we could start a franchise i will be the australian NSW branch
For those who raise DUCKS. I have a question
Josh--have you reached out to your fellow Australian sufferers? Started a support group? Been party to an intervention?
ROFL
yep we recently had a chicken rehab clinic at our house for people who are having majour withdawel symptoms
I'm not sure your place would be the best location to have it. Sort of like having a drug recovery meeting in an opium den.
LOLno i had razor wire fnces seperating that paddock off when i think people are prgressing i tak them down the back and then they can look at the chickens if they can fight the temptation they are free to go
:0). Do you use the patch--or do you make them go cold turkey?--woops bad idea!
they have stronger stuff than the patch it called TADA chicken-off it helps u cut back on chickens with a mix of chemicals that are hazerdous opps i mean beneficial
Hmmmm. Have you tried it yourself and would you recommend it to your friends? Or are you just a shill for the TADA poultry conglomerate?
ummmmm u might not want to try that version but i am making a new one called CRD (chicken repulsion device) because TADA has bleach in it
Chlorine is bad. I look forward to your CRD and predict a great North American market for it once the Chicken Fairy returns from AWOL.
Still waiting for my Hill's Hoist.
LOL
You guys are just plain hilarious! I SO TOTALLY enjoy reading your witticisms! YOU BRIGHTEN MY DAY!!
Cheryl
well, they gotta have something to tlak abou tin the wee hours.... btw the chicken fairy is still lurking, so careful what you say, she LIKES TURKEYS...
weird stuff gets invented when people get tired
Does anyone here grow Cayuga Ducks? Of my 3 one is doing something odd. Some of it's feathers have turned white so that he/she looks like a black duck spotted white! Makes for a very interesting look but I wondered if it was sex linked or not. I'll try to snap some pictures of it tomorrow.
MollyD
Hi Molly--I found this in Storey's Illustrated Guide to Poultry Breeds--it may not be exactly what you are describing--but it is the only reference to white in the Cayuga I can find:
"Cayugas (especially hens) often "go gray" with feathers showing a grayish white tinge. The graying can show up sometime between 4 and 18 months, and some individuals eventually turn predominantly white."
If so, it would suggest it was a hen!
Catscan that is very interesting! This duck turned 3 months on July 5th. I'd say that was close to the span they give. Well what do you know ! At least one hen in the trio!!! I thought at first it was molting and I was seeing the down but yesterday I noticed it wasn't down, it was pure white feathers!
Do they show any pictures in that book?
Thanks!
MollyD
Not of the greying. Maybe there are pictures on-line?
Thanks Catscan! Went looking online and found a page with pictures at http://www.domestic-waterfowl.co.uk/cayuga.htm Here is one of their pictures which shows a duck that has changed colors. This page says males NEVER show white! So we have at least one hen in the trio.
MollyD
Yeh! That is a fascinating picture. They say that most domestic ducks are descended from the Mallard--so you can see how it could easily happen if the Cayuga is itself decended from Mallards. The move to white is suprisingly easy!
The Cayuga has a myth surrounding it's origins but no real facts. The myth is that a miller in upstate NY captured a black wild pair, pinnon their wings and their offspring produced some good eating. It's possible but not likely in MHO.
It's amusing to buy black ducks and now expect to find myself with a white one!!
MollyD
I"ve heard that they might be decended from a wild black duck--but they also say that the Cayuga color shows up in Mallards. What would the wild black duck be? Is it a breed?
No idea. The story doesn't say what it could be.
MollyD
I have a cayuga and a mallard. I have alot of plants, so Fat Wing (Cayuga) tromps everything while Lauch Pad (mallard) is small and very quick. Fat Wing is about 8 ponds and eats everything. The Cayuga is said to be a Black East Indian duck mixed with rouen duck. Were not too sure if Fat Wing is a boy or girl yet...were hoping for a male because Launch Pad is a girl. They are best friends and never leave each others side. My mallard is really smart and gets into her own cage at night...Fat Wing gets chased down every night.
Spaz1313 I haven't found that info on Cayugas anywhere! Where did you hear they were black East Indian mixed with Rouen?? Must have been a rouen male with East Indian hen cause Black East Indians are only 1.5 pounds at maturity and the Rouens are 8 to 9 pounds! I can't begin to picture a Rouen hen being bred by such a tiny male.
In terms of gender Cayuga hens develop white feathers as in the picture I posted above. Check that link out too for more pictures.
MollyD
http://www.domestic-waterfowl.co.uk/cayuga.htm......this is one site I had crossed where it listed East Indian duck. I have another I cant find it, but Ill keep looking. This picture is my Cayuga...maybe you can tell if its male or female. I dont know if its still too early he was born on 4/15. sorry Im missing half his face, but the previous picture is him as well.
Spaz1313 mine hatched 5-5-08 and the hen has already gotten her white spots all over her body. She looked like yours before this last molt. My other two Cayugas are crested so they look like tufts of hair got glued on their heads!
Read the British site you listed above. That's very interesting cause none of the American sites mention this at all. Here's Wikipedia's definition of them http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cayuga_Duck even the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy doesn't have it! http://www.albc-usa.org/cpl/waterfowl/cayuga.html
MollyD
I really like that guy. Any chance they would make it in the 'wild' on the river out my back door? With a bit of a shelter house & supplemental feed? Or is your experience, very domestic (which would be just fine too, just re-think how & where to keep)? This would be for next spring, so just in the thinking stages now. Do have predators, but they would not go on river - except flying ones.
Thanks!
Cheryl
Cheryl.
I suspect Rouen ducks would stick around if you fed them well. Do you live right on a river - stream? The flying mallards can be bought in large quantities. They will stay around too but feeding them might be a hassle if they're camped distant.
I started feeding the Mallards, Wigeon, Green Winged Teal and Wood Ducks who are here all winter long. The Mallards & Teal are here year round within 1000 ft of the house. The Wood Ducks are less than 1/2 mile away on adjacent land year round. I'm hoping to get a colony of Wood Ducks on our land too with nest boxes and more feed.
Kelly in Moxee
I must have been half asleep when I typed this the 1st time ... typos galore!
This message was edited Aug 2, 2008 9:20 AM
Wood Ducks are beautiful.
Patch,
I actually hunt here on my little farm-ette quite a bit in the winter and fall months. I have taxidermy mounts of Mallard, GrWingTeal & Wood Duck (both sexes for all breeds) on the walls in my Office, Den and BR. Don't everyone go nuts and yell at me for shooting birds. I feed these wild birds like crazy during the fall, spring and winter. I am absolutely certain ... the 10 bags of feed I give them every year keeps dozens of them far far healthier. I've stopped shooting at the Wood Ducks & Teal since I have already have the mounts on my wall. We have hundreds and hundreds of Mallards around here and I shoot at the drakes only. I'm looking to add a pair of American Wigeon to the taxidermy list and perhaps a Gadwall pair too ... that's 4 more ducks. After that .... I'd have to drive 50 miles elsewhere to shoot others since there are no other duck breeds visiting here in promising numbers. I'll be feeding ducks here till kingdom come. I also make generous annual donations to Ducks Unlimited plus I have a waterfowl stamp and license. A significant % of the revenues go toward wildlife habitat enhancement.
Kelly in Moxee
Kelly, I live on the Black River (yes, one of the rivers on the Lewis & Clark expedition). It runs south from Black Lake in Olympia and feeds into the Chehalis River on the other side of Oakville. Not positive of the breeds of ducks here. They don't stay long, unless they go upriver more. Mostly see the hens & ducklings, and I am not versed enough to be able to tell their breeds very well. Although I believe them to be mallards, I just am not certain. Have a lot of homework to do, I see! This years winter reading project.....
There are plenty of hunters round here too. I would have to keep them safe, until their numbers were enough to continue even with the canoeing hunters. What would be a good number? Or should I just give up on the 'wild' thing & go for pets that I can protect better?
Cheryl
Cheryl,
Given you have a stream adjacent ... there should be no surprise that you have raccoons and a variety of weasels and skunks too. I have no idea how anyone can allow their ducks to have access to a stream and still keep them safe from predators or even hope they might come back to a safe haven that is fenced at night. You'd have to round them up every evening .... coaxing t hem home to the enclosure with feed. It might work but then your enclosure is gonna have to be like has been discussed ... impregnable from below or above. You have a real project to get there I suspect. I've heard that coaxing the ducks home to safety in the evening can be done .... but I've not seen it done.
You probably can dig a pond near to the stream and allow it to seep full. If anyone with a Fish & Game background walked the stream ... they might knock on your door if there was significant flow diverted.
Kelly
Question about ducks, would one be able to keep the in the yard with a 4 ft high field wire fence.
Depends on the breed. My Cayugas can fly as high as 8ft off the ground for short distances.
MollyD
Tia,
95% of the domesticated breeds of ducks can barely flap their wings enough to get their fats bottoms off the ground but there are exceptions; Muscovy breed comes to mind ... the majority of them kinda remind me of the super-majority of humans on the planet as well ... in that we're over eating and over drinking our way to oblivion. I'm on a diet ... can you tell?
Kelly in Moxee
This message was edited Aug 4, 2008 5:56 PM
Bummer! Thanks Kelly. Guess I will have to keep them in a pen & give them a fake pond (kiddie pool) if I want to do ducks. Don't think they would be safe in the old logging Mills pond that's been kept up by the beaver either. Know the coons are over there and sure coyotes too - especially if they know there's an easy meal to be had. Back to the drawing board, as it were. At least, I will be able to do any breed of my choosing then & not have to stick to the wild breeds - mallards and the like.
Spaz1313 I can now tell you from personal experience that the male Cayuga gets a single curly tail feather that lies right between the wings! Mine also has lots of green highlights on his wings and around his neck while my two hens have blue highlights on their wings. I not only spotted his curly feather (one feather) but I caught him in a passionate embrace with one of the hens!!!
MollyD
Thats wonderful. Im going to do a deep inspection of him...possibly a her when they get put away tonight.