Texas

[LBejaran]

I know what you mean! I was wanting muscovy's as well and they are quite difficult to find!

I hope you find some soon! Do you not have an incubator? I would let you borrow mine if you wanted to hatch some out! I just have a Little Giant Still Air Incubator. I tried hatching chicks once in it and I don't think I added enough moisture, Only two really developed very far but they didn't make it. I need more practice with it honestly.

My Dad and I were building an incubator last year, but the bulb we used wasn't a low enough wattage, so it got too hot. I had tested it for days, but I think there just wasn't enough space. We actually made one out of a foam ice chest and we added a glass window and a moist towel to insure that there would be humidity. If we try it again, I need to find a very low wattage light bulb or build a wooden box instead so that the heat isn't as concentrated. Dad used to build incubators when he was a kid. Raising chickens back then wasn't a choice but a way of surviving. For a poor family, if you didn't have chickens, you didn't have enough food. Hatching your own chicks was better because all the hens would continue laying.

There is one lady who promised she'd email me as soon as she knew for sure that her ducks were laying fertilized eggs, but that probably won't be for a month or two.

If I find them, I will definitely let you know! I might try and trick my hens into becoming broody by placing all the nesting eggs into a single nesting box and waiting to see if she'll take the bait. However, I won't do it until I know someone has those eggs. It would be cool to hatch them out in an incubator, though. I'd love to see the entire process and watch them pip. I've seen chicks do it, but never ducklings!

 

[LightningTFarm]

lbejaran: There are some other ducks you should look into raising for meat, as well. I have been raising Welsh Harlequins for eggs, but last spring ordered some Saxonies from Holderread's. They are beautiful, and are Holderread's favorite large meat-type duck (if it's his favorite, that's enough for me!) They are big, beautiful and very calm.

If you are not looking to necessarily breed ducks but just want to raise some to butcher, you should look into ordering some White Appleyards from Holderread's. Apparently Silver Appleyards throw out some pure white ducklings every so often, naturally. I ordered some last spring that I need to butcher soon. They are pure white (so easy pickings), very large, calm but not fatty like Pekins. Lots of people raise Silver Appleyards for meat ducks, and these are genetically the same they are just white.

If I were you I would check out the Holderread's website at www.holderreadfarm.com. Also, if you have never raised ducks before, it is different than raising chickens. Do yourself a favor and get the "Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks" which was written by Dave Holderread. You can't just figure they are the same as chickens but just like water! For one thing, you CANNOT feed ducklings and ducks medicated feed, as it will kill them. If you are not ready to buy the book, PM me and I can email you some articles I have saved.

Ducks rule, chickens drool!

 

[Mi Ranchito]

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Hi and greetings from SA! I have Muscovey ducks and I find them awesome. I have two ducklings that hatched Dec. 12, if ur interested. My Muscovey will also start laying in about 2another weeks, I suspect.

 

[LBejaran]

lbejaran: There are some other ducks you should look into raising for meat, as well. I have been raising Welsh Harlequins for eggs, but last spring ordered some Saxonies from Holderread's. They are beautiful, and are Holderread's favorite large meat-type duck (if it's his favorite, that's enough for me!) They are big, beautiful and very calm.

If you are not looking to necessarily breed ducks but just want to raise some to butcher, you should look into ordering some White Appleyards from Holderread's. Apparently Silver Appleyards throw out some pure white ducklings every so often, naturally. I ordered some last spring that I need to butcher soon. They are pure white (so easy pickings), very large, calm but not fatty like Pekins. Lots of people raise Silver Appleyards for meat ducks, and these are genetically the same they are just white.

If I were you I would check out the Holderread's website at www.holderreadfarm.com. Also, if you have never raised ducks before, it is different than raising chickens. Do yourself a favor and get the "Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks" which was written by Dave Holderread. You can't just figure they are the same as chickens but just like water! For one thing, you CANNOT feed ducklings and ducks medicated feed, as it will kill them. If you are not ready to buy the book, PM me and I can email you some articles I have saved.

Ducks rule, chickens drool!

I have ducks, three in fact. My sister really wanted them so she brought one home without asking first. I ended up doing all the research in one night and made sure I wasn't doing anything wrong. I never feed my birds medicated feed anyway, so it worked out.

I have one Cayuga female, one Swedish female, and a handicapped Indian Runner (he might be a mix because he doesn't stand as tall, but that might just be because of his messed up foot). The reason I wanted muscovy ducks is because of how they adapt so well to the climate we live in. We are about 20 minutes from Mexico and our area is a prime place for them. I want them to adapt to the environment like most of my flock has. It keeps food costs down and I want them to have as organic a diet as possible (because buying organic feed down here is downright impossible unless you want to ship a truckload of it from up north).

I will definitely check out the website, but I think that my reasoning for really wanting muscovies is sound. Plus, they look like little superheroes with their masks, hehe!

 

[LBejaran]

Quote: I'll PM you now!

 

[ShadowsFIAL]

Have any of you heard of ChickenvilleUSA? I found them on CL this week and their birds have vaccines. I was wondering if anyone had ever gotten birds from them. They are in Terrel, Tx. =)

 

[Ms Jellybean]

We have food safe blue barrels for our rain barrels. One of days I might paint them so they look nicer. I'd like to have more barrels too. Long term goal is a cistern for rain barrel run off storage.

Even at our old place down in central TX where we had trees and more water, we really tried to do xeriscaping for any landscaping plants that we used. If I am going to give water to something, I prefer to save that precious commodity for growing things that are food or medicinal in nature.

I'll have to look at that book and see if there is anything in there that I haven't seen before.

I would love to have a cistern put in. It would help level out my sloping yard too since they could spread the dirt out all over the hill I am on and make a flat spot.

 

[Brookshire11]

Have any of you heard of ChickenvilleUSA? I found them on CL this week and their birds have vaccines. I was wondering if anyone had ever gotten birds from them. They are in Terrel, Tx. =)

I saw soooo many adds from them wen I was looking for chicks.
I didn't end up getting them from there, but I liked that you made an appointment, and that there was no minimum order.
Might be worth a call. It's a teeny bit of a drive, but closer than IDEAL

 

[mi2bugz]

This is also something I would like to know, I want to start a vegetable garden that's as natural as I can get it, I would like to know what kind of seeds I should buy and from where.

I got the All New Square Foot Gardening book by Mel Barthelamew and found this neat little chart that I was trying to create in a spread sheet. I hope the photo came out readable on here.

 

[gameandmore]

I got the All New Square Foot Gardening book by Mel Barthelamew and found this neat little chart that I was trying to create in a spread sheet. I hope the photo came out readable on here.

Thanks that helps a lot!!