*~*Runner Duck Club*~*

[CrazyChookLady5]

hey guys,

just thought I'd post another picture of my duck. hes (or she?) getting big. its not the best pic but ive been away for 2 weeks so I put my duckling with a broody and her chicks and over the time ive been away hes not friendly anymore

 

[CrazyTalk]

What a cutie! I don't know much about duck genetics, though. While the darker duckling at first might seem to indicate the black call drake was involved, I am not sure if there could be some recessive genes carried by your runners.

White is a masking color - it is located in a different place in the genome than most other colors, and it's presence basically bleaches them out - you can have a bird that has interesting color genetics, but just looks white - when you breed this bird (in a combination that causes the masking white to not show up) - all sorts of things can pop out. Fawn and White has similar results.

We bred a white and a fawn and white this spring and got everything from brown and blue to mallard looking birds. Really unexpected.

 

[Amiga]

Thanks - wow.

 

[petesgirl]

I love all the pictures!!! Beautiful babies!

I have some noisy girls, so noisy that I worry about my neighbors. I have 6 drakes that are about 8 months old and they are pretty quiet, its the younger girls that are noisy. I got 11 girls in September, so they are about 3 months old. They are with the boys now. I was worried about how the boys would be with the girls, but the girls are super bossy, maybe because there are more of them? They hang out in 2 groups, the girls in one and the boys in the other. Occasionally they will hang out together. One of the girls is very loud and bossy. She chases the boys around and is a bit aggressive with the girls. At night when I put them up the girls are very loud. They have fresh food and water and plenty of room. They are right under our bedroom window. They have a large covered area, a small house that a few of them go into and a covered porch. They don't seem to sleep much, as they wake us up many times in the night. I wonder if they don't feel secure. They have the cozy covered spots, but it is not like a coop with a door. I have an outdoor guard dog and goats just on the other side of the fence. I do worry about predators, but since they are right by our window we look out whenever they get noisy, and there is nothing out there. Will they mellow out as they get older? My boys did, but as you know, boys aren't that loud. We may have to relocate them to a coup further from the house. Do you think they will be more settled in a closed in space? I love having them so close to the house, except for the noise and poop! Does anybody else have very noisy girls?

I have to say, though, even with all the noise and poop I wouldn't give them up! They are so cute, the boys will stand about 2 feet from the girls and chatter. I think they are checking out the girls and talking about them They have been very respectful to the girls, but most of the time the girls will chase them off, playing hard to get. I am sure that will soon change!

 

[TracyLovesDucks]

Oh my gosh, my girls can get LOUD too! It happens when they see someone walking by mid-day... they know I bring lettuce mid-day so they get really worked up then. So now, whenever anyone is walking in their line of sight mid-day, they yell. Haha, they even yell at strangers walking across the road... they're like watch dogs. Two of them have lost their voices temporarily I assume from being too loud.

I was wondering today if there's anyway to train them to quiet down because I also worry about the neighbors. BUT the neighbors have donkeys and roosters and these are very loud creatures too... so I stop worrying. Anyways, it would be hard to turn the tables because in reality, they've been training me... to get them their lettuce faster! Haha!

Unlike your ducks, mine stay rather quiet at night. I keep them fully enclosed in an 8x8' shed (duck house) in complete darkness. It is very well ventilated (a small gap running the whole way around between roof and walls) but doesn't have any windows. They only go in to sleep at night. But if I'm a little late letting them out in the morning, then they start yelling up a storm.

Maybe it would help yours to enclose them at night and keep it darker? Or they might just need to settle in and get used to being a bigger group now.

 

[CrazyTalk]

Mine have their own shed that's fully locked up and enclosed at night, and if I walk by it at night, I can often hear chattering. I think they sleep as much during the day as they do the night. I don't think they're like the chickens in this respect.

 

[TracyLovesDucks]

Yep, I do hear chattering too when I walk by at night. But it's quiet chattering and doesn't escalate to full blown shouting.

 

[Frank Phinster]

Ducks are active both day and night and that's why many don't go into a shed at night without proper persuation. Wild mallards tend to forage on land during the nighttime. If you let them, they would actually be quite busy foraging.

 

[Birdrain92]

My Indian Runners are trained to go to bed at night.

Ducks are active both day and night and that's why many don't go into a shed at night without proper persuation. Wild mallards tend to forage on land during the nighttime. If you let them, they would actually be quite busy foraging.

 

[petesgirl]

I think I will need to have a shed/coop for them, or at least enclose part of their current area better with a door. They probably need to feel more secure. Mine do nap during the day also.