I lived in Africa in the '80's and had a couple of Muscovy ducks. They did not exactly thrive because I had no idea how to care for them and no access to information. Now I'd kind of like to try again. Anyone out there have any advice or thoughts???
Anyone experienced with Muscovy ducks?
Jeepers
I've always thought of Muscovys as being pretty easy care
I had some for years ,but they started cross breeding with the mallards and offspring from Muscovy X's is sterile so I got rid of the babies every year and eventually they were grabed by the fox( we had 6 foxes her for a while)
Loved the fact that they don't make any noise but the hiss.......
excellent setters,they'll hatch anything
heck I even ran one of the males over with my truck........the whole flock ran one way,I started to move and he ran back under the truck.
Broke his leg and wing
I made a splint for both the wing and leg,put him in a cage for about a month and he healed up just fine,had a limp but he lived for years
Yep , Muscovies are easy to care for. They do not need a pond. In fact they don't swim all that well. We had a kiddie pool for the ducks and geese. We fed ours game bird crumbles and had plenty of drinking water. Foxes love to eat Muscovies. WE lost all of ours when a fox chaced them out into the road and they were hit by a 18 wheeler. Pressed duck.
In South Florida (where we used to live) they consider Muscovies a nuisance because they are so prolific & messy. Some people took to smashing the eggs in the nests at night. A few kind-hearted folks got together & would go out periodically & remove some of the eggs. An effort at duck birth control.
I always thought they were pretty hardy too. In South Florida their primary predator were aligators. We would see a mama swimming along with her ducklings in the canal. First there were 12. A few days later 8 and finally she and her 2 little ones. But, there always seemed to be plenty of them around.
They love to fly, particularly the females.
Lovely characters - I've always had a soft spot for them
Here's what looks like a helpful link http://www.farmradio.org/english/radio-scripts/31-3script_en.asp
Cottage_Rose has beautiful muscovies. You should d-mail her or check out her link to her website !!
~Julie