best duck breed for meat and egg ?

[noopin2014]

Hello, what breed of duck do you advice me to raise for meat and eggs ? Mallard, Yi-Liang, Pekin, muscovy, indian runner, swedes or another ?

 

Thanks for your help !

[BritManToo]

You can't beat the Khaki Cambell for egg production, almost every day.

[Speedo1968]

Is this for home consumption only or are you looking at this as an income venture or just to sell a few extra eggs or ducks for meat ?

Different birds for different purposes - Khaki for eggs and Pekin for meat; both can be eaten and lay eggs.

I have posted many times on this subject ( farming most of my life since 1961 in different countries inc. Thailand with ducks ).

If you could be more specific on numbers of birds you are looking to raise it would help.

 

[noopin2014]

On 5/12/2019 at 2:05 PM, Speedo1968 said:

Is this for home consumption only or are you looking at this as an income venture or just to sell a few extra eggs or ducks for meat ?

Different birds for different purposes - Khaki for eggs and Pekin for meat; both can be eaten and lay eggs.

I have posted many times on this subject ( farming most of my life since 1961 in different countries inc. Thailand with ducks ).

If you could be more specific on numbers of birds you are looking to raise it would help.

 

Hi, i plan to raise around 20 ducks on my land for my own consumption (meat+eggs) and eventually my wife can sell a few sometimes for the local market in Isaan.

[Speedo1968]

8 hours ago, noopin2014 said:

Hi, i plan to raise around 20 ducks on my land for my own consumption (meat+eggs) and eventually my wife can sell a few sometimes for the local market in Isaan.

Thanks for your reply noopin2014.

A few questions -

How many eggs do you wish for your own consumption each week?  

How many ducks will you eat per week?   

What age will the initial ducks be when you purchase them?

What area and type of land do you have available for their ranging and housing?

What kind of secure housing, against rats, snakes, dogs do you have in mind, even for 20 ducks.

Any wild dogs in your land area ?

In the meantime you could check out some local farms / smallholdings that have ducks, see what diseases local farms have / admit to having / vaccines used if any.

Any specific questions you have please feel free to ask.

 

 

[noopin2014]

5 hours ago, Speedo1968 said:

Thanks for your reply noopin2014.

A few questions -

How many eggs do you wish for your own consumption each week?  

How many ducks will you eat per week?   

What age will the initial ducks be when you purchase them?

What area and type of land do you have available for their ranging and housing?

What kind of secure housing, against rats, snakes, dogs do you have in mind, even for 20 ducks.

Any wild dogs in your land area ?

In the meantime you could check out some local farms / smallholdings that have ducks, see what diseases local farms have / admit to having / vaccines used if any.

Any specific questions you have please feel free to ask.

 

 

thanks, i couldn't answer at the most of your questions. Pekin duck and Yi-Liang duck look very similar. Did you try the last one ? Cheers

[Speedo1968]

On 5/14/2019 at 9:57 PM, noopin2014 said:

thanks, i couldn't answer at the most of your questions. Pekin duck and Yi-Liang duck look very similar. Did you try the last one ? Cheers

Thanks for your question.

I have worked with chicken and duck since the 1960's, ducks for the past 20 years.    As a freelance consultant from the 1980's and with duck in Asia / Pacific / China for more than 15 years.   In Thailand I worked for a major duck producer for 10 years.

 

To answer your question: Pekin and Yi-Liang look similar but the later is breed specifically for the Chinese duck meat market.    The modern day Peking came originally from China in the 1800's, entering the American and other countries soon after.   The American Pekin is breed almost exclusively for meat whilst that from the UK has a line for meat and a different line for eggs.   The Pekin ( if original stock ) lay the biggest eggs and produce the largest carcass.   There are Pekin look-a-likes in every country.      The feathers should be only white and the beak yellow.

 

The Peking has been bred specifically for both meat and eggs ( different lines of breeding stock ) and in Thailand the source of breeding stock comes - by international agreement - only from the UK, they ( American Pekin ) cannot be imported from America.     Australia's original source of Pekin came from UK many years ago in a suitcase but now only purchased from the UK.

 

The Pekin is perhaps the easiest of breeds to rear / grow, they have the strongest immune system, cope well with extreme conditions but, can be a bit skittish.    However as a backyard bird they are very docile.

 

When buying ducks here you will not of course be able to get "original" stock and, depending on who you buy from you may only get a commercial bird, that has been kept to produce eggs to produce dayold ducklings to be sold as laying ducks.   

 

Ideally you should buy a different bird, even if same breed, to produce eating eggs and meat.   This will ensure good eggs and good meat and help reduce feed costs.   Of course eggs / meat can be consumed from both lines.

 

Whatever you buy you should buy vaccinated birds and maintain a good hygiene and vaccination program, not only to protect your own birds but yourselves too.     For information on this I would suggest to post on Thaivisa for help in your local area about disease risks etc.

 

Do not accept unthrifty birds under any circumstances however cheap they may be.

 

Housing etc. and general care is easy but needs to be well considered in advance and continued on a daily basis.

 

 

[ThaiBunny]

1 minute ago, Speedo1968 said:

I have worked with chicken and duck since the 1960's, ducks for the past 20 years.    As a freelance consultant from the 1980's and with duck in Asia / Pacific / China for more than 15 years.   In Thailand I worked for a major duck producer for 10 years.

One of my close encounters used to insist that "duck eggs are better for you" than chicken eggs. He also avoided chicken meat with blood in it but would eat duck with blood in it as "duck's blood is good for you"

[Speedo1968]

5 hours ago, ThaiBunny said:

One of my close encounters used to insist that "duck eggs are better for you" than chicken eggs. He also avoided chicken meat with blood in it but would eat duck with blood in it as "duck's blood is good for you"

Duck eggs are generally more healthy ( see my earlier posting today about eating duck eggs ), they are of course generally larger than chicken eggs, have a higher Omega 3 level and people who are allergic to chicken eggs may be able to eat duck eggs.    They are generally considered much better for use in cooking due to a higher albumen level.

 

As for the meat and blood, the later has iron which can be beneficial as well as harmful.   Blood in meat is often caused by stress, such as at slaughter, it may also be caused by certain diseases.    Guess its a personal choice.