Thread formerly known as Hatch day is today

[qwackers]

I love all my boys but I've got too many. I'm 4:4 atm which is really bad. But I'm not the killing kind and no one wants them, it seems mean to split them up too, they are all really fond of one another.

 

[Heidisgran]

I love all my boys but I've got too many. I'm 4:4 atm which is really bad. But I'm not the killing kind and no one wants them, it seems mean to split them up too, they are all really fond of one another.

as long as they aren't having knock down drag out fights or tearing up the girls your good...usually it's really a problem in to small an area

 

[qwackers]

So far so good with that. Fingers crossed!

 

[Heidisgran]

So far so good with that. Fingers crossed!

 

[Goin Quackrrs]

Aw poor Mr duck. I'd like to chop one of my ducks pee pee's off! He's a serial rapist and an angry one at that!

I'm not going to snip-snip. He's getting Preparation-H treatments for now. If it comes to needing further care, I may have to suck it up and make the 2-hour each way drive to the nearest bird vet. I'm still thinking I can treat it myself but I know I can't amputate if it's healthy tissue. In the meantime, no girls for Mr. Drake.

i feel ya qwackers! i had to take my girls away from my boys! now they are free ranging thru the day

Keeping them separate during peak mating season is probably a good idea. If you want fertile eggs, pick the best drake and let him have his time with the girls. Once they start molting, should be safe to put them all together again.

I love all my boys but I've got too many. I'm 4:4 atm which is really bad. But I'm not the killing kind and no one wants them, it seems mean to split them up too, they are all really fond of one another.

As long as there's peace, you should be okay. But then again, it's the perfect excuse to get more girls!

 

[qwackers]

Ha! I'd love to but my boyfriend is already on the verge of going nuts about what we have! We need a farm!

 

[angiert]

3 ducks, and 5 drakes got along fine for over a year...now the boys are beating each other bloody and my poor ducks were getting bred to death...i really don't want anymore cayugas and if im like you...noone wants them, they are too old to eat and i doubt if i could kill them anyways....and dumping them at the lake is out of the question. i can't even auction them cuz who wants a flock of boys??? lol....pretty soon im gonna have to build duck condos! i hope i have enf female calls...2 for each boy.

 

[qwackers]

Hmm that's interesting, my worst rapist is a Cayuga. I see a theme. They told her he was ahead and a half when wryly him in march. Do you think he'll be too old to eat?

 

[Goin Quackrrs]

3 ducks, and 5 drakes got along fine for over a year...now the boys are beating each other bloody and my poor ducks were getting bred to death...i really don't want anymore cayugas and if im like you...noone wants them, they are too old to eat and i doubt if i could kill them anyways....and dumping them at the lake is out of the question. i can't even auction them cuz who wants a flock of boys??? lol....pretty soon im gonna have to build duck condos! i hope i have enf female calls...2 for each boy.

I'm not sure it would be good for the calls to be bred by a larger drake. And you'd be surprised who wants drakes. People up here buy them for slug control.

Hmm that's interesting, my worst rapist is a Cayuga. I see a theme. They told her he was ahead and a half when wryly him in march. Do you think he'll be too old to eat?

The worst rapist drakes I've dealt with are Pekins. And if there aren't enough girls, they'll go rape your chickens.

I'd say he's probably too old to eat. They're best right about 16 weeks.

 

[Goin Quackrrs]

Lost a rouen drake to a predator last night. I'm thinking it fits the profile of raccoon. It reached under the tractor, grabbed the poor boy, pulled his head and neck out, gnawed it a little bit and left it like that.

First loss to a predator in 3 years of duck keeping. I feel really awful.

Lucky for us, the attack wasn't on our main run or secondary run. Makes me at least feel good that those are more secure. It looks like the gap that the predator used to reach in was made by the ducks noodling around in the mud the one day it rained this week. Corrected the issue with cinderblocks around the outside of the tractor. Little more work to move it, but I don't plan to be running a buffet.