Raising new ducks

amanda_rimo

Songster
Jun 21, 2023
108
116
113
Hi everyone!
We currently have 1 pekin, and are getting him a new friend. We want to get a Cayuga or a different breed. Just curious if raising all types of ducks is the same, or if different breeds require different needs?
 
Hi everyone!
We currently have 1 pekin, and are getting him a new friend. We want to get a Cayuga or a different breed. Just curious if raising all types of ducks is the same, or if different breeds require different needs?
They are all from Mallards (except Muscovy), so their needs are similar, with minor differences. I would consider size though. Since you said, he, I assume your Pekin is male. I would stick with large duck breeds like Appleyards. That way, a newcomer will have an equal chance and not be bullied by a bigger duck. If you are hoping to get a female, size is even more important. I would encourage you to get more than one female to prevent over mating. If you only want one more duck I would stick with a drake.
 
They are all from Mallards (except Muscovy), so their needs are similar, with minor differences. I would consider size though. Since you said, he, I assume your Pekin is male. I would stick with large duck breeds like Appleyards. That way, a newcomer will have an equal chance and not be bullied by a bigger duck. If you are hoping to get a female, size is even more important. I would encourage you to get more than one female to prevent over mating. If you only want one more duck I would stick with a drake.
Tractor Supply doesn’t sex the animals, so it’s just like you wait and see what you get, so we are getting 2 and giving one to our friend once they grow feathers and can get incorporated with the flocks
 
Tractor Supply doesn’t sex the animals, so it’s just like you wait and see what you get, so we are getting 2 and giving one to our friend once they grow feathers and can get incorporated with the flocks
Since TS gets its ducklings from Hoover’s and Hoover’s sells sexed-ducklings. Your probability of getting drakes seems to be increased. I still would go for a larger type. And, as Jenbirdee said, if you end up with a girl, you don’t want to put her with a drake until she is sexually mature.
 
We aren’t actually sure what our pekin duck is. We call him a boy, but we are starting to thing he is a girl. We have tried to check, but he freaks out when we try to check his vent. He is only about 4 months old too. We got him in April from tractor supply. He doesn’t have a drake feather, so we are starting to think he might be a girl, but we haven’t seen any eggs yet.
 
If you can post a video clip of his or her quack I’ll gladly help you identify the gender. They don’t grow drake feather till their second molting, and if it’s a female they won’t lay till 5-6months old.
 
thank you all so much for the helpful tips and advice! I’ll post a clip in a little while if you guys are able to help that would be great! We had two Pekins, but the other duck had some problems and was losing her voice, so it was hard to compare their quacks and see if we can tell the difference.
 

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