The Duck Thread

[needlessjunk]

Picture of the new family members. 2 pekins and 11 mallards.

 

[LadyIsadora]

Hello everyone! So i'm planning on raising ducklings this spring/summer, and just had a few questions for anyone willing to answer:

Ok so i'm still debating whether i should order hatching eggs, or simply the ducklings themselves. I'm keeping them as pets, so i want to have a strong bond with them, so would ordering ducklings weaken that?

Also, what is the best time to order the eggs/ducklings? I want to order from Metzer farms, so would i want to place an order pretty soon? Like do they have a limited supply/waiting list? And are you able to place an order for ducklings to be shipped in the next month or two?

And finally my last question (for now at least) i was looking into the breeds Pekin and Black Swedish, does anyone have any insight or comments i should know about these breeds? Do they get along alright? Would it be okay to have 3 of each or do i need an even number?
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Thanks!

Metzer has a pretty steady supply of birds. You should check out their web site. http://www.metzerfarms.com/index.cfm
They have a lot of info on the birds they offer.
This is their intoduction to ducks page: http://www.metzerfarms.com/DucksForSale.cfm?CustID=3762944
And BEST OF ALL for me anyway, this is a page of duck comparisons: http://www.metzerfarms.com/DuckBreedComparison.cfm?CustID=3762944
So you can decide if you want egg producers. friends, meat it gives a great chart for a lot of qualities that can help you make a decision as to what ducks are going to be right for your flock purposes
Each Duck has its own schedule so delivery dates can be tricky depending on what you order. I selected the kinds I wanted then had to find a day they would all be available together. They will be here monday

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They will ship even a small order of ducks, but charge more for postage as they must include heat packs & such. They do offer two kinds of Pekin, One being "Jumbo" and the other just a regular pekin. They also have black sweedish. http://www.metzerfarms.com/BlackSwe...2944&ID=BKS&BirdType=Duck&Breed=Black Swedish
the availability of each kind is listed in the description.

I spent HOURS on their site before I made a decision.
One bit of warning, the ordering process can be quite confusing. Dont press the confirm button until you are SURE. once you lock in the delivery date, its locked. and that is before the Paying process.... I wont go through all the details but I got my order fairly messed up. No real worries though Customer Service was great. Hope that helps.

 

[Kaessa]

I spent HOURS on their site before I made a decision.
One bit of warning, the ordering process can be quite confusing. Dont press the confirm button until you are SURE. once you lock in the delivery date, its locked. and that is before the Paying process.... I wont go through all the details but I got my order fairly messed up. No real worries though Customer Service was great. Hope that helps.

HA! I did the same thing, and their customer service was awesome. Got everything straightened out, they refunded the difference to my card, and the right four ducks showed up this morning.

Packaging was awesome, too, and all four ducks are healthy as can be.

 

[Amykins]

I love Metzer...it's a shame that they don't carry call ducks.

 

[PotatoWaffles]

I love Metzer...it's a shame that they don't carry call ducks. 

From what I hear, call ducklings don't ship well. Maybe it is a good thing, less dead babies =\

 

[LadyIsadora]

I get a gold star! I did NOT buy they duckies calling to me today. Shopping today for more duck food. Some for the fluffies expected Monday morning (12 of them, but 3 days is a loooooooog time to wait) some for the (almost) 4 week old Pekins. IT WAS SO HARD not to buy more when I saw those adorable fluffies for sale at Cal-Ranch! OMG their cute stubby wings and little black feet. dang!
Then I went to the pet store to pick up some feeder fish. I explained to the sales person that I wanted them for my ducks & he asked if I would like to pick up 3 more. It seems he adopted a few last year accidentally and is not fond of the mess. And they have begun to chase the human toddlers.

And Im like "heck no, I dont want no stinkin' ducks" JK! I jumped ALL OVER THAT

LOL he took my # hopefully I can pick them up this weekend ;-) not as cute as babies but they need love too.

 

[buffducks247]

What should I do with the one duck that I have left. These ducks were my pets so I don't want to get rid of him but I can't find anyone with ducks!!!!! I live near cochrane AB if you want me to pick up one of your ducks you don't want, I could even buy it, anything!! My duck is getting really depressed and scared, I don't know what to do

 

[Miss Lydia]

What should I do with the one duck that I have left. These ducks were my pets so I don't want to get rid of him but I can't find anyone with ducks!!!!! I live near cochrane AB if you want me to pick up one of your ducks you don't want, I could even buy it, anything!! My duck is getting really depressed and scared, I don't know what to do

Where is cochrane AB? very sorry for your loss.

 

[buffducks247]

its in canada in the province Alberta. what should i do?

 

[buffducks247]

its in Canada in the province of Alberta. what should i do?