Welsh Harlequin

[OzarkCountryGirl]

I just sold a WH drake and 3 WH hens for a total of $40. Not show quality (not IMHO anyway), but far from being mutts. Like many others, I usually cut back on my herds/flocks each year in late Fall. More often than not, the Fall prices are noticeably less than Spring/Summer prices. Of course that makes for really good deals for folks who are just starting out...

 

[kswaterfowl]

We sell our show quality birds for between $15-25.00 per bird. Sometimes $25.00 for the pair. If you are like minded and someone that we know and are serious, we give some extremely nice birds away. Many breeders are of like-minds. We've traded birds between breeders for years. I hear people say all the time that a breeder will not sell you their best birds, but I disagree and we tend to sell the best birds because when someone comes to us they are looking for a good start in them. We wouldn't sell them something that we wouldn't breed from ourselves. Nice quality Welsh Harlequins aren't hard to come by, you just can't usually find them at a hatchery (unless its Holderreads) or the feed store. If you look among breeders there are some extremely nice ones out there!

 

[hokankai]

Kswaterfowl how do I get in on one of those deals . LOL

 

[carousel86]

I would like to buy some WH duckling this spring. I was wondering where should I buy them from, I live in NY. I was thinking about Holderread.

 

[OzarkCountryGirl]

I hear people say all the time that a breeder will not sell you their best birds, but I disagree and we tend to sell the best birds because when someone comes to us they are looking for a good start in them.

I raised and showed rabbits for years and can't tell you how many trios of show quality rabbits I gave away to 4-H youth who were sincerely interested in raising and showing them. It did my heart good to see these young breeders end up with blue ribbons on rabbits I gave them. Even though I no longer show, I still keep in touch with several of the breeders, and many of the offspring of the ones I gave away are still making their way to the show tables.

Plus when you disperse some of your best stock (and keep in touch with those new breeders), if you ever get into a temporary hardship where you have to sell everything ASAP, once you get back on your feet you can sometimes get back some of your old breeding stock so you don't have to start from scratch.

 

[IridescentPals]

Yes! Canada is very pretty, glad to hear you enjoyed your trips!

I just pre-ordered 3 WH ducklings for spring 2014 and they were $15 a piece.

I hope you get a better contact than the guy selling for $150!

I am so excited to get my new duckies in spring!

We, too, are excited about the prospect of new life this coming spring and in anticipation we are preparing a home for ducks. Maybe it shouldn't be a post here, but how big should the door be to the new quacker house?

 

[hokankai]

Here is my starter breeding flock! 2 drakes, 7 hens (the dark marked one is for sale though, she has an eye stripe and white toenails)! I would still like one more really nice female, but I think this is a great start

 

[carousel86]

Do you ship them to NY? How much?

 

[Muse7]

Hey All,

Has anyone feed their ducks Chicory or know any reason it would not be a good idea.
I'm thinking about seeding one of my gardens with a mix of Turnip greens, bok choy, ad chicory
for the ducks. But I can't find info on chicory, as to if it is like spinach and Swiss chard.

Anyone have any info.

Liz

 

[lakota_elder]

The following links will give you the reason that breeders use the words "critical", "endangered" in their advertisements. Some of that information is from as far back as 2008. While it's true that there are a lot more Welsh Harlequins being bred I'd say that less than 20% are being bred to standard. Others just jump on the next kids in town and breed to make the $$$. At the shows in FL you would probably be the only entries and you still have to take a breed description for some of the judges. And while the golds can be shown, they are not yet recognized as a breed.

http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/Ducks/Welsh/Welsh.html Feathersite on poultry and duck breeds

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_Harlequin Wikipedia

http://albc-usa.org/cpl/waterfowl/welshharlequin.html The American Livestock Breed Conservancy