Pekin Ducks ... Fully Grown In 30 Days? Also *Sexing*

[Chica]

We bought three Pekin ducks from my local feed store this month, and everywhere I have been reading says that the Pekin ducks get to be fully grown in 30 days. Has anyone found this to be true? Also, any idea on how to tell who is male and who is female?

 

[ChristinaMae]

Being a duck newbie, I can only speak from personnal experience, but my Pekin is 4wks and a day (or two) old, and she's definitely not full grown yet. She is much bigger than my rouen or my khaki campbell, however, and her feathers seem to be coming in faster. I'm pretty positive she's a 'she' because she started quacking this week - it sounds more like a honk most of the time, and she still peeps a lot, but the quack is there. I believe the first (sticky) thread has a link to information on sexing your ducks. Ducks - "Sticky" topics index

 

[duckyfromoz]

Mine are a month old now -and although pekins do grow fast- they are not full grown by any means. I am starting to hear their voices change about now too. I definately have some girls in the brooder- but not quite sure who they are yet.

 

[vfem]

They get to their full size fast, but again... NOT in 30 days. They are still in the teen phase then. I would say it takes about 45-60 days for ALL their feathers to come in, and a good amount of their weight to be filled out. You won't be able to sex them until the males get their little curl in the tail, and that took my male until about 18 weeks to start showing that.

 

[Chica]

Thanks for the replies. I found it hard that they would be full grown in 30 days. Mine aren't even quacking yet, but, they're not even 4 weeks old yet.

 

[juice]

I have a ?????????????????????????

Im a 4-Her and I am doing ducks for the first time. I have pekin ducks and they are three weeks old. They are in a horse stall at the moment with a heat lamp, water and food.
There is nowhere for them to swim.

Where is the ideal place for market ducks to be kept while raising them?

Should they be outside during the day?

Do they need somewhere to swim?

And how do i help them become more friendly other than for the imitation of their mother's beak with you hand?

thank you, i hope someone can help me!!

 

[PlumTuckered]

Pekins are not fully grown at 30 days. They mature at 20 weeks, meaning the drakes will top the hens and the hens will lay eggs. The female ducks develop a distinct "quack" while the males continue to have a raspy, more quiet voice. You will notice the quacks of the girls well before they are egg laying age. The drake will also have the curled feathers on his tail when he gets close to 20 weeks of age.

4 H'er, you can put a small tub of water (rubber feed bowl, plastic bin etc) in for the ducks to bathe and play in. As for making them friendly, I spent a lot of time with my ducks, handled them gently as often as I could and of course bribed them to come to my hand with frozen peas, scrambled eggs, cheerios, spinach leaves and worms.

Michelle

 

[pekin01]

yes this is true pekin ducks mature way faster then any other duck that is why they are very popular in the commercial industries i have two that are 2-3 weeks and the one is starting to quack and both are getting there white feathers in the ducks can weigh anywhere from 8-13 pounds in captivity the easiest way to sex them would be to wait for them to mature the male will have a curl in the tail feather or you could use a process called venting but this can be harmful to the duck if your not experienced in dealing with ducks

 

[CWchickenranch]

Mine are 7 weeks old today and they are still growing rapidly. Feathers are coming in good now and starting to quack. Still have more growing to do! I am new to ducks and I am amazed at how fast they grow. They are almost the same size as my RIR hens!

 

[Yoshi2525]

yes this is true pekin ducks mature way faster then any other duck that is why they are very popular in the commercial industries i have two that are 2-3 weeks and the one is starting to quack and both are getting there white feathers in the ducks can weigh anywhere from 8-13 pounds in captivity the easiest way to sex them would be to wait for them to mature the male will have a curl in the tail feather or you could use a process called venting but this can be harmful to the duck if your not experienced in dealing with ducks

I've purchased 4 ducks pekin . I believe 3 are male and one is a female. Can they all be tougher without hurting the female ? Or should I separate them?