Rookie question: ducklings parentage .....

[Andrea PNW]

Y'all are going to laugh at me but - does it matter what breed of drake mates with a hen to determine the type of offspring? Anotherwords do I need another cayuga drake to pair up with a Cayuga hen if I want cayuga ducklings?

I'm so confused about the offspring/mating thing when it comes to eggs. I assume any drake can fertilize any hen regardless of whether or not it was the original "father"? This is such a weird and kinda gross question to ask but I'm actually reluctant to Google it. I'm afraid what the search would pop up.

Thank you thank you!

 

[ConnieA]

Yes, mating does determine the breed type of duck offspring.

If you have a Cayuga hen, and you want full-blooded Cayuga ducklings, you will need a Cayuga drake to mate with her.

If you use any other breed of drake, you will still get ducklings, but they will only be half-Cayuga (from the mother's side), and the other half will be whatever the drake's breed is.

 

[Andrea PNW]

Yes, mating does determine the breed type of duck offspring.

If you have a Cayuga hen, and you want full-blooded Cayuga ducklings, you will need a Cayuga drake to mate with her.

If you use any other breed of drake, you will still get ducklings, but they will only be half-Cayuga (from the mother's side), and the other half will be whatever the drake's breed is.

Omigosh thank you!!!! I truly didn't know!!

 

[TomCahalan]

I assume any drake can fertilize any hen regardless of whether or not it was the original "father"?

By "original father" do you mean "original husband"? There is no animal in the world where fathers can shift. The father is determined at conception, not by whichever drake the duck is currently mating with.

Domestic ducks don't form the same kind of families that civilized humans do; they are not monogamous. Drakes will attempt to mate with all of the ducks, and will attempt to prevent other drakes from mating. It is a free-for-all, might-makes-right. A duck can have sperm from multiple drakes inside of her at the same time, so each egg she lays can have a different father.

If you want to pair up specific ducks with a drake, you need to make sure that you use a fence to keep your other drakes out. The ducks still might have sperm in them from the other drakes for a while, so you will have to wait several weeks before you start collecting eggs for incubation.