Questions about Muscovies

[HeatherLynn]

Ok well my son has the idea that he should buy mommy some ducks because he saw some on craigslist. ( sigh )

How much do they fly?

Compared to mallards how difficult are they to raise?

Good temperment or are they going to cause my chickens problems. I already had geese kill a hen so I am wary.

I thought these were illegal to own for some reason, are they?

Any egg laying ability?

How is the taste? My dad is insistent that duck meat is greesy and gross and I have a tendency to eat un needed male poultry.

 

[oldtimeway]

It's my understanding they're making an exception in the law for farmers to have them.

They are good fliers compared to most domestic ducks but they aren't fliers like wild ducks.

They have claws and delight in tearing you to pieces when you try to catch them or if you try to pick up one of their ducklings. They are excellent mothers. I always joke they'll set on twenty eggs and hatch 25

But they actually will set on over a dozen eggs and hatch nearly every one of them. They will raise them all too, unlike real ducks who are sometimes poor mothers in that they'll lose their babies in the weeds, etc. but that doesn't happen with a muscovie. Oh, did I mention these are Muscovies and not ducks. They do not cross with real ducks or won't willingly but it will occasionally happen but the offspring are hybrids and sterile. They also will not quack like a duck but only make a hissing sound.

They delight in roosting where a regular duck stays on the ground. They will roost on your roof, in the trees, etc. whatever you can think. We had some and they flew up in the apple trees and ate the apples off the trees. They would roost on the garage room a crap it up. They wouldn't let you catch them and when you did to butcher them they tore you apart so I shot them with the 22 and the bullet went right through their head and they didn't die. They're like some sort of strange prehistoric creature. When you butcher them, they don't have nice usable feathers like a regular duck. Their feathers smell terrible and their plumbing is not the same as a regular duck. My wife told me that you might as well dress a dodo bird and forbid me to ever have them again or she wouldn't dress them.

Other than that, have fun!!

Can you tell I have no use for them?

Give me a good Rouen, Pekin, Buff or Silver Appleyard.

 

[D'Angelo N Va.]

Let me guess..you are not a fan of the Muscovy!!! I have only a couple, but I want some more. Time will tell.

 

[Bleenie]

Mine only fly down to the creek & back, Sometimes, not everytime they go. The girls fly pretty well but the boys dont, they're just too big. They are SOOOO easy to raise!! They are much less messy than all of the other duck breeds that I have owned/raised & their temperments are wonderful, they are very sweet & affectionate birds if they're raised around people, preferrably brooder-raised. Mine lay very well and are still laying & brooding right now, they're also excellent mothers.

They are legal to keep if you're keeping them for eggs or meat. From what I have been told, the meat is excellent and is not greasy. I have a friend that raises them mainly for meat and sells to all kinds of people. Muscovy boys get pretty big too so I am sure they'll make a good meal if you've got an extra boy.



ETA: As for their claws, yes, you do have to be careful but mine are all pretty easy to handle and I can walk right to them and pick them up if i need to put them back in their pen, especially my boys.... with the exception of one boy that i got from a friend when he was half grown, he's a bit of a jerk still, lol.

 

[swheat]

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Wished I had gotten Muscovies years ago.

 

[PlumTuckered]

I have 1 Muscovy Hen and love her to bits. She's the most comical of all my Ducks, they are quiet, they poop far less than my Pekins and Magpie/runner cross LOL Scooter has a mind of her own and she does fly but only to the pond...she usually prefers to walk everywhere. Her favorite roosting spot is on top of the chicken yard fence. I wish I had at least 6 more!

Michelle

 

[Caprice_Acres]

I've had 'scovies for several years now. I bought some Welsh Harlequin ducks this year, and BOY are they different from my 'scovies.

First, the WH's are skittish. They RUN whenever I walk by, whereas my 'scovies often just stay put. The WH's are also LOUD, which doesn't matter much because I'm on a farm and have no neighbors to annoy - and they don't bother us.

Scovies are quiet but can be just as messy as all other ducks, I've found. I HATE brooder raising them. I don't try to tame my birds as a general rule, though. I don't need pets, I need productive livestock. Brooder raising any kind of duck is gross, LOL, and I hate it. Messy stinky critters when they're enclosed. That's one main reason I got 'scovies - was hoping to avoid brooder raising ducklings.

My 'scovies free range 24/7, 365 and until this year I had no fliers. This year I had several that achieved liftoff, but it was mainly to fly across my yard to the food/bathing areas, nowhere else. Clipping of the primaries quickly resulted in 'grounded' ducks.

For the most part, my birds are all very content to walk everywhere.

As for being mommas, they are the BEST. They can go into attack mode when broody, which I take delight in. I love seeing a muscovy momma in her 'torpedo' stance, making 'threatening' peeping noises at her victims that she stalks near her nest.

Not very intimidating, unless you factor in those claws.

They can also give you a pretty good thrashing with those powerful wings of theirs, too. But so far in my years of raising them, they are ONLY aggressive while they have a nest or young babies. I would prefer their aggressive attitude over their nests/babies to the opposite - lack of interest in their offspring.

 

[Goat_Walker]

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[Miss Lydia]

I love my Muscovies, but I have never had any other breed of duck.

 

[Goat_Walker]

Flying -

My females are very good flyers. They fly around the barn, to the neighbors ponds, across the street. Where ever they want. WHen i say "they" im refering to my 2 y/o and my two 5 month olds. They have larger wings than mallard derived breeds as far as proportioned to the body. My females can take off from a stand still or jump up on my 4 1/2 ft fence with no problem. I have one 8 y/o black drake who is also very skilled at flying a few hundred yards across the street to a pond if he doesnt feel like walking. My old 15 lb drake needed a running start but once he was off the ground he had no problem going 1 - 2 hundred yards.

Raising -

Ive only raised one mallard pair and muscovies are the easiest breed of duck ive ever raised. they are excellent foragers and are very smart . Mine have pretty good survival insticts as far as i dont have to heard them into a shelter, they know where it is when the weather gets nasty.


Temperment -

Muscovies though nice are kind of snobs sometimes, lol. They prefer to keep to themselves but dont mind inter mingling with normal breeds. My females quickly became head honcho over my flock and let everyone know who was boss. It really depends on how they are raised in my experience. If i dont visit them daily and let them know i am the giver of feed they tolerate me but dont care for me to be near them. On the other hand the group i have right now were raised by mama and know what the food bucket looks like. They arent so affectionate that they get under my feet but they dont mind eating out of my hand. Especially if i have little orange squirmy things from the pet store, lol.

Laying -

AWE MAZ ING! lol. I get a large egg a day almost everyday from all my girls who are old enough to lay. Mine girls dont lay them all over the yard either. they find a ncie plan to nest and they lay their everyday.


Feathers -

Since the feathers were mentioned i though i might add that scovies arent as "water friendly" as other ducks. true - they do like to swim and bathe and do ducky stuff, just not as much. I dont know the whole story but its something with their oil glands that scovies have a harder time water proofing their feathers. I may be wrong here so please correct me if i am.


Hope that helps

How old are your scovies?