Which breed of ducks to get?

[cajun41887]

Ive had chickens for almost 3 years now and want to venture into ducks as well. Ive been doing tons of research, but cant decide on a breed. I’m torn between Welsh Harlequins, Muscovies and Rouens. I was initially set on having Muscovies, but then I discovered all the other breeds. Which would be best for a first time duck family? We want ducks who are friendly as we have 2 kids, (ages 11 and 6) we want them for eggs (won’t be eating them for meat), ones that won’t harass the chickens (will be housed separately, but we plan to free range during the day and the chickens do too), quieter would be better, but not a requirement as we have 3 roosters and our neighbors don’t care as we are zoned AG and on 6 acres. We plan to sell eggs as well and I’d like to raise some ducklings periodically, but not with an incubator. Pros and cons of these breeds? I know the Muscovies fly and perch and don’t quack and I’ve fallen in love with their personalities from the videos I’ve seen online, but worry bout housing them and them hurting my chickens as well as flying off. Do they have to perch or would they be content in a Duck house on the ground? We have predators to worry about periodically ranging from fox to coyote to bobcats. Red tail hawks year round, but those have never even bothered a chicken even when we’ve had chicks. We have lost birds to bobcat and fox despite having electric pasture fence around the property perimeter and fencing around the coops. Coops are secure, but we do free range and that’s when we’ve lost some birds. Anything anyone can tell us about owning these breeds is greatly appreciated. My kids want ducks like yesterday, but I want to make the best choice for us and our future ducks.

 

[Pyxis]

Well, I'm going to tell you I'm biased right out of the gate because I breed welsh harlequins. However, I have owned the other two breeds too.

If eggs are your main concern, the welshies are your best bet. They will outlay both other breeds. Muscovies aren't great layers and have a shorter laying season. Rouens are okay for laying but are more of a meat breed and welshies will outlay them.

They are also a very calm, docile breed so they're a good choice if you're wanting a duck that is okay around people and kids and doesn't panic at the drop of a hat.

As an extra added bonus, ducklings can be sexed with 70 to 90 percent accuracy by the color of their bills, depending on which lines you buy (show lines are less accurate than hatchery lines). They are also good mothers and will raise their own ducklings.

 

[sylviethecochin]

Ive had chickens for almost 3 years now and want to venture into sucks as well. Ive been doing tons of research, but cant decide on a breed. I’m torn between Welsh Harlequins, Muscovies and Rouens. I was initially set on having Muscovies, but then I discovered all the other breeds. Which would be best for a first time duck family? We want ducks who are friendly as we have 2 kids, (ages 11 and 6) we want them for eggs (won’t be eating them for meat), ones that won’t harass the chickens (will be housed separately, but we plan to free range during the day and the chickens do too), quieter would be better, but not a requirement as we have 3 roosters and our neighbors don’t care as we are zoned AG and on 6 acres. We plan to sell eggs as well and I’d like to raise some ducklings periodically, but not with an incubator. Pros and cons of these breeds? I know the Muscovies fly and perch and don’t quack and I’ve fallen in love with their personalities from the videos I’ve seen online, but worry bout housing them and them hurting my chickens as well as flying off. Do they have to perch or would they be content in a Duck house on the ground? We have predators to worry about periodically ranging from fox to coyote to bobcats. Red tail hawks year round, but those have never even bothered a chicken even when we’ve had chicks. We have lost birds to bobcat and fox despite having electric pasture fence around the property perimeter and fencing around the coops. Coops are secure, but we do free range and that’s when we’ve lost some birds. Anything anyone can tell us about owning these breeds is greatly appreciated. My kids want ducks like yesterday, but I want to make the best choice for us and our future ducks.

I reccommend Muscovies on all counts but two.
Quiet
Friendlier than any other duck breed I've owned. (Swedish, Mallard, Rouen, Pekin)
Less "rapey" than mallard-derived breeds
They will perch, but mine do prefer to perch on the floor.
Unlike mallards, they will come home at night without your chasing them back from the pond.

They do not tolerate garbage. Mine formed a sisterhood (I only have female muscovies. My male disappeared last spring. He liked to hang out with the mallards, and they weren't in a fenced area.) They like to stand in the yard and bob their heads at passing birds in a "come on if you think you're hard enough" way. Never seen any real fights, but I have seen the rooster get a little too close and be seized by the tailfeathers.

But they are terribly broody, and they don't hatch chicks well—ducklings, yes. Chicks seem to always end up dead under the mother, for whatever reason.

 

[cajun41887]

Well, I'm going to tell you I'm biased right out of the gate because I breed welsh harlequins. However, I have owned the other two breeds too.

If eggs are your main concern, the welshies are your best bet. They will outlay both other breeds. Muscovies aren't great layers and have a shorter laying season. Rouens are okay for laying but are more of a meat breed and welshies will outlay them.

They are also a very calm, docile breed so they're a good choice if you're wanting a duck that is okay around people and kids and doesn't panic at the drop of a hat.

As an extra added bonus, ducklings can be sexed with 70 to 90 percent accuracy by the color of their bills, depending on which lines you buy (show lines are less accurate than hatchery lines). They are also good mothers and will raise their own ducklings.

Thank you for your reply. How big do they get? How Heat tolerant as we live on the west coast of Florida? I know all ducks need water, but do they need to be able to swim all the time or will they be content with smaller pool some days of the week and a container they can dunk their heads in available at all times? What do you feed yours? Ducklings through adults. I know with my chicks I don’t feed a layer feed as I don’t want to feed my Roos the calcium so I feed a 18% unmediated starter crumble to everyone and oyster shell on the side for my girls who are in lay and need it. Would a similar set up work for ducks? What about niacin? How do I supplement that to them? I’m a vet tech and know they need it. Is that chick feed crumble acceptable for ducks at all life stages or do ducks require more or less protein?

 

[Pyxis]

Thank you for your reply. How big do they get? How Heat tolerant as we live on the west coast of Florida? I know all ducks need water, but do they need to be able to swim all the time or will they be content with smaller pool some days of the week and a container they can dunk their heads in available at all times? What do you feed yours? Ducklings through adults. I know with my chicks I don’t feed a layer feed as I don’t want to feed my Roos the calcium so I feed a 18% unmediated starter crumble to everyone and oyster shell on the side for my girls who are in lay and need it. Would a similar set up work for ducks? What about niacin? How do I supplement that to them? I’m a vet tech and know they need it. Is that chick feed crumble acceptable for ducks at all life stages or do ducks require more or less protein?

Welshies are a light breed - they don't get very big at all. They're not bantam ducks but they are on the small side of large fowl. As adults they get to around five pounds.

The way you feed your chickens is actually exactly how I feed all my birds, ducks included, so it would work well for adult welsh harlequins. As ducklings you can feed them a flock raiser feed, which will have enough niacin for them, or a chick feed which you can add Brewer's Yeast to to get them enough niacin.

A small pool would be fine for them. If you could let them have access to it all the time they would be happier, but a bucket deep enough for them to dunk their whole heads would suffice for some days.

 

[cajun41887]

What do you do to cut down on the mud they make with access to the pool all the time? We can get quite wet here in the summer months and I worry about the muddy mess we may have. How high can they fly since they are lighter? Any tips on Duck care and management for this newbie? How many ducks to a Drake? You mentioned they are pretty nice, if my kids handled them daily as ducklings would they be able to pet and hold them when they are older? I know individual birds within a breed will vary, but we have a hen whom we handled a lot as a chick and she follows us everywhere and let’s just about anyone pick her up if she knows them. Any cons to the breed? Sorry for so many questions, just want to make an educated decision. What about protection from predators, just protect like chickens? Will the Drake alert like my roosters do? I know ducks won’t stand a chance against a bobcat or coyote or the like. Do they tend to stay close to their enclosure or will they wander far? My chickens tend to stay closer to the coop and away from the wood line, and someone is always home, so we’ve minimized losses by heeding the roosters warning calls for predators and being sure to get right outside. Just wondering if the Drake will alert at all or will they learn in time when the roosters sound the alarm that they need to hide too?

 

[Pyxis]

Honestly there's not much that can be done about the mud, aside from putting down some pea gravel or similar in a large area around the pool. Mud comes hand in hand with ducks. Even if you only have a bucket for them, they will make a big muddy area with it. It's what they do.

They cannot fly at all Even though they are lighter, their wings still aren't big enough to get them off the ground at all. I've never seen one of my Welshies off the ground.

Three to four ducks per drake is the best ratio. Pairs are sometimes possible, but never ever more drakes than ducks.

Ducks in general aren't wild about being picked up. Even my Calls which are super friendly don't want me to pick them up. If handled a lot, they will be friendly, come up to you, maybe nibble at your pants, eat out of your hand, sit next to you in the yard, maybe allow you to pet them (though that doesn't happen often) but they're almost definitely not going to want you to pick them up.

I can't really think of any cons to them as opposed to other breeds.

Yep, protect them the same way you do your chickens. Drakes do watch out for danger, but so do the ducks. They have a 'warning call' - both genders will make it. My different species have learned to heed alert calls from other species. And if they see another bird booking it for cover, they go too.

 

[cajun41887]

You mentioned you breed yours. Where did you acquire your original birds from? Where’s the best place to get healthy ducklings from? Do you ship and sell yours and if so, how much and do you have any available?

 

[Pyxis]

Mine are originally from Holderread. They're show lines and very good examples of the breed. I would recommend Holderread hands down as a place to get ducklings, though they are very possibly sold out for the year now.

I do sell and ship. Right now I have none available but if you wanted I could hatch ducklings for you. If you're interested in going that route, shoot me a PM

 

[cajun41887]

I sent you a PM. It’s kinda long and all over the place as I kept thinking of more things. ‍‍