Why do you raise ducks and other fowl?

[meggers32]

I have been wondering after viewing a lot of these great posts about raising ducks and other fowl, why do you raise them? Eggs? Meat? Because they a really cute? I have been thinking about getting a couple of ducklings from a friend, and would just like to hear what you all have to say. What is your favorite fowl to raise and why?

Thanks!

 

[johnElarue]

Hi meggers,

I'm hoping to get eggs someday from my ducks, and also they're pets for the kids.

 

[snowydiamonds]

I wanted to raise a small flock of Pilgrim geese as they are on the endangered list...I inherited a grey goose and a white goose, thinking it was that Pilgrim pair to begin the flock but have discovered they are both female geese. I am their 3rd owner and they were sitting on a nest together last Spring so I ordered 4 American Buff goslings because I figured their eggs had frozen. They thought their eggs had hatched when I placed those lil peepers in the nest so now I have an Embden goose, a something grey goose, & 4 four month old American Buffs and we're all happy

Someone brought me a baby duckling and I didn't want it to be raised alone, the geese wouldn't accept it, so I ordered 10 ducklings for its siblings...that wild duckling didn't survive and I lost one of my crested cayuga's when it drowned while I wasn't home. The geese don't want the ducks in their barn or pen so I moved them into their own last weekend and guess what? Snowflake the embden is laying an egg every other day now!

I really shouldn't carry all these birds (plus the chickens) over winter but I LOVE my geese and ducks and realistically, it'd be so much easier to just raise geese alone...they have down and don't need a heated barn/coop, especially now I've got six Still, need to make some tough decisions and in the mean time, I'm learning a lot, will eventually discover which breed is best for me in Alaska and I'll never starve...if it came down to it! Either eggs or meat, its a great hobby and they've all got such personalities...

 

[DuckLady]

Extreme charm, entertainment, stresss relief and cute quackiness.

Eggs don't hurt either.

 

[MaineChickens]

What Terrilacy said plus they are great slug/bug hunters. I did raise pekins for meat this year, but honestly I don't think I will do it again. They taste great, but the ducks are very hard for me to process.

Did we mention they are entertaining? Even moreso than chickens.

 

[SunAngel]

We hadn't really wanted ducks, just some chicks, which were on order.

We wandered into TSC to get supplies before the chicks arrived. There sat a tub full of ducklings just begging to be bought

DD had been asking for a duck for awhile, but we said always said no, or DH did rather. After seeing them we figured, what harm could 3 (one for each kid) ducks do when 30 chicks were on the way anyways, DH gave in.

We raised them together, but soon discovered they needed their own space. They got their own pen, a pond, a coop and now we have 3 pairs of ducks, thanks to a local poultry auction and my love of bidding on creatures lol. The kids love the ducks.

I can't wait for eggs and hopefully ducklings in the Spring to sell.

ETA: I also bought some West of England Tumbler Pigeons at the sale a couple weeks ago, but I am going to take them back and resell them. After having chickens that lay eggs, the pigeons just sitting in their cage staring at me, seems like a waste of food and space. I guess they are just 'not the pet for me'.

 

[sussexgal]

Okay... here's my story and I'm stickin to it. I live on the farm that I grew up on. It's been retired since '85. 'nother story for another day. There was always a soggy area behind the barn, so...... huh. What a great place for a pond! Cool beans. Put the pond in 4 years ago. Well. Then came orphan ducks from a school project. What's a pond without ducks? Seven ducks later we were thinking how cute! Problem? Six drakes and one duck. Poor honey. She hatched out 2 ducklings... one duck one drake. See the problem? Asked a woman I work with who had poultry if she wanted some drakes.... like 5 of them. Yup. Next thing I know she shows up with a trio of mutts. Chickens? Well... okay. That's kinda cool. Well... let me tell you it was love at first sight.

This spring I ordered chicks and here I am. Two pairs of ducks and a yardfull of chickens. I'm patiently (not) awaiting my first pullet eggs and spend hours a day just watching the antics of these teenagers. So what started as an innocent project of putting in a pond ended up in a chicken obsession. I love em.... the ducks? Pretty on the pond but a pain in the tukus in the winter. Thank heavens they are only cooped for about 4 months... Did I mention I love the chickens? No, really. I do.