Raising ducks at home is economically beneficial because the birds reach a suitable weight for slaughter at the age of two months. To do this, you should choose precocious breeds and feed the birds correctly.
A detailed description of the cultivation, maintenance and nutrition of ducklings will be given in this article. You will learn how to properly feed the young, depending on age, and how to properly prepare the house for keeping the chicks.
Rules for feeding daily ducks at home
Most often, on the first day after hatching, ducklings are not able to eat without the help of others and may die in the absence of food. According to this factor, ducklings need first in compulsory order drink with a pipette a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Then sprinkle crushed boiled egg and thick gruel on dark-colored cardboard. In addition, you need to sprinkle the ducks with food, as they will learn to catch moving food.
During the subsequent feeding, the ducks are forcibly watered and later given a semi-liquid mixture, adding milk to it.
During the first three days chicks are able to consume food without outside help. And when keeping musky ducks, it is necessary to take into account that their droppings are watery, so you should not be afraid and think that they have some kind of digestive difficulties.
The first days of ducklings need to be fed with mixtures of crumbly and moistened consistency, which must include these feeds:
- Mineral;
- Cereals;
- Feed of animal origin;
- Vitamin.
Ducklings should be fed with fresh herbs from a third of the day old, adding it to flour mixtures. From 10 days of age boiled potatoes are added to the menu of young animals.
Feeding methods
After 15 days, young animals can be released into body of water, and ducklings should be fed three times a day. In addition, at the age of one month they make the transition to a two-time feeding with grain.
The first feeding occurs in the morning (at about 10 o'clock), however, the chicks, in any case, are forbidden to feed their fill. The second time the food is served after the ducklings are driven to spend the night, and then it must be plentiful. . Correct is of great importance equipping duck feeders so that birds can get to food without any barriers.
During the day when it's standing on the street hot weather, ducks tend to lose their appetite, because of this, you need to change the meal schedule: the 1st meal at dawn, and the 2nd with the onset of dusk. When young animals of thirty days of age visit a reservoir in which there is a lot of natural food, it is allowed to feed ducklings in the morning and in the evening with ground seed, as well as high-grade grain waste.
Should be given strictly mineral supplements, such as the:
- Limestone;
- shell;
- Shell.
crushed shell can be purchased at ready-made, and as for mineral supplementation, then from eggshell it is possible to make it yourself by grinding it.
Ducks are watered from drinkers running water at twenty degrees. In addition, you must always remember that the duck drinks three times as much water when eating food. In depth, the drinkers must be such that the ducks have the opportunity to rinse their nasal openings in them. Nowadays, the industry produces a wide variety of special drinkers for ducks, but you can equip such containers without the help of others, using ordinary plastic bottles or basins.
Necessary conditions for maintenance and care
Daytime ducklings need in special care and feeding. First, they need to provide high quality heating. To do this, little ducklings can be placed in a box or cardboard box, and a lamp should be installed on top.
4 days after the ducklings have hatched, they become quite strong and are ready to be transferred to the poultry house. It is better to allocate a separate territory for them, or limit the place in the common house, so that feeding and maintaining a suitable temperature is more convenient.
Feeding ducklings at home for beginners includes such fundamental points:
Keep the house warm and dry. The bedding must be very clean. In addition, it is better to prevent drafts from appearing in the room.
The temperature is recommended to be maintained at +20 degrees. In addition, you need to predict the right lighting. During the first week existence duration daylight hours Should be around 20:00. Subsequently, this period is reduced by an hour every week.
You need to look after the cleanliness of the litter. Despite the fact that ducklings are distinguished by the highest vitality, they must be kept clean in order to prevent the appearance of diseases.
The most important role is played by feeding. On the 1st day, ducklings are fed with a boiled egg with low-fat cottage cheese. After about two weeks, the birds are gradually transferred to a normal diet, giving crushed grain and greenish feed.
In order for the feeding of ducklings at home for beginners to be successful, it is necessary to strictly follow all the rules of keeping and feeding. Otherwise, the young may fall ill and die..
The main diseases of ducklings and methods for their prevention include:
Feeding ducklings at home for beginners
It is strictly forbidden to delay fattening for a long time, because young animals older than 60-70 days begin juvenile molting. During this period ducklings become prone to weight loss, as well as the formation of the rudiments of new plumage (hemp), which are difficult to remove during the processing of the carcass. In addition, long fattening increases feed costs per unit of production.
Feeding young animals can be divided into two periods:
- During the first period, young animals need relatively heat air.
- In the second period, the thermoregulation of the body of ducklings (approximately 3 weeks of age) is regulated, because of this, significant heating is not needed.
On the first day, well-developed ducklings weigh approximately 50-60 grams, they stand firmly on their feet, have shiny yellow down, their stomach is taut, their eyes are shiny and bulging, and the chicks themselves are quite active. Please note that ducklings with a huge tummy are not suitable for feeding.
If young ducklings are grown without a brood hen, then during the first 5 days the temperature in the room must be measured at 22 degrees, and on the 6th day the temperature is lowered to 18 degrees. Presence warm temperature has a positive effect on the activity of the chicks, they confidently move or sit, while not huddling together.
Feeding methods
The most suitable mother hen for ducks is the duck, because she will move around the pond with her brood and teach them how to find food, and will also protect them.
It is quite common to encounter with damage to eggs during the period of incubation by a duck. This happens due to the lack of antibacterial properties in the protein in duck eggs (there is a similar property in chicken eggs). Duck eggs are subject to spoilage due to contamination of the inside of the egg, especially mold fungus and eventually the protein is degraded. Similar eggs are bad smell- give rottenness, hydrogen sulfide. As soon as spoiled eggs have been found, they must be removed from the nest to avoid infection of other hatching ducklings.
Muscovy ducks are not very good at training young animals, for this reason, ducklings should be taken care of immediately after the ducklings are born.
The area where the young will be housed should have continuous lighting installed after hatching to help adjust to the environment. Already after the second day, the duration of daylight hours should be reduced by 45 minutes, and then gradually reduced to 11 days of life, so that in the end 16 hours of daylight hours come out.
Young growth is grown on the deepest litter, which requires grass, sawdust, covered with arable lime. It is not recommended to use shavings in the first 4 days of life, as ducklings peck at it and this can become a prerequisite for a malfunction in the functioning of the digestive organs. If the ducklings are kept on a damp and dirty litter, the plumage of the young will not be clean, and it will also be poorly protected from changes in ambient temperature.
Daytime broods are kept on the floor or in cages with a stocking density of 20 units per square meter sex, but from the 20-day period, the content density should be reduced to 10 units. Cells for young animals can be made independently using improvised materials.
Duckling Care: Personalities of Duckling Feeding
Feeding and raising ducklings depends on the purpose for which they are bred - for a tribe, or for meat. Depending on this and that what to feed day old ducklings.
Most the best time for breeding ducklings - this is April. During the spring and summer, they will have time to accumulate the necessary body weight for slaughter. But for rational use breeding of females and males is advised to be carried out in three steps:
- In April;
- In July;
- In September.
Breeding per tribe
For this type of breeding, healthy young males and females are used. It is recommended to keep those individuals that hatched in April. Such individuals will have time to fully get stronger by the winter and will perfectly tolerate the cold.
Chicks are selected for the tribe without physical flaws. It is best to make selection at the age of 3 days after the individuals hatched, and also 2 months after hatching. The maintenance and feeding of ducklings, which are selected for the tribe, is carried out in accordance with the general rules.
For meat
Ducks are rapidly gaining weight suitable for slaughter. Usually, 2-3 months will be enough for this. In order to fatten the bird, it is necessary to ensure rational conditions of detention and balanced feeding.
During the first three weeks, young chicks are placed in a separate warm corral and artificial daylight is threaded. They feed on juicy and grain feed, and also give root crops, greenish grass and aquatic vegetation. Be sure to include mineral supplements and feed of animal origin in the nutrition menu.
There are some peculiarities in the process of their cultivation, which must be taken into account when breeding birds.
For the normal growth of a bird, it is necessary to provide the bird with not only the correct diet and diet, but also good conditions content. In the first 3 weeks of life, ducklings are especially sensitive to the temperature of the room in which they are kept.
Optimum temperature rooms in the first weeks of life of ducklings:
- In the first week - 27-30°C;
- In the second week - 23-26°C;
- In the third week - 19-22°C.
Should always have a deep dry bedding. Despite the fact that the duck belongs to waterfowl, dampness is one of the causes of various bird diseases. For bedding use hay, straw and sawdust. Relative Humidity air in the house should be in the range of 65-70%.
The area of the room for keeping ducks is calculated based on the norm 1 sq. m for 2 birds. When keeping a large number of birds, the room is divided into sections, each of which can contain from 25 to 75 ducks. For 4-5 ducks, 1 nest is installed in the room. They are open cells with a size of 50 * 30 cm. Optimal Height such nests is 20 cm.
The length of daylight hours for the normal development and growth of ducklings in the first weeks of life should be at least 20 hours. In order to achieve this indicator, additional lighting systems are arranged in the room. The best option for and space heating can be LED lamps with a power of 50 watts. 5 such lamps are installed for 10 birds. They are fixed on the wall of the house at a height of 2 m. When the duck reaches the age of one month, the daylight hours necessary for its normal growth are reduced to 12 hours.
For air circulation in the house, it is not necessary to arrange a special one. To do this, it is enough to equip the room small windows which can be used for ventilation. For walking ducks, special pens are made. They are located on the south side of the house. At the age of 3 weeks, goslings can be released along with adult ducks into the pond.
Necessary equipment and inventory
- Feeders. They must be stable and have a top bar that limits the ability of the bird to trample and scatter food.
- Drinkers. They are selected with the calculation of at least 0.6 liters per 1 bird. Their device must ensure the stability and preservation of the purity of the water poured into them.
- Nests. For their device, you can use wooden boxes filled with hay.
To clean the house, you will need rakes, shovels and buckets.
Pasture Requirements
The presence of grazing for ducks can significantly reduce the amount of feed needed for their cultivation and avoid many. On pastures, ducks enrich their body with protein and vitamins. When grazing ducks on pastures, they can only be fed with grain waste. The pasture area depends on the composition of the herbage.
Pastures should not be located on waterlogged soils. On pastures intended for walking birds, sown perennial herbs. Legume-cereal mixtures are best suited for these purposes.Reservoir Requirements
If there is no pond and river near the breeding place for ducks, then for swimming the birds set special baths or arrange swimming pools. The water temperature in them should not be lower than +14°C. The area of the reservoir is calculated based on the norm of 1 ha per 200 ducks.
Care
Ducks are very unpretentious birds. In one year, 1 duck can bring more than 100 eggs to a person and hatch fifty ducklings. Each type of bird requires its own diet, but there are conditions common to all types of ducks.
Feeding
From the first days of life, ducklings need to be fed at the same time. Weight gain and growth in ducks occur very quickly if their diet is properly composed. In the first week of life, ducklings are fed 6-8 times a day.
The first portion of food is given to them in the early morning, the last before dusk. At this age, they can be given fat-free cottage cheese and boiled eggs. Drinkers should always have pure water, to which a little manganese is added.
After 5 days of life, ducklings begin to give mash. They are prepared from cottage cheese and eggs, to which ground corn and wheat turd are added. At a week of age, greens are added to the mixture. At the age of 2 weeks, eggs and cottage cheese are removed from the duck's diet and duckweed is included in it. From the same age, birds can switch to "dry" feeding. On sale you can always find feed intended for different ages birds.
From one month until the moment of slaughter, the duck is fed with grain, millet. Add to the mix bone meal, shells, chalk, as well as sunflower cake and fodder yeast. The feed should contain 40% dirt and 30% greens. In the absence of grass, special vitamins are added to the feed.
Medicines
Ducks may be exposed various diseases. Depending on the type of disease, medications are prescribed, which can be bought at a veterinary pharmacy. The most common drugs used in the treatment of poultry are such as:
- tetracycline;
- oxytetracycline;
- sulfadimethoxine;
- trimerazine and others.
They are given to the bird along with food or drink.
Disease prevention
The main prophylactic drugs used in the cultivation of ducks are probiotics. These drugs suppress the pathogenic microflora of the bird's intestines and help strengthen its immunity. You can give the drug to ducklings at any age.
Conclusion and features
Ducks are very greedy. Most of their diseases occur due to improperly formulated feeding rations and violations of poultry conditions. The presence of a pond for ducks is prerequisite their cultivation.
When getting eggs from them, you need to know that the duck may stop laying if it is transferred to another poultry house. Muscovy ducks and mulards are considered the best meat breeds.
In many farmsteads they keep ducks for the sake of obtaining tasty meat as a result of fattening ducklings. A few individuals can even provide big family meat, and breeding ducks on a larger scale, allows you to profitably sell the surplus and gradually establish a profitable business on this.
Why is breeding ducks beneficial?
Unpretentious at home. In summer, they can live in open-air cages around the clock, and in winter they can spend the day in an open-air cage and spend the night in a warm poultry house.
Not picky about food. Eat both dry food and wet mash. Consume a large number of greens, vegetables, root crops, etc. In the presence of a natural reservoir, part of the food will be found in it. Breeding ducks is beneficial because flocking birds always keep in a group, which makes it easier to care for them.
- Good egg production - accordingly, a lot of eggs for incubation.
- High percentage of hatchability and safety of young animals. This means that from each duck you can get, grow and fatten a large number of ducklings.
- Young growth in 60 days is ready for slaughter. The carcasses are already well muscled, the meat is tender and juicy.
How to breed ducks?
Most birds of this species are good hens, so natural breeding can be carried out. This is convenient if it is not possible to take care of little ducklings, first of all, to warm them. The female herself will bring out the young, will warm them, protect them, teach them to eat. Free-grazing will teach them to find the right food, recognize danger and find their way home. But, at this time, she will not rush for about 2 months, but you will get only 10-15 ducklings. This is beneficial for providing for the family and relatives, but for a substantial profit there is a second breeding option.
Artificial breeding of ducks gives the maximum possible number ducklings from each duck. With an average egg production of about 100 ducklings hatched in an incubator, you can get 70-90 ducklings, which is much more than the first option. But babies need to be provided with warmth and care, protected from predators ... For breeding hatchery birds, an additional room is required, separate from the adult population of the poultry house. Part of the young can be sold at day old, and part can be left for fattening, followed by sale live or carcasses.
How to fatten ducks for sale
The fattening period is only 2-3 months, if overexposed, then molting begins. At this time, the carcasses look ugly because of the stumps (growing feathers), moreover, even with intensive feeding, the live weight decreases. It takes about 3-4 months to shed and set marketable conditions. The weight of 60 days and 5-6 months differs slightly, but the maintenance costs increase several times. Therefore, it is important to slaughter on time to avoid costs and make a profit.
Feed ducklings for slaughter should be nutritious feed. The addition of greens and vegetables is good for growth. The type of feeding can be dry (mixed feed) or wet (grain mix, mixed feed, vegetables, etc.). Good results are obtained by using in the first 2-3 weeks of feed, designed specifically for this type of young animals with all nutritional supplements.
After 3 or 4 weeks, the nutritional value of the diet is somewhat reduced, otherwise they can get very fat, and there is usually no demand for very fatty ones. good option is content with a month of walking.
Interesting fact! The main benefit of breeding waterfowl is their desire to graze grass and find tasty things in the pond. The sooner they are released, the less spending will be spent on feed. Some broods practically refuse grain feed, preferring grazing and a pond. This does not in the least affect their growth and weight gain, but at times increases the financial component of the issue.
Income from breeding ducks
In spring and summer, there is always a high demand for hatching eggs and young. What exactly to sell can be decided depending on prices, the workload of the incubator and the possibilities of hatching. Eggs are 2-3 times cheaper than day-old birds.
In summer, autumn and winter, buyers are interested in meat carcasses. And by the new year, frozen birds are also good for sale. Accordingly, the slaughter is carried out on time, and then they are stored in freezers.
In warm barns with sufficient light, egg-laying begins early and the incubation season can begin as early as mid-winter. Conclusion - than more investments the comfort for the bird, the greater the income.
In addition to meat, high-quality down is obtained from ducks, suitable for sewing pillows, feather beds, blankets. AT large quantities it is valued and in demand not only among needlewomen. With a properly established breeding business, you can conclude an agreement with solid company, manufacturer of down products. Or you can think about additional income ... for example, making pillows for sale.
What breed to breed?
There are many breeds and among them it is worth choosing the most suitable according to the characteristics. The prevalence in the region is also important, because every few years you have to bleed into parent stock. Yes, and eggs and ducklings of well-known breeds are in demand.
One of the most popular is this, but they are often greasy. Dietary (lean) meat at, when grown, they are obtained with a big difference in weight (drakes weigh 2 times more). Colored ones may not give the most beautiful carcass due to dark fluff and possible stumps, but they are ideally adapted to life and fattening at home. Modern Favorit ducks give relatively non-fatty meat. And hybrids in terms of meat qualities are similar to Muscovy ducks, aligned by weight regardless of gender, but they cannot be propagated - they are barren.
After studying the characteristics, learning about the demand in the market, you can choose one or more that will become profitable and will delight you with regular profits.
What are the costs of breeding ducks
It is worth mentioning the financial side of breeding ducks. Spending will be, and, on initial stage, significant ... But if you apply simple arithmetic and compare expenses and profits, it is noticeable that they will pay off in a short time.
What you need to successfully breed ducks:
- Quality feeders and drinkers located throughout the barn. They should not leak and create dampness. Of course, you can make drinkers with your own hands, but this will also require financial investments.
- Repellers of insects, rodents and predatory animals that can threaten your business with spreading infections and destroying the entire herd.
- Plucking machine for fast processing during slaughter.
- Refrigeration equipment. When choosing, it is worth considering the number of birds that is planned, and not the one that is currently available.
- Incubator.
About the rest necessary costs we'll talk about in the next article.
Poultry farming at right approach can bring big profits. Almost all types of poultry are quite easy to grow, and the production itself will be waste-free, since it is possible to sell not only poultry meat, but also eggs and fluff.
In the article, we will consider in more detail the issues of organizing a poultry house and the main aspects of running such a business. Breeding ducks at home for beginners should begin with a study of the conditions for keeping birds, arranging a poultry house and purchasing young animals.
Where to begin?
There are several different breeds which can be successfully grown at home. Some ducks are raised for delicious livers, others meat breeds give a large amount of meat that can be sold. Duck eggs diverge perfectly, which are especially valuable for their taste and size - they are much larger than chicken eggs.
Breeding ducks has many advantages:
- You can feed the birds with anything, they eat almost everything, food of plant or animal origin is suitable. If you grow ducks in a pond, then in addition they will act as water purifiers;
- These birds are early maturing and highly productive;
- You can even sell bird droppings, which among gardeners is considered an excellent fertilizer;
- Ducks are very clean, so their down and feathers always remain clean. After the slaughter of the bird, it can be successfully sold;
- Optional to create artificial pond for breeding chicks. Ordinary cages are great for keeping them, which, by the way, is much more convenient, because it’s easier to clean in them.
It makes no sense to immediately go through the procedure for registering a business, because production volumes will be minimal, and you will only learn all the delights of breeding birds. In the future, it will be possible to arrange a personal subsidiary plot. The procedure is extremely simple, a minimum of paperwork.
Content Requirements
Before breeding ducks at home, you will need to create a spacious poultry house in your barn. It can be built from wood, stone, etc., the main thing is that the floor in it is brick.
The base can also be made of stone and reinforced metal sheets. This is done in order to protect birds from small predatory animals and rodents. Straw, hay or sand are poured on top.
Holes are made in the walls above the floor so that the birds can freely enter inside. Bird drinkers (deep enough for birds to wash their noses in it) and their feeders are placed here. Outside can be fenced with a net small plot land where birds can roam.
Ducks do not tolerate damp indoors very well, this point must be taken into account when building. Arrange ventilation that will get rid of dampness and will promote ventilation. The size of the duckling is calculated depending on the number of birds, on average, 3 individuals should account for a square meter of area.
Inside the barn spend artificial lighting, which has great importance for good bird performance. A mini-farm can conditionally be divided into 3 parts:
- a poultry house where young animals are kept;
- poultry house for adult birds, which will later go for meat;
- a place for slaughtering birds, refrigerators. If you plan to keep at least 250 heads on the farm, then you should think about the advisability of purchasing a special machine for plucking carcasses.
Subtleties of care and feeding
In order for duck breeding to be successful, you need to know some of the nuances of feeding and follow the regimen. Experienced farmers on household plots release birds at about 10 am on the pond, after 5 hours of walking they are driven to feed.
If you keep birds in cages, then they must be released to a walking area. Attempts to create a small reservoir there will most likely fail: the area will soon turn into a swamp due to moisture and mud, and the birds themselves will constantly compete for the opportunity to swim. This is extra stress, which can be avoided by equipping large drinking bowls.
At night, the birds are driven back into the cages, before going to bed, be sure to fill their feeders with food. Ducks quickly get used to the established routine, so after a while they will wait for the walk themselves.
As for feeding, it is advisable to feed small ducklings under the age of 3 weeks with liquid food. Their diet should include grated yolk, rolled into balls, which will be easy for the chicks to swallow. Further in the menu, you can gradually add vegetables and grated root crops. Sprouted wheat, chalk and lime must be added as a mineral supplement.
AT winter period ducks are fed feed.
Costs and possible profit
Immediately name exact figure difficult, you yourself can figure out how much it will cost Construction Materials for the poultry house. If you build a small farm completely from scratch, then the approximate payback period will be at least a year.
If, as an example, we take the breeding of a mulard duck at home, then the cost of buying young animals will be as follows:
- purchase of ducklings (about 50 pieces) - from 5 to 10 thousand rubles;
- the cost of equipping the duck house and its construction - 20 thousand;
- average expenses for space heating, lighting and food - 3000 rubles.
In total, we get at least 50 thousand of mandatory expenses. Now let's calculate the approximate profit:
- income from the sale of meat at the rate of 50 ducks, each with an average of 3 kilograms of meat - 30 thousand;
- sale of small ducklings for breeding - each chick costs from 100 to 150 rubles. Only 20 thousand rubles;
- sale of feathers and litter - another 10-15 thousand per season.
The approximate profit can be more than 60 thousand, in the future the amount will increase by another 10-30 thousand, since there is no longer a need to build a poultry house from scratch and buy ducklings.
You need to understand that tangible profits can be obtained with really large farm sizes. The number of birds should reach at least 200 pieces in order to be able to receive stably about 100 thousand.
Check out the offers of banks
| RKO in Tochka Bank. | Open an account |
More about current account
- Opening an account - free of charge in 10 minutes;
- Service - from 0 rubles / month;
- Free payments - up to 20 pieces / month.
- Up to 7% on account balance;
- Overdraft possible;
- Internet banking - free of charge;
- Mobile banking is free.
| RKO in Raiffeisenbank. | Open an account |
More about current account
- Opening an account - free of charge in 5 minutes;
- Service - from 490 rubles / month;
- Minimum commissions.
- Registration of salary cards - free of charge;
- Overdraft possible;
- Internet banking - free of charge;
- Mobile banking is free.
| RKO in Tinkoff Bank. | Open an account |
More about current account
- Free account opening in 10 minutes;
- First 2 months free service;
- After 2 months from 490 rubles / month;
- Up to 8% on the account balance;
- Free accounting for individual entrepreneurs on Simplified;
- Free internet banking;
- Free mobile bank.
| RKO in Sberbank. | Open an account |
More about current account
- Opening r / s - 0 r.;
- Service - from 0 rub./month;
- Free "Sberbank Business Online";
- Lots of additional services.
More about current account
- 0 rub. opening an account;
- 0 rub. Internet banking and mobile banking for account management;
- 0 rub. issuance of a business card for depositing and withdrawing cash at any ATM;
- 0 rub. the first deposit of cash into the account;
- 0 rub. tax and budgetary payments, transfers to legal entities and individual entrepreneurs in Alfa-Bank;
- 0 rub. service account if there is no turnover.
| RKO in the Eastern Bank. | Open an account |
More about current account
- Opening an account is free;
- Reservation in 1 minute;
- Internet banking and mobile app for free;
- 3 months of service for free;
- after 3 months from 490 rubles / month
| RKO in LOKO Bank. | Open an account |
More about current account
- Opening an account is free;
- Reservation in 1 minute;
- Service - from 0 rubles / month;
- Cash withdrawal from 0.6%;
- Free terminal for acquiring;
- Internet banking and mobile application - free of charge.
| RKO in Expert Bank. | Open an account |
More about current account
- Account maintenance - from 0 rub./month.
- Cash withdrawal (up to 700 thousand rubles) - free of charge
- Up to 5% on account balance
- The cost of payment - from 0 rubles.
| RKO in Unicredit Bank. |
Keeping ducks on personal plot- a very profitable business. In a year, more than 100 eggs and about 50 ducklings can be obtained from one individual alone. Of course, for meat at home - a procedure that requires compliance with certain rules. In particular, they must be followed by those who decide to breed this bird in order to obtain additional income. In the review, we will tell you what a novice businessman needs to know and how to start a business.
Which breed to choose: Muscovy ducks
Of course, you should start a business with a choice of bird species. One of the reasons for not being very popular duck meat on the market is its fat content. Therefore, in recent times farmers are increasingly paying attention to such a breed as musky. The meat of these ducks is lean and at the same time juicy.
Under the beak or above it, individuals of the musk breed have red leather growths. Their plumage is usually white or black and white. Because of this unusual appearance among the people, these birds were called Indo-ducks. The weight of an adult duck of this breed can reach 2.5 kg. Drakes grow bigger - up to 5 kg. This bird is perfect option in the event that you decide to do such a thing as raising ducks for meat at home. See a photo of an individual of the musk breed below.
Moscow whites
This fairly new breed was obtained by crossing peking ducks with hackcambells. one of her distinctive features is a long head and a wide beak. The mass of drakes of this breed can reach 4 kg, ducks - 3.5 kg. One of the undoubted advantages of the Moscow white is delicious tender meat.
Ukrainian breed
These birds are also quite common in household plots. Their color can be gray, clay or white. The last option is the most common. The mass of Ukrainian drakes is on average 3.5 kg, ducks - 2.5 kg. Up to 220 eggs can be obtained from one hen per year.
What should be a poultry house
Of course, raising ducks for meat at home is possible only if you have a fairly spacious shed. The poultry house can be frame, cobbled, stone, etc. The floor in the barn is best made of stone or brick. Small animals - ferrets, mice, rats, etc. - can harm ducks very easily. Before laying bricks, the ground in the poultry house must be carefully compacted.
A soft bedding is arranged over the hard floor. It can be made from hay, straw or sawdust. You can also fill the floor in the shed with dry sand. Be sure to arrange manholes in the duck-house just above the floor. They are necessary so that the bird can freely enter the barn and leave it.
Feeders, drinkers and nests should be installed in the duck house. Next to him arrange a fenced small paddock. Here you also need to put a couple of drinkers and a feeder. The first can be made from buckets (not galvanized) by digging them into the ground. Special troughs are usually installed as feeders. It is important to choose the right size. One head should have about 10 cm of the perimeter of the side. Drinkers should be deep enough for the birds to flush their nasal passages.
The dimensions of the barn are determined based on the fact that 2-3 ducks should account for about one square meter of space.
nests
Farmers who have wondered how to grow ducks for meat at home should also be aware of what nests this bird should have. Ducks lay slightly fewer eggs than hens. However, it is, of course, necessary to provide special places for masonry in the barn. Duck nests are quite big sizes- 50x50x35. They are ordinary boxes with a straw-covered bottom.
Basic content rules
Of course, those who decide to start breeding this bird as a business need to be aware of how to care for it. First of all, it should be borne in mind that raising ducks for meat at home is a procedure, in without fail requiring compliance with the regime. The productivity of the bird directly depends on this. Usually in household plots the following method is practiced:
- In the morning, the bird is released into the pond. You can open the duck house no earlier than 10 hours. Bird eggs are usually laid in the morning.
- After 5-6 hours, the ducks are driven into a paddock for feeding.
- Then they are released back into the pond.
- In the evening, before going to bed, the troughs are again filled with food.
At night, the bird is driven into the barn. Soon the ducks get used to this routine and themselves come from the reservoir to the poultry house at the time of feeding.
slaughter
Growing ducks for meat as a business is quite profitable. During the season, if desired, you can grow 3-4 broods. The whole summer, ducks, like chickens, are not kept. They are usually slaughtered before the first juvenile molt - at 50-60 days of age. The carcasses of such ducks have a marketable appearance, since there are no hemp on them. There is another reason for such an early slaughter - purely economic. The fact is that up to two months of age, the amount of feed spent on one individual during the month is only about 2.5-5.5 kg, depending on the age of the bird. Older individuals begin to eat a lot, gaining fat. By 3-5 months. ducks should be given up to 20-25 kg of feed. Two-month-old ducklings weigh about two kilograms, six-month-old - 4 kg. Therefore, keep ducks for more than 2.5-3 months. impractical.
All summer the same brood can be kept only if the farm is located on the shore of a large reservoir, where ducks can get enough food for themselves. However, in this case, many owners of such a business prefer to slaughter the bird earlier. At big ducks the meat is usually too fatty.
Growing ducks for meat at home: feeding
As already mentioned, food is usually given to this bird twice a day. In the morning, you can feed concentrated feed (crushed food). Mixes are given in the evening. The latter may consist of fresh grass, root vegetables, vegetables, etc. You can also use kitchen waste, whey, meat and bone or fish meal, mineral supplements, etc.
The share of cereals and mealy in the diet of ducks should be about 80%. The remaining 20% are wet mixers and various additives.
How to get ducklings
The question of how to raise ducks for meat also comes down to how you can get your own young. These birds are not as good as hens. However, some individuals still sit on eggs. A way out of the situation can be found even if not a single duck does this. Very often, eggs are simply placed under chickens. Duck young are hatched just a few days later than chickens.
The chicken will. But young animals brought up by a club are usually not released into the reservoir. The sight of floating "chickens" greatly injures the psyche of the mother hen. In any case, it is impossible to launch babies into a pond if they are grown without a duck until their fluff comes off and real plumage appears. The fact is that subcutaneous fat very young chicks do not. So they can just forgive.
Sometimes ducklings are also obtained in incubators. In this case, feeding them will be somewhat more difficult. But it's still worth trying. When laying eggs in an incubator, you need to be prepared for the fact that the chicks will hatch far from all of them. The output of young animals in any case (under a duck, chicken or in an incubator) is usually no more than 50%. The fact is that there are no antibacterial substances in the protein of duck eggs. As a result, many embryos die at the development stage.
Duckling care
Of course, the young of this bird, like any other, must be provided optimal conditions for growth and development. Immediately after hatching, ducklings are usually brought into warm room and contain several days at a temperature of at least 20-25 gr. However, it would be better to put them in boxes or cages (20-25 pieces per 1m2), with heating up to at least +30 gr. This air temperature can be achieved using conventional incandescent bulbs. They are installed in the lattice of the cage. After three weeks, the ducklings are seated in different pens so that there are no more than 12 of them per square meter. By this time, the temperature is reduced to 16-18 gr. (gradually). Lighting for newborns is arranged around the clock. By the age of three weeks, its duration should be about 16 hours.
How to raise ducks for meat. What to feed the chicks
The diet of newly hatched ducklings usually includes boiled eggs and very finely crushed oatmeal. From the second - third day of life, cottage cheese is included in the diet, and from 5-6 - finely chopped greens and aquatic vegetation (in a ratio of approximately 0.5x1). From the age of ten days, potatoes and finely chopped root crops can already be added to ducklings in the mash.
At first, babies are given food 6-8 times a day. Starting from the 10th day and up to the age of one month, the number of feedings is reduced to 5-6, then - up to 2-4 times a day.
Private owners grow ducks for meat in the country only in the summer practiced most often. Farmers who breed this bird for the sale of carcasses usually keep it in the winter. At this time of the year for successful cultivation certain rules must be followed.
They feed the bird in winter not two, but at least three times a day. In the morning and afternoon they give mash, in the evening - cereals. Ducks tolerate cold quite well. However, it is impossible to allow the air temperature in the house to drop below 5 degrees. Ducks should also be protected from drafts. If the bedding in the barn is damp, their egg production will decrease. Therefore, dry hay or sawdust should be periodically sprinkled on the floor in the house. In this case, putrefactive processes with the release of heat will begin to occur in the lower layers.
An ice hole can be made in the duck bathing pond in winter. The complexity of its equipment lies primarily in the fact that in order to prevent the bird from falling under the ice, its edges will have to be fenced with a net. But you can keep ducks in the cold season and without bathing.
In order for the ducks to rush better, additional lighting should be arranged in the house. The lights are on in the mornings and evenings. Duck egg production will not be reduced in winter only if there is lighting for at least 14 hours a day.
What should be the pond
Sometimes this bird is also kept on land (in cages or aviaries). It is this method that is practiced if ducks are grown for meat in industrial conditions. But for small farms, free range is still considered preferable. The reservoir intended for this bird should have a rather vast area and a small depth. Ducks dive very well and can get food from the bottom up to 1 m. It is not recommended to arrange very deep reservoirs on the site. In this case, duck droppings, sinking to the bottom - where the layers of water do not mix - begin to rot with the release of methane. As a result, the lake "blooms". In flowing ponds, the stocking density of ducks can be significantly reduced.
- The daily routine for ducks must be observed without fail. Otherwise, the bird will reduce productivity.
- Do not transfer ducks to another room when the laying period begins. Otherwise, the bird may begin to molt. At the same time, duck eggs will stop laying.
- The bird is very shy. Therefore, it must be handled with care.
As you can see, raising ducks for meat at home is not particularly difficult. The main thing is to arrange a comfortable shed for the bird, develop a diet correctly and follow the regimen. In this case, you can get tens of kilograms of delicious, environmentally friendly and expensive duck meat per season.
