I have two pet ducks. In this brief article I will discuss the basic necessities and the life of ducks. This also may give you some information if you are thinking about getting ducks. First, you must get them in a pair of two. You need to buy them in pairs because if you just buy one, they suffer from extreme loneliness and depression if they are kept without at least one other member of their own species. Actually, they prefer more than one. Also, when they are baby ducklings, it is almost impossible to define their sex, so you will have to wait till they get older.I found out that I had a male and a female duck. They are Mallards. Mallards are a type of duck. I could tell by the color of their feathers which one was a boy and girl. Male ducks are called Drakes. A Mallard male duck grows to be a lot bigger than the female and it also has a green head with a white stripe around its neck. A female is smaller than the male and has brown feathers with white and black speckles all over. Ducklings do not require that much maintenance other than giving them food and water. When they are babies, they need cedar shavings and a heat lamp. Also giving them a large area of water such as a little pool or your bathtub to swim in is something they enjoy. One important thing you need to do when they are ducklings is to keep them comfortable. So, they will need to live in a brooder indoors for the first 7–9 weeks (about 2 months) of their life until they are fully feathered.
Ducklings can go into the water as young as three weeks of age. You should never give your ducks chick feed and only give them food that is specifically for them. I personally recommend a fence around your yard or the area you will keep them in when they get older, so they do not wander off somewhere else. Most female Mallard ducks lay one egg a day. A clutch size for females is 8–13. The life span of these ducks is 5–10 years. My family eats our duck eggs, and they say they taste the same as chicken eggs. Duck eggs are bigger than chicken eggs. Adult ducks often poop a lot, so it is normal if they do it multiple times a day. Overall ducks are a nice pet to have if you like getting your produce on your own in this way.
