Rouen Gender Help?

[md1812]

I got rouen duckling about 4 and a half months ago from a friend who said they didn't know how (if possible) to sex them. I heard somewhere else that you had to wait for them to molt twice. I waited until it he/she molted twice (or so I thought) and it appeared to be a girl.

I guess it didn't molt twice because now it is molting for sure, and it is getting grey breast feathers which females don't have. But the rest of it hasn't changed. Could anybody tell me if its a male or female? Or how long to wait?

 

[Debs Flock]

That actually looks like a Rouen crossed with another breed. I knew I had 2 females when they were around 12 weeks old based on their quack. Voice sexing is the easiest way to determine gender. I believe there are some sound bytes you can listen to on a website that I think is called Majestic Waterfowl.

Anyway, females have distinct quacks. Males sound raspy. My Pekin drake sounds like he's hoarse all the time or like he swallowed a cricket that's coming through in his voice. Also, most males have a drake curl, which is a curled tail feather.

 

[md1812]

Thanks!! I will definitely check out that website

 

[JadeComputerGal]

I got rouen duckling about 4 and a half months ago from a friend who said they didn't know how (if possible) to sex them. I heard somewhere else that you had to wait for them to molt twice. I waited until it he/she molted twice (or so I thought) and it appeared to be a girl.

I guess it didn't molt twice because now it is molting for sure, and it is getting grey breast feathers which females don't have. But the rest of it hasn't changed. Could anybody tell me if its a male or female? Or how long to wait?

I agree that it's possible it's a cross, but I'd expect to see other signs of plumage change by now. You're correct that the females don't have the silvery gray feathers, but I can't see any other signs of it being a drake except the bill color. A drake will have a white collar and a solid green head above the collar when they're in full nuptial plumage. Do you see any tinges of white around the neck or of green on the head when it's in bright sunlight?

 

[md1812]

I agree that it's possible it's a cross, but I'd expect to see other signs of plumage change by now. You're correct that the females don't have the silvery gray feathers, but I can't see any other signs of it being a drake except the bill color. A drake will have a white collar and a solid green head above the collar when they're in full nuptial plumage. Do you see any tinges of white around the neck or of green on the head when it's in bright sunlight?

I just looked at its head tonight and I did see little bits of green on it. It's also starting to get some grey feathers on its back.

 

[Tevyes Dad]

I agree with @JadeComputerGal The gray chest and greener bill look like a drake, but as a full Rouen, he would have changed more by now. If he is mixed with a breed that doesn't get the green head, he may only have some subtle green on his head or maybe it is just slower. As a point of reference, here are two pictures of my Rouen drake when his head first started changing and at 4-1/2 months when he is mostly transformed.

Here is a picture of my Rouen Drake, Kaine at just under 3 months:

And here is a picture of Kaine at 4-1/2 months.


I just noticed after the fact that there is still quite a bit of black on his webs too. I had a duck that was constipated as a duckling and she grew up normal but 2 weeks behind. Is it possible something happened to your drake to set its development back like that? My duck was only "bad" for about 3 days, but by the time she was feathering, she was "normal" for 2 weeks earlier with the other ducklings (weight, feathering, voice change... everything).

 

[Tevyes Dad]

Of course it could be the time of year too... I am not sure what happens with late summer drakes... Here is Kaine now and he's almost 1-1/2 years old...

 

[md1812]

I'm don't think anything has happened to him to make his growth be set back, but then again I'm not sure. It's the my first duck @gentila. There is a possibility it could be a cross because it was with some crossed ducklings, but the owner said it was purebred because it looked like the other purebreds rather than the crosses. I guess I will just have to wait and see! Thanks for the help!!

 

[Tevyes Dad]

If he's a drake he should get his drake feather soon. Also he should be done peeping by now. If there are several different vocalizations (especially if one is a clear "quack")-probably a girl. If there is one vocalization that sounds like a quack with a kazoo shoved in his throat- he's a boy.