Trying again with Ducklings!

[Lute]

So I took y'alls advice and I'm going to try my hand at ducklings again. We're going to pick up three 3 week old Pekin ducklings on Saturday along with a female pekin for breeding purposes. (I forgot to ask how old she was, I'm assuming 4 months old since she's supposedly out of a November hatch) We'll be breeding the new girl with our well mannered 7 month old; Joe, when she's old enough.

Suffice to say I'm excited.

 

[Darklingstorm]

Congrats

You know I've actually thought about getting rid of all my chickens and keeping nothing but ducks. i have 8 chickens in a pen that is twice as big as my duck pen (housing 4) and there is not a speck of green in the whole place. The duck pen is over grown in some areas. They have never escaped out of their pen, unlike the chickens were I've had to click wings and still ended up with dead ones because they would get out and dogs would get them. And now I can't let the chickens roam the yard because the rooster attacks my son.

The draw back on ducks is the water mess. I'm sure that too many ducks in one area would surely destroy all plant life but at least I can let the ducks out with my son and not worry about attacks.

 

[Lute]

We're going to build the ducks a much bigger pen (they're in a small temporary one) this weekend. We're installing a pool and a house for the female(s) to lay eggs. I found a nice design I'd like to use and we're going to build a canopy over the pond so it doesn't get too warm in the sun.

I know, I'm spoiling them already and I don't even have them yet!

 

[Amiga]

Pampered ducks are happy ducks are healthy ducks!

 

[Lute]

That's how I've always felt. Just try explaining it to my boyfriend.

 

[Amiga]

Tell him you can taste it in the eggs. The love and pampering, I mean.

 

[Lute]

I know he'll see a difference. Eventually.

I'm really excited for it. I can't wait until Saturday! GAH! Just 3 more days!

 

[m.kitchengirl]

Lute, congrats on your new duckies! Last year was my first year with ducks.
I have always wanted them & done tons of research for years about them.
The man in my life looked at me like I have grown an extra set of heads when I told him I wanted ducks.
He, like many people I know, had never heard of ducks as pets, garden helpers, egg layers, etc.
I got chickens to make it all make sense to him.
He was definitely NOT on board last year.

Flash forward to now - he asked me to order Cayugas for the yard, named our newest duck "Heather", and constantly tells people I should charge money for stressed friends to come watch the ducks.
When he gets back from his hike he wants us to buy a bigger property with a small pond & get even more into the homestead lifestyle. He said recently that it is because of the ducks & their antics that he has fallen for the hpbby farm thing. (Though I think never cleaning a duck house/chicken coop, never getting up to open coop doors, fill waterers & feeders, or ever being "responsible" for any of it besides eating the baked goods, and the best egg sandwiches he's ever had, has made "loving" the lifestyle easier.

)

 

[Lute]

Your husband sounds like my boyfriend! To make matters worse, it was his idea to get ducks in the first place! I originally wanted to stick with chickens but I very quickly grew to adore the little fluffy suckers. Imagine how hurt I was when the first four I had died (Inexperience and the fact we were told NOTHING when we got them).

But I'm ready to try again and I'm really looking forward to the new babies! I rather like the adults we have and feel ready for little ones again.

 

[Highlander]

Congrats

You know I've actually thought about getting rid of all my chickens and keeping nothing but ducks.  i have 8 chickens in a pen that is twice as big as my duck pen (housing 4) and there is not a speck of green in the whole place. The duck pen is over grown in some areas.  They have never escaped out of their pen, unlike the chickens were I've had to click wings and still ended up with dead ones because they would get out and dogs would get them.  And now I can't let the chickens roam the yard because the rooster attacks my son.

The draw back on ducks is the water mess. I'm sure that too many ducks in one area would surely destroy all plant life but at least I can let the ducks out with my son and not worry about attacks.

I've been thinking exactly the same thing lately. My ducks lay way more than the chickens, they eat less, they don't seem to get any of the health issues that the chickens seem to be plagued with. And they are cuter! So I'm phasing out the chickens and bringing in more ducks.... much more ducks!