Chickens or Ducks? Pros and Cons please

[Mackay]

DH and I were discussing having chickens or ducks the other day. I had a few ducks years ago for a summer and I really liked their eggs and they are quite cute...

So when it comes to eggs why would you choose one over the other?

 

[dacjohns]

Duck eggs are bigger.

 

[farmerlor]

DH and I were discussing having chickens or ducks the other day. I had a few ducks years ago for a summer and I really liked their eggs and they are quite cute...

So when it comes to eggs why would you choose one over the other?

Why choose? Be like me and have 'em all!!!

 

[Wifezilla]

Ducks...

Pro
Easier to house
Longer productive egg laying years
Bigger eggs
Will not scratch up yard
Poop is watery and doesn't take long to hit with the hose and get rid of
Very cold hardy
Disease resistant

Con
Take longer to mature to egg laying age
Messier than chickens
Pickier than chickens with kitchen waste (chickens will eat ANYTHING, ducks can be worse than kids when it comes to eating certain foods)

But I agree....why choose? Get some ducks, and a few bantams to eat the stuff the ducks wont touch. Use the chickens scratching tendency to shred the leaves and other yard waste.

If I had more space, I would add some bantam faverolles to my duck flock.

 

[freemotion]

Aren't ducks seasonal layers? My chickens slow down in winter, but still produce enough eggs for us year round.

 

[farmerlor]

Aren't ducks seasonal layers? My chickens slow down in winter, but still produce enough eggs for us year round.

Depends on the breed of duck or so I hear. Supposedly, the most eggs ever laid by any bird, chicken or duck were laid by a Khaki Campbell who laid 365 eggs in a year. Since duck eggs are bigger than chicken eggs that's a LOT of egg in a year.

 

[Cybercat]

Runner ducks are also prolific layers...I loved my ducks, but coyotes got them one by one...

The best PRO I came think of is how exuberant ducks are! They LOVE life and are so much fun to watch.

The CON for me was that the ducks liked to 'dabble' nibbling around the root systems of my perennnials...lost a number of plants that way.

 

[me&thegals]

How do the 2 types of eggs taste in comparison? Could a person mistake the flavor of one for the other?

Oh yeah, and:

--How do they overwinter? How cold hardy?

--Can they eat the same grain/nutrient mix as chickens?

 

[Mackay]

Good questions me&thegals....and I want to add, how come you can't buy duck eggs in a store it they can be such good producers?

 

[PamsPride]

My duck eggs have a much stronger taste. They are great for baking. They give your baked item a richer flavor. But, you must break the yolk and scramble before mixing or it will not mix up.
I agree...get both!