New here & talkin' about ducks!

[Cat]

Hi everyone! :D New to the forum. I'm actually visiting because I am trying to spread the word about a new website I've created centered around promoting the Muscovy duck and breeders of Muscovy. I happened to find this board in my search for poultry-related sites so I hope that you don't mind my posting here!

The website is Muscovy Duck Central and it offers a discussion forum similar to this, a classified ad marketplace, and several advertising options for indivuals interested in having a web-page or site advertising their birds & their breeding program. I will be changing the price structure in the next week or two & will offer a 20% discount on all services until May 31, 2006. If anyone is interested in learning more or has any questions please feel free to ask. If anyone is interested in visiting the forum I would love to have you join!

MDC Forum

 

[Lammie]

Sorry. Had ducks once and they make a horrible mess! Plus, the neighbor down the road has a pool and they kept wandering down there messing up his patio! I think he shot them one by one! Duck soup!

 

[Gale Seddon]

I have heard that Muscovies are good fly-catchers.

 

[Cat]

Ducks can be messy, but it's all about management. I absolutely love ducks, they're more resilient than chickens and my Muscovy can out-set a chicken any day of the week! They can set 2 - 3 times a summer hatching 12-20 ducklings at a time. They don't get parasites as easily, no mites, no lice, etc. if they're raised correctly. They're also quite quiet in comparison to the other domestic ducks, which is a blessing if you've ever heard a pen full of hungry quackers!

Muscovy are awesome insect hunters. Ducklings will chase insects the very first day their mother brings them from the nest and it never stops. They'll sift mosquito larvae from pools of water, they'll catch flies and mosquitos from mid-air, and a lot of people I've talked to use them around barns to help keep the fly population down that's caused by livestock manure. They've also been employed to help control liver flukes. Additionally, Muscovy meat is said to be the 'beef' of the duck world because their meat is lean and not greasy like that of other breeds of ducks and it's often compared to veal in consistency.

Of course, there are downsides. Unless pinioned or clipped the ducks can and will fly and they've not met a stock tank that they don't like. Mine can dirty my stock tank within 20 minutes after I've cleaned it if I've not got them penned properly. They have extremely sharp, talon-like claws and when a person goes to handle them they have to be prepared to man-handle them or they can receive some serious scratches. Drakes are monsters and are the prize-fighters of the duck world. They will eat mice, baby birds, some speak of them killing snakes although I myself have never experienced that. They'll also roost on your rooftop if full-feathered.

When I bought my first bunch of ducklings I was mortified the first time I saw them catch, kill and try to eat a baby chick. At the time we had banties running free on the farm that would hatch out chicks all summer long. However, once we got the Muscovy and realized that they were brutal chick-killers we made sure to get the chicks picked up as soon as we saw them.

Weighing the pros & cons, Muscovy are without a doubt my favorite duck, and they fit my farm and my program perfectly. I think I will always have a few at the very least! :)

 

[BAGTIC]

I have some muscovies, along with a few other breeds of ducks. They are the best. Good eating, smoked Muscovy is especially fine. The males are big and meaty. In Taiwan there is a huge industry raising ssterile 'mule ducks', muscovies crossed on white pekin ducks. They are the premium duck throughout Japan and east asia.

Ducks can mess up the water supplies but unlike chickens they don't tear up your garden.

When I first got mine they wou;ld follow me to the pond when I fed the catfish and steal the food. No more. They have learned to hold back from the floating pellets aand wait for the bluegills and shiners to come up. Shiners go down easy but any bluegill more than about two inches long is difficult to swallow because of the spines.