# Chickens or Ducks?????



## Dakine

hi all, I have a question I'm trying to decide before I can start building my coop because the two birds have different needs... I was wondering what your thoughts are.

I was all set to start doing chickens like ASAP and then someone mentioned ducks and all of a sudden at least one difference was clear that make the ducks really appealing compared to chickens for urban protein in the PAW.

I'm not saying ducks are quiet, I know they arent parakeets, and it wont be easy keeping anyone within maybe 50 to 100 feet from hearing them, but it's not the same as a rooster... OMG. not even in the same league.  Roosters are like one great big zombie dinner bell and it's a lie that they crow at dawn... BS!!!! they start that nonsense at 3:30am and keep on going until they are good and ready to stop.

Ducks... yeah some quacking, but no crowing!! So since I dont want a rooster, especially during the beginning of the PAW. Too noisy! So if I have male ducks that covers continued breeding more ducks for both eating and trading. 

I'd have to learn some about clipping wings to keep them from flying away, and I'd have to read up on the egg output is, and for how long. Everything I've been reading so far has been about chickens, but I'm really grooving on being able to have a self sustaining flock as long as I can keep them fed and watered.


So has anyone ever had ducks before? thoughts on growing your own duck food? thoughts on ducks as a replacement for chickens in the urban CA yard farm in the next great depression?


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## ComputerGuy

To have chickens you do not need to have a rooster unless you want to have chicks. Chickens will still lay eggs, and do their somewhat quiet (mostly quiet) chicken thing. If you want to have chicks, a rooster isn't so bad.

Now ducks are a whole different animal. Having raised them, I am glad that what ever killed them did so. Filthy, and sloppy animals. Talk about stinking up the yard!

Right now we have around 40 chickens, one rooster, and 9 turkeys. Actually very quiet. When we did have roosters, they would crow at the roosters down the road. Annoying at times.


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## lazydaisy67

:lolsmash: Zombie dinner bell!!!!! You're right, and that just cracked me up!!! Ducks are fun but very messy. They get the water you put out for them completely disgusting every day. The eggs are nice, but they will try very hard to lay them in a concealed nest someplace where you can't find it so if you want to eat the eggs, keep them confined. My females will try to hatch out a nest every spring and one even tried it in the fall. Keep those babies safe from critters. Out of a nest full hatched, we usually end up with one or maybe two if we're lucky that reach adulthood. On the other hand, if you have at least one dinner bell ringer you could increase your flock over the years. Considering having to eat one or two hens along with the eggs, sure would be nice to have chicks to replenish the numbers.
Good luck!


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## kejmack

I would choose ducks over chickens any day. 1) Ducks lay more. Ducks lay an egg every 24 hours. Chickens lay every 26 hours. You will get 7 eggs a week from ducks. You will get 5 eggs a week from chickens. 2) Ducks seem to be much hardier. Ducks can handle being wet obviously much better than chickens. My ducks will be outside no matter what the weather while the hens are hiding in the coop. 3) Ducks are friendly and cute. 4) female ducks quack. Males just make a squeaky quack noise. Roosters crow loud. 

My ducks have a kiddie pool to splash around in. They go into a large dog crate at night to protect them from predators. They don't need a coop like the chickens.


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## lazydaisy67

P.S. another nice thing about ducks is that they will eat bugs out of your garden without scratching out the plants or pecking the veggies. Chickens will destroy a garden pretty quickly.


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## LongRider

ComputerGuy said:


> Right now we have around 40 chickens, one rooster, and 9 turkeys. Actually very quiet. When we did have roosters, they would crow at the roosters down the road. Annoying at times.


Turkeys are an option. Ours are quiet pretty pretty dang hardy lay massive eggs that were supposed to be healthier than chicken eggs. Allegedly they have more protein less cholesterol Don't quote me on that as I have not confirmed that to be a fact. Plus ours are territorial attack turkeys that surround any car that comes down the driveway pecking at whomever is dumb or brave enough to get out of the car.


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## Sentry18

That's an easy one for me; CHICKEN. I don't like the taste of duck. But turkey does sound interesting. Especially their OPSEC capabilities.


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## Marcus

Geese are known as good alarm systems too.


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## Magus

Ducks.better eggs, more self reliant, better meat.

HOLY CRAP! I agreed with kemjack!0_o


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## CrackbottomLouis

I hate chickens. Their beady eyes stare into my soul. They are ill tempered lizards with feathers. I take great joy in eating their unborn young fried in butter.


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## The_Blob

IMHO this is a much harder question to answer than would appear at first glance, with the tremendous diversity in chicken breeds available for different purposes. One thing I can tell you is that you absolutely should not try to raise them together; for one thing, certain diseases that are only nuisances for one species are FATAL to the other. :gaah:
I've some experience with chickens, ducks, geese, pheasants, and turkeys, and one univeral truth is that they ALL poop, and it is gross!   
Chickens are less maintenance, so I suggest them for all newbs, if I were you, I wouldn't try anything else in any kind of numbers until I had managed a flock of twelve or more chickens successfully for a couple of (chicken  ) generations.


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## Meerkat

We had ducks,peking 'Aflac and Sassy'Sassy quacks all the tiem,Aflac just a whispering sound.Also had mokovies spl,Heckle and Jeckle who I let out one day and watched them fly away.I told hubby there goes your ducks,but they just circled the hood and came back.All the gun blast may have had something to do with that.Neighbors are always practicing their aim.
Ducks are very messy like chickens,only ducks mess is looser and larger.
I do miss the male Aflax and Heckle and Jeckle,but not Sassy. I noticed they only like to mate in water,a small swimmign pool.
We now only have 5 chickens,considering ordering more if we can figure out how to feed them in winter.
Ducks can be fun,will follow you everywhere,or the male will.I had one as a kid he would chase off the dogs ,he was jealous but at night the dogs would get him back,he'd be featherless for awhile,but hard to believe they never did kill him.In winter time his wings would drag because of ice on them,he did'nt seem to mind.


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## TexasPrepper36

Go big or go Home.

Ostrich and Emus better meat, bigger eggs, and a BOV if you need it


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## Wellrounded

I keep both. In my climate the chooks (Aussie for chicken lol) have a much longer laying season and I prefer their eggs but the ducks are hardier and quieter. They both have good and bad points when it comes to OPSEC, you can hear roosters of course but in a smaller pen you're going to be able to smell those ducks at some distance. Both ducks and chooks will graze but the chooks will go off the lay without other supplements. I'd give a few of both a go and see what suits your situation. For me it's chooks first, ducks second followed closely by geese as they do well on just grass and are great watch animals.


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## Bobbb

This post inspired me to go and buy a frozen duck since the last time I ate duck was so long ago that my memory wasn't clear.

You know that old Wendy's commercial






This is what I was thinking as the duck was finished with cooking: Where's the meat?


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## kappydell

Not to mention ducks are all dark meat....for me that would be the tie breaker...I love dark meat! Their fat is also good for baking.


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## Tank_Girl

I adore duck fat for making some of the most delicious roasted potatoes ever made.

For me I grow ducks for that precious fat and consider their meat as a happy bonus.
Plus I'm not allowed to own roosters in town but I'm allowed to own drakes.


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## UncleJoe

Tank_Girl said:


> For me I grow ducks


Don't they resist when you try to plant them in the ground? :ignore:


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## Tank_Girl

A cold smile and a good swing with a hatchet resolves most issues! 

Plus dumping duck guts, feathers and trimmings into a hole and planting a fruit tree on top is a good way of recycling the bit you don't eat.


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## cnsper

I am going to keep some ducks over the winter. I have picked up over 20 for free off of craigslist. Can you say free food? I am keeping ones that are known for being able to reproduce and hatch their own young. I don't want to deal with an incubator. Now for chickens, I am going to order some buckeyes. These are very cold hardy and dual purpose birds as they all are. I am also going to get some turkeys next spring and allow them to set to get more and keep it all sustainable.

As for flying, as long as you do not get mallards then you don't have to worry about it. For noise, do NOT get call ducks.

for right now I am raising ducks, rabbits, chickens and a pig. 1 pig, 20 ducks, numerous chickens and ongoing rabbits should keep me in all the meat that I need.


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## *Andi

I have chickens and SOLD all the ducks ... they made a mess out of every water bucket they could reach on the farm. (and they had two ponds)

Emus, cool bird (we HAD four) but they ate more than my dairy cows put together. So ... been there and done that ... no thanks. When they got out the last time my hubby said, that was it. Harvest, dressed and ground ...(Made one hell of a meatloaf but that was about it)


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## LongRider

Tank_Girl said:


> I adore duck fat for making some of the most delicious roasted potatoes ever made.
> 
> For me I grow ducks for that precious fat and consider their meat as a happy bonus.
> Plus I'm not allowed to own roosters in town but I'm allowed to own drakes.


Saute some garlic young asparagus in duck fat. I love smoked duck but you lose the fat when you do that so it is always a battle which I want more


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## Jimthewagontraveler

Buff Orpington chickens hands down.


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## JasonLee

Chicken is easier than ducks. I had the same problem once and followed the instructions given by one of my experienced friend.


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## webeable

LongRider said:


> Turkeys are an option. Ours are quiet pretty pretty dang hardy lay massive eggs that were supposed to be healthier than chicken eggs. Allegedly they have more protein less cholesterol Don't quote me on that as I have not confirmed that to be a fact. Plus ours are territorial attack turkeys that surround any car that comes down the driveway pecking at whomever is dumb or brave enough to get out of the car.


And if turkeys are caught in a hard rain they will look up to see what is hitting them in the head and well drown.


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## LongRider

webeable said:


> And if turkeys are caught in a hard rain they will look up to see what is hitting them in the head and well drown.


I've heard that. It rains hard sometimes here in Washington, seven inches the other day but I've never seen a drowned turkey. Than again I've only been prepping since 1973


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## cpiano

Ducks. Never again. TOOOOOOOOOO Messy, just like others have said. Our Khaki Campbells laid really well the first year, but eventually refused to go into the coop. I gave up. We have had 30+ over the last several years. They must be good eating. The fox and raccoons just love them. We are down to two. They are amazing slug eaters and will dig and dig until they find bugs. The eggs.....really great, but impossible to find. When I find them, they move. Maybe they are just smarter than me. 

We loved raising turkeys. They followed DH around in the yard like pets and would run to meet him every time he came out in the yard. They were sure hard to kill after becoming pets, but Thanksgiving was delicious that year.

We raise chickens. I have a love/hate relationship with them. I have decided that we will keep them for eggs, but when you can buy organic turkey at Costco after Thanksgiving for 99 cents a pound......well.....I can't raise chickens, turkeys, or ducks for that price.


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## Jayg13

We have both ducks and chickens, there are pluses and minuses to both. 

First chickens at least go into a coop and sleep at night which makes them easier to catch for the pot when it is time. Don't let anyone tell you that ducks are quiet!! I have heard some gosh awful rackets coming from the duck area at 2 am since they refuse to go into their enclosure any more at night. I haven't lost any to predators yet (knock wood) probably my LGD has something to do with that though.

Ducks will make a complete mess out of ANY water they have access to. If you have any other livestock you have to make sure that it is kept above duck level or it will be filled with mud and muck. The thing with most ducks though is the males don't really quack they grunt, its the LADIES that make all the noise. At least with a rooster, you have one bird making noise with the exception of egg laying time. I have both Runner Ducks and Peking ducks (because I wanted more meat at slaughter time). The runner ducks out laid my chickens hands down, but like any other livestock, it depends on what they have been bred for. Runner ducks were bred for eggs, peking ducks for meat. Peking ducks are supposed to lay 200 eggs a year which is decent when you can find them :/

I occasionally find a cache of eggs that the dogs get since I don't know how old they are. I have found that keeping ducks enclosed in a small area compounds the mess and smell that comes with ducks. Duck poop is much wetter and stinkier than chicken poop and since they don't roost, it is much more difficult to clean up if an area gets saturated. The smell is even worse in an enclosed space and we have to remember that birds' respiratory systems are much more sensitive than ours.

BTW I have had great success in getting chickens to lay year round by making sure they get plenty of light during the winter months in their coop. Some of my gals are getting on 4 years old and not laying as well but they still lay eggs. I also look at it as meat on the wing as it were. Finally I have 4' fences around my free ranging area my ducks and chickens are in and have no problems with birds escaping even though I do not clip wings. This goes for chickens, runner ducks and peking ducks. 

The main reason we still keep both is I like the variety of flavor even though ducks are a pain to pluck. Our household also prefers the taste of duck eggs to chicken eggs (this would be important to find out since they ARE different) so I keep the duck eggs for us and sell the chicken eggs to the ladies at my church. I am also looking into Turkeys myself for the upcoming year since I have the space. I have talked to several turkey people who swear that turkeys will NOT drown in a hard rain but they WILL find ways to drown in absurdly small puddles of water, especially as small poults they tend to go through a clumsy phase. I love turkey!


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## TheLazyL

Jimthewagontraveler said:


> Buff Orpington chickens hands down.


Yep.

My 8 BO hens are giving 4 or 5 eggs daily..


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## pixieduster

Getting 25 chickens in January when they hatch. Large breed brown egg layers. Multi variety. I figure start out with plenty and learn the hard way which ones I don't like. : D


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## Johnnyfive

Chickens... CPiano hits the nail on the head. Ducks are messy. IMO easy targets for predators too(way too friendly)!


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## ras1219como

Ducks are very messy but easy to care for and if kept in a proper pen predators shouldn't be an issue. Ducks are pretty quiet and shouldn't be much of a bother to neighbors in the area. Also IMO duck eggs are better than chicken eggs (as far as taste and richness goes) and the meat is tasty as well. But ultimately you should weigh the benefits of each and decide what is best for you in your current situation. Good luck.


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## cnsper

For those that have trouble catching ducks, fishing nets work well. Especially the ones that are about 2.5' in diameter or salmon nets as I call them. I had to pick up 10 really wild ducks last summer and with the net I was catching 4 at a time as they all ran together. Dropped the net in front of them and 4 would be in there before they knew what was happening. It is not hard to catch them, you just have to be smarter... LOL

You can also run faster than a duck so a good stick and a whack in the head at harvest time will do them in too.


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## Grimm

I had a pet duck as a kid. Once she was full grown she went back to the farm as a layer. 

They need a pond or pool to swim in. Don't get me started on them pooping in their pools and drink the water...!


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## ihaveMANHIDE

I killed a duck in mid flight one time with a .22


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## kyredneck

Tank_Girl said:


> I adore duck fat for making some of the most delicious roasted potatoes ever made.


Please, share your recipe.

-----------------------------------
Probably if I lived in town with space constraints I'd go with a calm gentle breed of chicken, ducks are really messy when confined.

My daughter and SIL have free range chickens, ducks, and guineas; their setup for ducks is perfect, they live on a creek, the ducks forage a lot of their own food there, man I love those huge duck eggs! I've never eaten a duck though.


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## kyredneck

LongRider said:


> Saute some garlic young asparagus in duck fat. I love smoked duck but you lose the fat when you do that so it is always a battle which I want more


What's the best way to cook a duck and collect the fat also? I might buy one at WalMart.



Jimthewagontraveler said:


> Buff Orpington chickens hands down.


We raised those, they are a very desirable breed, big calm quiet gentle chickens. Good winter layers, meat chickens, and mothers. Just all around a good chicken.


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