how to sex ducks

Serjay's ducks are growing like weeds, but I do not know how to tell males from females.

I have 3 all black Cayugas, one is slightly smaller than the other two, but started life as a caesarean runt to begin with.

I have tried to notice difference in feathering or body shape, but I can't see any differences. I am new to the flat footed creatures.

I also have 2 gray ducks, not sure what breed they are, I think they are a cross. Have no idea about sexing them either.

Guidance?

Apparently there is a way to press on the vent area and the parts pop out. Not something you just want to fool around with tho.

When they start to quack, the male is low and murmuring. The female is loud and obnoxious. No comments from male members needed on this!

And of course, the males will get a curly feather over their tail.

Us the curly tail feather around 12 weeks ish

Listen you should be able to hear the difference no problem by now. Girls are loud, talkative with clear quack, boys low quiet raspy sound. Hold one and listen as soon as the one you hold starts making noise the others will chatter back and you'll hear a definite difference in sounds unless they're all the same sex   Grey ones will most definately be crosses We need pics so we can guess the mom

Ok I am sorry but in a cheeking mood.

How to sex ducks or any critter.
Observe for about 1/2 hour which ever
ones appear smarter and figure things out faster.








Those are the females.

The one on top is the boy.

Feeling a little cheeky myself!

Listen to Hilbilly. He is a newly married man and should know these things.

People! This is a G rated site! Let's keep it clean.

Clean? You are the one raising DUCKS my dear!

Schipperkesue wrote:Clean?  You are the one raising DUCKS my dear!

....and asking how to sex them!  

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The video is intended to show what you should be looking for. I wouldn't bother sexing them myself. I don't care that much. I only did it once years ago when I had a person wanting to buy a pair (although I spent a couple of summers sexing many wild ones as part of a banding program).

Uno said that her birds were growing so they should not be as fragile as new babies.

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Wow...lots of good info here!

I think they are too big to vent sex at this point, have most of their adult feathers except for fuzz on their heads. Their feathers are so dense I doubt I could even find a vent! I have seen some behaviour differences but was not sure how to interpret them. Now I'll keep a keener eye. I also did not know about the difference in voice. There are some whaa whaaeers and some mip mippers. Mip. Perfect, Higgins, I immediately knew the sound you meant!

I did not know that some duck crosses produced sterile youngsters! Maybe Serjay can comment more on this. But my two gray ducks are most likely crosses. I will have to post pics for Serjay to puzzle out what the parentage is. Might they be sterile?

And by sterile do you mean the female will never lay eggs? Or she will lay eggs but the male will not produce sperm? Or that the eggs are incapable of being fertilized, either by her own mate or a different duck? Will they be yolkless eggs? A duck that lays an egg that is just all white inside. Wow, the diet crowd will go crazy over this! Yolkless Duck Omelette, here I come. (bleck)

I also look at head size, females tend to have smaller more delicate heads, not to mention lipstick.

uno wrote:Wow...lots of good info here!

I think they are too big to vent sex at this point, have most of their adult feathers except for fuzz on their heads. Their feathers are so dense I doubt I could even find a vent!

Sure you could. It's actually easier when they're older. When I worked on the banding program, most of the birds had at least some adult feathers.

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uno wrote:

I did not know that some duck crosses produced sterile youngsters! Maybe Serjay can comment more on this. But my two gray ducks are most likely crosses. I will have to post pics for Serjay to puzzle out what the parentage is. Might they be sterile?

And by sterile do you mean the female will never lay eggs? Or she will lay eggs but the male will not produce sperm? Or that the eggs are incapable of being fertilized, either by her own mate or a different duck? Will they be yolkless eggs? A duck that lays an egg that is just all white inside. Wow, the diet crowd will go crazy over this! Yolkless Duck Omelette, here I come. (bleck)

If your duck parents are different species they may produce sterile offspring. The females may lay normal eggs but they may not be fertile.

I believe most of our ducks are developed from the mallard. All these ducks can interbreed and produce fertile offspring.

The one exception I know of is the Muscovy, a different species entirely.

Oops, sorry Tara. Didn't realize there was a page 2 on this and you had already answered the question!

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I have no muscovy ducks ( I like pretty ducks   ) and no bantam ducks. No sterile ducks here   good luck finding an unfertile duck egg here even in our 6mnths of winter   I only keep a couple boys but they take their jobs very seriously hehe

Uno wanted cayugas but I wasn't breeding them this year so they were all living with all the my unattached females. Uno was happy with some crosses with her Cayugas so she got some white and green eggs with her grey eggs. Dad would be Cayuga but mom could be one of the Buff Orpingtons, a Rouen, or one of my chocolate hens that were a cross of one of my cayuga hens with a khaki drake. There was also a welsh harlequin girl in there but Uno said no white eggs hatched.

Cayugas are a slow breed (like cochins) so it takes awhile before they get their drake feather and fill out completely. Once they fill out though it's easier to spot the boys without listening but when young its either listen to the voice or wait for the drake tail because there is no other colour difference or feather difference like in chickens. In my avatar is my young (4mnths) from last year there were 5 girls and 2 boys. Girls are loud and chatty, boys quiet and raspy or wait for the curl in a couple months if you had a video I could tell you who sounds like what.

So far of the 5 runner ducklings I wanted to grow out I have 3 females, 1 just starting to get some tummy feathers so will be out listening soon and a last blue one that I'm desparately hoping is a male but it's still tiny and fluffy   It seems my cayuga girls snuck some of their own eggs in their nests with the runner eggs   When hubby wonders why they don't stand up I can blame more big shiny black ducks on those sneaky girls LOL