Tell me about Saxony ducks?

[mandelyn]

Cause I just bought some hatching eggs online of these. LOL I'm pretty sure my foundling egg is that of a duck, so on the off chance it hatches, it better have friends coming too. What better excuse to buy eggs? I'm maxed out on chickens... so let's add ducks!

I've had Pekins and Calls before, but it's been 8 years. I do know I will be brooding them differently because they're messy. Only ordered 6 eggs, hopefully I get something.

 

[gofasterstripe]

You might of bought them from someone here at BYC..if you did im sure you will have 6 beautiful babies in no time.

 

[mandelyn]

Possibly, it was a buy-it-now on Ebay from someone with A LOT if birds and an Ebay store. So far I've been lucky on Ebay. My husband will be pleased since they're a German bird. He wanted Turkeys, but we don't have the room for them. Ever since we lived in Germany he wants German stuff. He's goofy.

I'm thinking a new building, or rehoming 2 hens and splitting the current building, adding another pop door, a new run, and the ducks can have the dog's baby pool in their run. I didn't know the breed was that rare, but according to some research, they are. Cool. I can breed ducks.. the boys aren't near as bad as a rooster.

No building until something hatches though.

But my previous ducks were FUN! Following me around the yard in a line, swimming in their pool. The house was neat too, chopped the legs off a rabbit hutch and used straw for bedding so I could pull it out with a rake, it was a nice set up. Out of 11 eggs, 5 hatched, all girls. Found a boy in the newspaper with a tag line of "Thinks he's a poodle" (easter duckling gone wrong) and it took him a week to find out he had 5 girlfriends.

 

[The Duck ABC's]

The eggs are from me.

 

[mandelyn]

Cool! I was thinking of brooding them in the baby pool to start out with until they are big enough to live outside. I have a brooder box from the chickens, but I think the pool will be easier to clean since it's plastic instead of wood. I recall the last ducklings slinging wet food all over the place. They would eat, drink, eat, drink, sling food. When I moved the water well away from the food, they would just walk back and forth.

 

[ugly ducky]

Tell you about Saxony Ducks....You'll love them if you like big, goofy, laid back ducks. Mine are excellent layers so far. They just started laying about 2 months ago, and I have been quite impressed with their regularity. They also always put their eggs right in the nest, so no muddy eggs unless it's really wet outside, and they drag the mud in with them. I've got 3 hens and 2 drakes, and they get along real well. No drake fighting yet anyway. I've just started hatching eggs from them, which is a real trip!...LOL It was fun watching them grow up, so you have a lot to look forward to. I hope you get a real good hatch!

 

[The Duck ABC's]

They will be messy alright. The only problem with a kiddie pool is that they will be able to get out when they are two weeks old. I use a shipping crate lined with heavy drop plastic sheet (paint isle at hardware store), topped with pee wee pads and cotton towels. Works well for me. You may be able to get a "unaccompanied household baggage" crate from a moving company for free. Or try home depot, since they get some of their large items in crates. The love to get rid of them. I import goods from Germany so I always end up with air freight crates. You can always call a local freight moving company to and ask for free crates. Yellow Freight comes to my mind, just look into the phone book and ask for their dispatcher. Be sure to specify the size you are looking for. Many of those crates are palette size.

 

[mandelyn]

I do have access to shipping crates from my dad's work, they have to import auto parts from Germany and have the international type wooden ones. Oh! And my husband just picked something up too, big wooden box. Options!