Uggg..I Never thought about SIBBLINGS trying To Mate

[1234duck]

I'm kinda stunned/surprised/in shock.... Well I guess I wasn't just expecting this to happen quite yet, after all their just my babies and sister and brother to top it all off. Jack and Jill are about 15 weeks old. Golden Cascade babies, Jack was abandond/left outside of the nest almost lifeless until we found him and crested/gently rubbed and massaged him all over while talking to him. Jill was an egg with a pip still in the nest but soon hatched the next day in the incubator. ~Last night Jack & Jill were swimming and i noticed Jack on Jills back trying to mate(and no i really don't think they were playing but i would like to think that.) lol So this just caught me off guard... But is this a normal thing in animals, them breeding/mating even if their brother and sister? Help.. this is still new to me. Thanks, ~Julie~

 

[NovaAman]

Yes. Normal. I realise its ducks you are asking about, but chickens will do the same thing. Thats why when it came time to get rid of roosters, I got rid of the sibblings and kept the non sibs. LOL.

 

[bufforp89]

Its perfectly normal. They don't really see each other as siblings like we do. Ducks, chickens etc. have a big enough gene pool that it would take a few generations of inbreeding before any ill effects/deformations cropped up.

 

[desertdarlene]

They don't know any better. I'm the wild, siblings rarely mate usually because there are so many other choices for mates that they usually chose an unrelated one to mate with.

I do know of one wild pair of siblings where the male constantly tries to mate with his sister. However, another male that has been with them since they all were ducklings keeps brother away from sister. Plus, sister doesn't let brother mate with her either because she wants the unrelated male.

 

[duckyfromoz]

Even a mother or father/ son or daughter situation wont worry a duck. If it has webbed feet and quacks ( and sometimes doesnt even need to do that

) it is fair game once the hormones kick in. Some line bredding is ok - the first generation hatched from brother and sister arent all going to turn out with extra or missing bits- but it is something that will have an effect if they are allowed to continue for a few generations. Introduction of an unrelated bloodline every few years is a good way to introduce some genetic diversity to avoid problems.

 

[jbourget]

yup this is common. and alot of people do it to keep a strain going. and breed for the qualitys that the line has and is know for.