Duck favorites: description of the breed, reviews, photos, cultivation, breeding, what to feed

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Poultry breeding has become quite a profitable business in recent years. But novice breeders are faced with a well-founded problem - the choice of breed and type of birds. First of all, it is worth deciding on goals and objectives. One of the effective meat breeds is the favorite duck. Photos are shown below. Large beef breed is ideal for both small businesses and private backyards.

Duck favorite: description of individuals, physical indicators, reviews of breeders

The breeding poultry plant Blagovarsky pleased amateurs and experienced poultry farmers with an excellent breed of ducks, which was called the "favorite". The breed differs from others in that individuals grow rapidly and develop well. The favorite duck is quite large, with a dense physique and an elongated body. Her head is relatively large, with a flat and long beak.

An interesting distinctive quality is the color of the feathers, on which the color of the bird's beak and legs depends. Most often, favorite ducks wear beautiful smoky blue plumage with a silvery sheen,but when crossing individuals, other colors can be obtained in the color spectrum from pronounced black to light blue. Sometimes there are birds with brown and white plumage in a bizarre combination. The duck is a favorite, the photo is proof of this, it has a colorful aesthetic appearance.

This breed has many advantages. This is a large meat, at the same time egg-laying duck. Favorite reviews receive only positive. Excellent breed. Within two months, the individual gains weight up to 7 kg, which is a good result for a duck breeding business.

Quality indicators of the breed

Ducks of the favorite breed are distinguished by their even, calm behavior and excellent productivity. In addition, they easily adapt to new conditions and quickly adapt to any bird group. Duck is a favorite, reviews of breeders confirm this fact - a social creature.

Both young and adult individuals have a very high viability, and the fattening qualities of the breed are difficult to underestimate, because already at the age of two months the bird reaches a weight of 2.7 to 3.6 kg. Adult drakes weigh from four to five and a half kilograms, females are slightly smaller - from three and a half to four. During the season, ducks lay excellently, one bird produces 100 - 140 eggs, with a mass of one piece of 85 grams.

Favorite ducks, also called blue ducks, belong to the breeds of meat categories.

This is a popular and sought-after species of bird, it is perfectlysuitable for industrial scale breeding, for growing on specialized farms and in individual subsidiary plots.

How to properly keep young animals

In order not to subsequently experience problems with keeping ducklings, before buying them, you need to take care of the arrangement of the premises, prepare inventory and a place for walking. Bedding contaminated with droppings must be removed and taken out. All existing dust must be removed with a damp cloth, inventory and equipment must be washed and disinfected with a hot solution of soda ash with a concentration of 3-5%.

Decontamination of surfaces such as ceilings, walls and floors can be done in one of the following ways:

1) using a 2% concentration of caustic soda solution;

2) using 3% formalin at a ratio of 1 liter per sq. m.;3) using creolin or xylonaft-5 with a concentration of 3-5% in a ratio of 1-2 liters per sq. m.

In order to whitewash the ceiling and walls, use a solution of freshly slaked lime with a concentration of 20%. After 12 hours, open windows, turn on powerful fans and ventilate the room. In the spring months, the place for ducklings is leveled and new clean sand is backfilled with a layer of 5 cm.

Recommendations for making duck bedding

It is more economical to make bedding material from sawdust, sunflower husks, wood chips or dried cuttings, but last year's straw is highly undesirable for these purposes, as it can lead toto bird diseases. It is important that the hay is free of visible putrefaction and fungi, otherwise it will lead to disease and death of the young.

If poultry is planned to be kept in winter, then the litter layer should be at least 20-30 cm, with summer keeping, 15-20 cm is enough.

When first using bedding for young animals, a very small layer is laid out, this is done so that, as it gets dirty, it is possible to add new clean layers until the animal is fully grown. When a batch of birds is grown, the litter must be completely replaced.

Deep litter is laid out in the following way: dry slaked lime is first poured onto a clean disinfected floor in a proportion of 0.5-1 kg per 1 sq. m., then bedding material up to 10 cm is laid on it, which is thickened as it gets dirty. By keeping the litter in a loose, dry, faeces-free state, success in raising ducks is guaranteed.

It is recommended to shake the litter with a pitchfork 2 times a day - in the morning and in the evening. If it is laid correctly, it retains 12-18 degrees of heat in winter, and at its depth the temperature is maintained from 20 to 28 degrees, so in a hot dry summer it is advisable to remove 2-3 cm of the top layer. Slaked lime is added to the damp bedding, reducing its amount by exactly half of the initial one.

What should be the temperature regime when growing ducklings

The air temperature when raising ducklings, and especially in the initial periods, is of the utmost importance. Experienced Specialistsit is recommended to create the following constant temperature conditions: in the first week - 33-28 degrees, the second week - 26-18 degrees, the third week and further - 18-16 degrees.

The required temperature in the areas where the little ducklings are located can be created using a few ordinary table lamps (well fixed) or specially designed small umbrellas (or lampshades) around several electric heaters, often called brooders.

The best indicator of the correct heating of birds is the behavior of little ducklings. In the event that they are cheerful, run a lot, or even sit, but not crowded, this means that the temperature in the room is normal. At elevated temperatures, babies (duck favorites) breathe quite heavily. And at low temperatures, they will crowd, crush each other, squeak loudly.

Threats and Consequences of Incorrect Content

Any wrong temperature regime will negatively affect the growth of little ducklings and lead to their increased culling. And in order to keep the majority of ducklings he althy during cultivation, it is necessary to observe very strictly normal temperature conditions and avoid high dampness and especially drafts in the premises.

Often the main cause of death of little ducklings is a simple cold due to insufficient heating temperature or hypothermia during transportation to a place of permanent rearing. The ideal humidity in rooms where favorite ducks are located is up to 70%.

Optimal densitylanding

The growth of young ducklings depends on how they will eat and get warm. Due to the fact that they are bored, they begin to push each other and crush. And so the growth of ducklings stops.

For proper growth, weak and frail representatives need to be planted separately. Sorting your ducklings at least once a week will help you grow large, he althy ducks. Babies mainly appear as a result of their mass cultivation. They don't have enough food. Be that as it may, one part of the ducklings will lag behind in their development, since not all of them show attention to feeding. As a result of all this, animals grow up small and weak. In order for such ducklings to develop well, you need to feed them with a pipette for the first time. Make a mixture of egg yolk and warm milk.

Accommodation and walking

Young animals should be kept in an open area, properly equipped with canopies. This will protect the ducklings from direct sunlight and rain. The entire room should be ventilated, as pets need oxygen. And this should not lead to the fact that the ducklings will be kept in a draft.

How and when to let it out for a walk

The reason for the mass death of ducklings is often the very early release of these birds for walking, when the dew has not yet completely subsided or in damp weather. Up to 4 weeks of age, ducklings are very sensitive to any hypothermia.

If the weather is warm, the ducklings have been walking since the fifth day. Toddlers can and even need to be let out for walking. The paddock should be fenced with fine mesh or other available materials to a height of up to1 meter. In inclement weather, if it is not well closed from above, it is better not to let them out there. Otherwise, all the little ducklings will freeze quite quickly under the cold wind and rain, and may even get sick.

They teach pets to walk gradually, in addition, they carefully observe their behavior all the time. Seeing that all the ducklings begin to gather in groups, they must immediately be driven into the premises. Daily prolonged exposure to fresh air, and for longer and longer periods of time, will harden the organisms and make them less susceptible to any colds. But excessive overheating of ducklings in the open sun can have a very depressing effect, therefore, on a walk, you need to make shelter from plant branches or build shields. Walking must be kept clean, to prevent the accumulation of dirt and debris there.

Basic tips for choosing a diet and feeding in different stages of a duck's life

So, you have a favorite for duck keeping. What to feed these birds? From the first days of life, ducklings are recommended to be treated with special granulated feed. Both young and adult ducks should receive good nutrition. The favorite, whose breeding is usually put on stream, is no exception.

These feeds are well balanced and easily digested by the bird's stomach. Granules should be purchased from 4 mm. Following the rich experience of farmers, the amount of feed is increased every 10 days. If it is not possible to use compound feed, they are replaced with mash, they must be fresh. Duck favoritesvery picky.

Since protein is the building material of the body, a sufficient amount of it is needed in the diet of chicks. In the first week of life, a hard-boiled egg works well. You can add fermented milk products such as low-fat cottage cheese to it. Chopped green onions and dandelions will also be helpful.

Complication of food

From the second week of feeding, you need to introduce boiled cereals with whey or sour milk. In order not to clog the stomach, cereals should be crumbly. Add chopped nettles and boiled root vegetables, such as potatoes, to them. From the 15th day, enrich the food with water duckweed, it is very useful for little ducklings. After the third week, introduce grated vegetables: zucchini, beets. It is with vegetables that all the necessary vitamins for growth come. From the age of one month, chicks can be fed with grain mixtures. With proper feeding, the favorite duck gains up to 4 kg by two months. From now on, the bird can be slaughtered.

Favorite duck: description of the location of drinkers and feeders

Ducklings need to be watered at about 20 degrees Celsius. Drinkers should be installed away from the feeders, because, chewing food, the duckling seeks to drink it immediately, and part of the food is washed off with water without getting into the stomach. Vacuum drinkers work well. Until the age of ten, ducklings need to put drinking bowls of such depth that the chick can immerse its head in it, after which the height must be added. Water should always be clean and fresh. Calculate the number of feeders as one for 20 heads, size - from 6 to 15 cm in length, independing on the type of food. For dry - less, for wet - more. The material for the feeders can be iron or wood, in particular, well-planed wood.

Farmers about the breed

Here, perhaps, everything you need to know about breeding favorite duck breed, reviews of experienced farmers speak for themselves. Poultry farmers say that if you follow all the recommendations strictly, you can achieve excellent results. Today, more and more people are considering farming as a means to earn money. That is why poultry farmers speak positively about breeding such a bird as a favorite duck. Growing this breed for meat is one of the most promising areas, since it is relatively unpretentious in keeping. In addition, farmers involved in the production of duck meat never have problems selling their products. And this is one of the main criteria for a successful business.