Who’s our duck expert? Settle a bet!!

[AGirlandHerBirds]

My daughter got 3 ducks and then 3 weeks later we added some ducklings. I’m worried now that we have 4 drakes and 1 hen. I’m also curious on the breed of the ducklings.
I think the khaki Campbell is our only female.
my daughter thinks the white Peking is a female but I think the size and tail feathers say otherwise. he (or she) is pretty laid back and I can’t tell if it’s a quack or a peep-
Thoughts??

 

[TomCahalan]

If it quacks like a duck, it is a duck. If it makes some other sound, it is a drake.

 

[AGirlandHerBirds]

Any chance you can tell the breed of the little guys?

 

[cheezenkwackers]

You’re Khaki looks like a female. She has the two toned feathers above her tail. I do not see a drake curl on your Pekin but if he isn’t quacking yet you may be right. The third might be a Cayuga but that is not a breed I have experience with. Your younger ducklings I am guessing are Swedish but also not my area. Why do you think they are drakes? If you bought your ducks at Tractor Supply you may have a lot of boys. I have watched this site for the last several years and I think Tractor Supply gets many of their ducklings from a hatchery that sells sexed ducklings. As a result, the “mixed” bin has had many females removed before shipping resulting in a higher percentage of males. My theory anyway. You will have to wait and see on these babies.

 

[AGirlandHerBirds]

You’re Khaki looks like a female. She has the two toned feathers above her tail. I do not see a drake curl on your Pekin but if he isn’t quacking yet you may be right. The third might be a Cayuga but that is not a breed I have experience with. Your younger ducklings I am guessing are Swedish but also not my area. Why do you think they are drakes? If you bought your ducks at Tractor Supply you may have a lot of boys. I have watched this site for the last several years and I think Tractor Supply gets many of their ducklings from a hatchery that sells sexed ducklings. As a result, the “mixed” bin has had many females removed before shipping resulting in a higher percentage of males. My theory anyway. You will have to wait and see on these babies.

thank you for the input! you’re right about the Tractor Supply- that’s where we got them.

The two little ones are only about 3-weeks younger and I seem to remember the khaki quacking pretty early on.

I really don’t want 1 female and 4 drakes running around- especially because we also have chickens.

 

[TomCahalan]

For the adults, you have a pekin, a campbell, and a duck that looks like a swedish. Many crossbred ducks have the same coloration of the swedish breed, so that's why I'm not sure. It is either swedish or a cross. It is not cayuga, they are all black.

The younger ones look like magpies, or maybe anacona. Definitely not swedish.

 

[hayley3]

I thought you had to see the tail curl before you knew for sure it was a drake?

 

[Miss Lydia]

Nope voice comes even before the drake curl.

 

[Isaac 0]

My daughter got 3 ducks and then 3 weeks later we added some ducklings. I’m worried now that we have 4 drakes and 1 hen. I’m also curious on the breed of the ducklings.
I think the khaki Campbell is our only female.
my daughter thinks the white Peking is a female but I think the size and tail feathers say otherwise. he (or she) is pretty laid back and I can’t tell if it’s a quack or a peep-
Thoughts??

Post a video of them talking, and we may be able to tell the gender, Welcome to BYC!

 

[Texag87]

I thought you had to see the tail curl before you knew for sure it was a drake?

My runner drake went several months without a drake feather. Now he has three.