the hatching. He's very bonded to my Finacee too but we each have our own time that we spend with him, like my fiancee is at work all day but he comes home and looks for things to eat in the yard with him and then EVERY night he sits by the tub and plays with Quack-Quack while he bathes. This is THEIR time together. Just the other day my finacee was very upset about something and is was like Quack-Quack could sense this because he seemed to be MORE bonded to him than usual, even following him inside when I was still outside, Quack-Quack usually doesn't go in if one of us is out.

I think that makes a big difference! We have 1 Pekin who was raised alone for a couple weeks before the other ducks joined her and she is definitely the most friendly out of all of them because of it - but they will usually prefer to be with other ducks more than hanging out with me. We can catch them easily and herd them easily. They will all come up to us if we're sitting down and of course come to us if we have treats! But they are not the same as if raising just one duck who looks to you for everything.

Are Pekin's pretty talkative? I have a very very very talkative Female Khaki Campbell who is a bit out of the ordinary anyway as she is super friendly as well and loves being with people. But I noticed my Pekin, Peepers doesn't make a noise usually. Going on 3 weeks old... no quacks yet (which my Khaki was by then) and only does a couple peeps a day... Could this be a usual Pekin or am I possibly looking at a male?

My Pekins are extremely talkative - if your duckling doesn't start getting loud with her quacks, and has a more whispery, quiet quack, then it's a boy! But I remember even our boy being fairly talkative when he was a duckling, lots of peeps! So, maybe you just have a nice quiet duck, whether male or female.

 

[Nickeechickee]

Are Pekin's pretty talkative? I have a very very very talkative Female Khaki Campbell who is a bit out of the ordinary anyway as she is super friendly as well and loves being with people. But I noticed my Pekin, Peepers doesn't make a noise usually. Going on 3 weeks old... no quacks yet (which my Khaki was by then) and only does a couple peeps a day... Could this be a usual Pekin or am I possibly looking at a male?

I only have the one Pekin so don't know if it is normal or not - but mine is very loud and squawks constantly when I am around.

 

[I gotDucks]

When I picked out several at Tractor Supply, I already had a few adult females and wanted a male. I selected the smallest ones and wanted a male so I also selected a larger one too. I ended up with all females and one male. I think it takes a few months for the rear tail to curl. I think the females may tend to have speckled beaks. Males bright orange.