Houston has always done this funny thing. When we are driving or walking and see ducks, he quacks. Ha ha! It's so funny. I have always thought ducks were cute but I had never really looked into them. Well.... I did. Come to find out they are a lot more useful then just swimming around in a pond and quacking at the park. I didn't know that people actually keep them for eggs. Obviously for meat, if you like duck. But the best thing of all is that they are excellent bug control. You can even let them into your garden during certain times to eat the bugs that normally do a lot of damage to crops.
One day I want ducks. I'm not sure if I want them for eggs or not, I would have to try one. (If anyone knows where I could get some, let me know) I don't think I could ever kill one for meat either. I think it would be for fun family pets that would keep the pesky bugs away. I bought a book about taking care of them and the different breeds and their best uses. My favorite breed at the moment is the Cayuga Duck. (Pictured in the post.) They only come in the one color but they are relatively quiet and I think their plumage is SO pretty. It's black with an iridescent beetle green as an adult
Well, that my duck thought for today. Even if I don't end up ever getting any, I still think they are adorable. And you read it HERE! Ha ha!
... this is slightly random.
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and i never knew about the whole bug control thing! that is cool!
Would you expect anything but random from me..? LOL! What can I say. I think ducks are adorable and come to find out their useful. That makes it even better. ;)
ReplyDeleteMy daughter raised ducks for a couple years. She started with six (4 male and 2 female). The problem is that it is impossible to tell what the sex of a duck is until it is an adult. One of the females got eaten by a raccoon early on but we ended up with like 21 ducklings the next year. The raccoon problem eliminated many of them and then we were down to 8. By the end of the summer, the coons had eaten all the ducks. Anyway, we have never eaten any of the ducks or their eggs. Population control is easy if you gather the eggs, but sometimes they hide them and there are A LOT of eggs!!! The duck poop is also a big problem. They cannot be trained to poop in a particular spot because they have no poop control (some weirdos put diapers on their ducks and keep them in their house)and they poop everywhere! Ducks are also stupid... like REALLY stupid! My daughter had a chicken that was almost as smart as a dog... unlike a duck which it takes ducks hours to figure out how to get through a hole to get food. My daughter hand raised her ducks so they were tame but still were never super friendly. Conclusion: ducks are super cute and fun to watch. The bug control is great. They are messy and a pain sometimes, but worth it if you have to space and lots of water on your property.
ReplyDeleteHey thanks Sonja! The more I read my book the more it's telling me how much care they need. That is a big help in my choice. Trust me it will be a long time before I ever have the room to get any. Maybe it's a phase. We'll just have to see. I would never want a large flock. My book did show how you can "possibly" tell the difference in sex, but it's a little weird. I guess if I do ever get them I will have to buck up and try it out. lol!
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