Part 1

Transcriber Note

Text emphasis is dentoed as _Italic_ and =Bold=.

U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.

FARMERS' BULLETIN No. 64.

DUCKS AND GEESE:

STANDARD BREEDS AND MANAGEMENT.

BY

GEORGE E. HOWARD,

_Secretary of National Poultry and Pigeon Association_.

WASHINGTON:

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE.

1897.

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL.

U. S. Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Animal Industry, _Washington, D. C., September 24, 1897_.

Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith, for publication as a Farmers' Bulletin, an article on Ducks and Geese, prepared by Mr George E. Howard, secretary of the National Poultry and Pigeon Association. It comprises an enumeration of the standard breeds of ducks and geese, and contains suggestions for their management. The practical information contained in this bulletin will undoubtedly prove of value to persons engaged in raising ducks and geese, and its publication and widespread distribution are respectfully recommended. The illustrations were drawn by the author from original sketches and photographs, with the exception of three of the cross-bred geese, which are after the illustrations published by the Rhode Island Experiment Station, and the wild goose, which is after the illustration in Wright's Book of Poultry. The author has received generous assistance in treating of the practical details from James Rankin, A. J. Hallock, George H. Pollard, and others who are largely engaged an the raising of water fowls for market.

Respectfully,

D. E. Salmon, _Chief of Bureau_.

Hon. James Wilson, _Secretary_.

CONTENTS.

DUCKS. Page.

Standard breeds of ducks 3

White Pekin ducks (illustrated) 4

White Aylesbury ducks (illustrated) 5

Colored Rouen ducks (illustrated) 8

Black Cayuga ducks (illustrated) 10

Colored and White Muscovy ducks (illustrated) 12

Gray and White Call ducks (illustrated) 14

Black East Indian ducks 15

Crested White ducks (illustrated) 17

Management of ducks 18

Starting a plant (illustrated) 19

Buildings for breeding ducks (illustrated) 20

Brooding houses (illustrated) 22

Supplying water (illustrated) 29

Feeding 30

Mixing feed 32

How much to feed 32

Oyster shells and grit 33

Killing and dressing for market (illustrated) 33

Development of the duckling in the egg 34

Natural incubation 36

Artificial incubation 36

Geese

Standard breeds of geese 38

Gray Toulouse geese (illustrated) 38

White Embden geese (illustrated) 39

Gray African geese (illustrated) 40

Brown and White Chinese geese (illustrated) 41

Gray Wild geese (illustrated) 43

Colored Egyptian geese (illustrated) 43

Management of geese 44

Mating and setting 45

Feeding and dressing for market 47

Cross breeding (illustrated) 48

DUCKS AND GEESE.

DUCKS.

STANDARD BREEDS OF DUCKS.

=Introduction.=--There are ten standard breeds of ducks raised in this country, as follows: The White Pekin, White Aylesbury, Colored Rouen, Black Cayuga, Colored Muscovy, White Muscovy, Gray Call, White Call, Black East Indian, and the Crested White. Of these breeds, the first six are considered profitable to raise; the two breeds of Calls and the Black East Indian are bantams, and are bred more for the showroom; the Crested White may be considered as almost purely ornamental.

WHITE PEKIN DUCKS.

=History.=--Of all ducks for farm and practical purposes none stand higher in popular esteem than the White Pekin (fig. 1). It is valuable for raising on a large scale, and is the most easily raised of any. It is a very timid bird and must be handled quite carefully. It was imported from China in the early seventies, and has steadily grown in popularity since its introduction into this country.

=Description.=--The Pekin duck has a distinct type of its own, and differs from all others in the shape and carriage of its body. By some it is credited with having a shape much like an Indian canoe, owing to the full growth of feathers under the rump and the singular turned-up carriage of the tail. The legs are set far back, which causes the bird to walk in an upright position. In size these ducks are very large, some reaching as high as 20 pounds to the pair. Their flesh is very delicate and free from grossness, and they are considered among the best of table fowls. They are excellent layers, averaging from 100 to 130 eggs each in a season. They are nonsetters, hardy, easily raised, and the earliest in maturing of any ducks. The method given in this bulletin for raising ducks is based on the Pekin as a standard, and the treatment, food, housing, etc., is given as used by the largest and most successful raisers of Pekins. Other ducks are judged for practical qualities by the Pekin. Fig. 2 shows a group of White Pekin ducks.

The standard-bred Pekin has a long finely formed head, a bill of medium size, of a deep yellow color, that is perfectly free from any mark or color other than yellow. The color of the bill is very important for exhibition birds, and it is not infrequent that one of the best ducks in a showroom is disqualified for having a faint tracing of black in the bill. The eyes are of deep leaden-blue color. The neck of a Pekin should be neatly curved; in the drake it should be large and rather long, while that of the duck is of medium length. The back is long and broad; breast is round, full, and very prominent. The body is long and deep, and the standard gives for adult birds a body approaching the outlines of a parallelogram. The wings are short, carried closely and smoothly against the body. The birds can not sustain flight, a 2-foot fencing being ample to restrain them in an inclosure. The tail is erect, more so than in any other specimen. The curled feathers in the tail of the drake are hard and stiff. The thighs are short and large; shanks short and strong, and in color are a reddish orange; toes straight, connected by a web, and reddish orange in color. The plumage is downy, and of a faint creamy white throughout. Recently it has been noticed that preference in the showroom is being given to birds of whiter plumage. The breeders are selecting as their show birds those that have the snow-white plumage instead of the creamy white, as given in the standard.

=Weight.=--The standard weight of the adult drake is 8 pounds; adult duck, 7 pounds; young drake, 7 pounds, and young duck, 6 pounds.

WHITE AYLESBURY DUCKS.

=History.=--The White Aylesbury ducks (fig. 3.) are second to the popular Pekins for market purposes, and are bred in large numbers in England and Europe. In this country they are not so extensively bred as the Pekin, neither have they been found so good as the latter. These ducks receive their name from Aylesbury, the county town of Buckinghamshire, England. They are of large size, pairs occasionally reaching the weight of 18 pounds, the male birds weighing 9 or 10 pounds, and the female 7 or 8. Birds weighing 15 to 16 pounds to the pair are the average.

=Description.=--The head of the Aylesbury duck is long and neatly formed; the eyes of a deep leaden-blue color; the long, wide bill is of a pale flesh color or pinkish hue, and should be free from dark spots, bills marked with black being a disqualification; the neck is slender, long, and gracefully curved; the body is long and oval; the breast is full and round; the strong shanks are of brilliant light-orange color; the wings are strong and nicely folded; the back is both long and broad, and the tail formed of stiff, hard feathers.

The soft white plumage is one of the chief attractions of the Aylesbury breed, and like most white plumage has a tendency to assume a yellow hue if exposed to the sun. The beak will also lose its delicate pink hue and become yellow if exposed to too much sunlight in summer. The bill of the Pekin should be yellow, but the bill of the Aylesbury should be a delicate pink or flesh color, and birds intended for exhibition must possess this quality or they will suffer at the hands of the judge. Birds raised for exhibition purposes must be guarded against too much exposure to the sunlight in the summer. Of course, these delicate points are of no consequence to the market poulterer other than to show the true type of the breed.

For farm purposes the Aylesbury is to be recommended, second only to the Pekin; it possesses the many good qualities of the Pekin, and can be bred with almost the same success. The advantages claimed for Aylesbury are the ease with which it is acclimated, thriving in every country and climate; its early maturity; its great hardiness; its large size; its great prolificacy, and the real beauty which it possesses. Raisers recommend for raising exhibition birds one drake to two ducks, or two drakes to five ducks, all being allowed to run together. Duck raisers who raise large numbers for market breed them as they do Pekins, using from four to eight females to one male, according to the season of the year. Fresh blood is introduced every year to keep up the size, and breeding stock is seldom kept longer than the second or third year.

The Aylesbury being an English duck, it will be of interest to note the methods employed in their native place for raising them, as given by an English writer in the following statements:

In and about the town of Aylesbury very many of the cottagers maintain, each of them, a set of ducks, about 4 ducks to a drake. These they keep in any outbuilding attached to their dwellings and, failing such a place, in the cottage itself.

From them the "duckers" (dealers peculiar to the trade) collect the eggs, and generally bargain with the owners for their whole supply at a given rate for the season. They begin their collection in October, and the contract is often made for the whole produce up to June. The breeding stock of a "ducker" who does an average trade consists of six drakes and twenty ducks; these all run together, and the brooks and ponds are looked upon almost as common property. They are separated at night, driven up to their respective homes, well fed and warmly housed. The eggs which were laid during the nighttime are set, as soon as possible, under large and attentive hens, for which purpose good Dorkings and Cochins are considered best. The ducks themselves are never allowed to sit, though they may desire to do so, as the result would be almost certain failure.

Thirteen eggs comprise a setting, and these are easily covered by a large hen. Hens are set either in fish pads, small hampers, or, in what we have found most serviceable, the round boxes in which cheeses are packed. In the bottom of these is placed some lime or wood ashes, and then a nest of hay or some soft straw; there the hens must be kept as quiet as possible. Special care must be taken to guard against the intrusion of rats or other vermin by which the hen mother may be disturbed and, as is often the case, the whole setting be destroyed thereby. The period of incubation is twenty-eight days, and during the last week of that time care must be taken to sprinkle the eggs daily with lukewarm water, which softens the shells, so that when the time comes for the duckling to make its appearance it has not much difficulty in breaking through its covering. When the young are hatched they should be left with the hen until well nestled, well dried, and strong enough to stand. Many scores of ducklings are lost by inexperienced persons through their impatience to remove them from the nest. The little duckling is at first clad with soft, yellow down, which gradually disappears as the feathers grow. After a few days, three or four broods are put together with one hen, which is quite able to take care of them all.

For market purposes the treatment of the ducklings is as follows: They are not allowed to go into any water, but are kept in hovels or the rooms of cottages, each lot of thirty or forty separated by low boards. It is no uncommon thing to see 2,000 or 3,000, all in one establishment. They are kept very clean and dry on barley straw; their food consists of hard-boiled eggs, chopped fine and mixed with boiled rice and bullock's liver, cut Tip small. This is given to them several times in the day for about a fortnight or more. When they are capable of consuming more they are fed on barley meal and tallow greaves (cracklings), mixed together with the water in which the greaves previously have been boiled. Some poultrymen also use horseflesh to mix with their other food. The above constitutes all that is necessary to produce early ducklings for the table.

In plumage the Aylesburys are a pure, spotless white, and feathers of any other color will disqualify them. Drake and duck vary only in the ordinary respect of the male bird, showing a very handsome curled feather in the tail and being of a larger size than his mate.

=Weight.=--The standard weight of the adult drake is 9 pounds; adult duck, 8 pounds; young drake, 8 pounds, and young duck, 7 pounds.

COLORED ROUEN DUCKS.

=History.=--The Colored Rouen duck (fig. 4) is deservedly popular throughout this country, and is considered one of the most profitable breeds to keep. These ducks are said to have come originally from the city of Rouen, in Normandy. It is known that large quantities of poultry are raised in Normandy, and while there may be no positive proof that these ducks came originally from that city, large numbers of birds closely resembling them are to be found in the market places there. Some writers contend that the name should be "Roan," owing to their color, but the color itself does not support this contention. The correct name is Rouen, and "Roan" is undoubtedly a corruption.

=Description.=--The Rouen duck is a fine market bird, but does not mature as early as does the Pekin or the Aylesbury. The flesh is considered very delicate, and the breed is acknowledged to be superior for table purposes, being easily fattened. The Rouen will be found a profitable bird to raise on the farm, being hardy, prolific, quiet in disposition, and of beautiful plumage. Their eggs are not as large as those of the Pekin, and are diverse in color.

The Rouen is undoubtedly closely related to the Mallard duck; its plumage alone would make good this belief. But the shape of the domestic Rouen duck has been greatly modified from that of the wild Mallard; the body is grown longer and heavier, with a tendency to drop down in the rear; the wings have lost the power of flight which the wild ancestor possessed. The plumage, however, remains almost the same.

The standard-bred Rouen drake has a long, finely-formed head, with rich, lustrous green plumage; bill long and broad, wider at the extremity, of greenish-yellow color, with a black bead at the tip; the neck is long, slender, and neatly curved, covered with the same lustrous green plumage as the head, which is interrupted by a distinct white ring, not quite complete behind, on the lower part of neck. The back is long, the upper part being ashy gray, mixed with green, and running into a rich, lustrous green on the lower part and rump; the shoulder coverts are gray, striped with fine, wavy lines of brown. The breast is broad and deep and purplish brown or claret color, perfectly free from gray feathers; the claret color should extend down as far as possible toward the legs. The body is long, deep, and broad, the under part and sides being a beautiful gray, which grows lighter near the vent, ending in solid black just beneath the tail. The wings are short and carried closely and smoothly against the sides; in color the wings are of a brownish gray, interspersed with green, and marked with a band of rich purple, with metallic reflections of green and blue lights, and edged with distinct white bands; the primary feathers are of a dark, dusky brown. The tail feathers are hard and stiff, and of a dark ashy-brown color; the outer edge in old birds is edged with white; the curled feathers are well curled and hard. The thighs are short and stout and of ashy-gray plumage; the shanks are short and strong, and in color orange with brownish tinge; the toes and webs are of the same color as the shanks.

The head of the Rouen duck, like that of the drake, is long and finely formed, but with a deep-brown plumage and two stripes of lighter brown extending from the beak to behind the eyes; bill, long, broad, and somewhat flat, brownish orange in color, blotched with darker shade upon the upper part and ending in a black beam at the tip. The neck is neatly curved, long and slender, light brown in plumage, penciled with a darker shade of the same color; unlike the drake, there is no white ring on the neck. The back is long, of a light-brown color richly marked with green; breast, full and round and of dark-brown plumage, penciled with lighter brown; body, long, deep, and broad, the under part and sides of plumage being grayish brown, each feather penciled with rich dark brown to the point of the tail. The wings are short for the size of the bird and are carried closely against the sides; the color of the plumage is grayish brown, intermingled with green, with bars of purple edged with white, the colors being distinct; primaries are brown. The tail feathers are stiff and of a light-brown color, distinctly marked with pencilings of dark greenish brown; tail coverts are brown, penciled with the same dark brown, or greenish brown, as the tail. The thighs are dark brown, penciled; and shanks, toes, and webs are orange or orange brown.

Both the Rouen drake and duck, clothed in plumage attractive and pleasing to the eye, are as much fanciers' fowls as any of the varieties of chickens, yet they are of much value as market birds. The only objection to them, aside from their slow maturing qualities, is that of the dark pinfeathers. This should not stand against them any more than it does against the many valuable varieties of chickens that have dark plumage and dark pinfeathers. To the farmer who intends raising ducks for market purposes they are to be recommended.

=Weight.=--The standard weight of the adult drake is 9 pounds; adult duck, 8 pounds; young drake, 8 pounds, and young duck, 7 pounds.

BLACK CAYUGA DUCKS.

=History.=--The black Cayuga (fig. 5) is distinctly an American duck, having been bred so long in this country that all trace of its origin is lost. It is said that it was first found in the central part of New York, on Cayuga Lake. It was sometimes called the "Big Black duck," and again the "Lake duck," but is now known only as the Black Cayuga duck. By some it is supposed to have originally come from the wild Black duck, and another story has it that it was first found in Dutchess County, in the State of New York, where a miller was raising a flock of thirty, which, he said, were bred from a pair he had captured several years previous in a mill pond. They were kept in the poultry yard, easily tamed, and built their nests on the edges of the pond and raised large broods. For many years the Cayuga has been raised in this country and has been considered by those who have bred it to be a profitable duck to keep.

=Description.=--By some raisers the Cayuga is considered to be as good as the Pekin for early markets, and the claim is made that it can be grown as cheaply. This assertion is not verified by any practical demonstration, as these ducks are rarely, if ever, seen on any farm where ducks are raised exclusively. Though raisers generally speak of their merits as making them profitable, and place them next to the Pekin for early markets, they prefer the latter for exclusive duck raising where early maturity and plump carcasses are wanted. Their black plumage is against them also, and many assign this as the reason why they are not more extensively bred. The farmer who desires a good, practical duck to raise on his farm in conjunction with other poultry will find this a valuable bird to keep. More time can be spent in dressing it for market than is generally given to the dressing of the white-plumage birds, and the profits will be proportionately as great. Duck raisers, like broiler raisers, are partial to white feathers for market fowls, but those who do not look with this partiality on the white varieties will find an excellent choice in the Cayuga duck.

Cayugas are splendid birds for a restricted range and breed well in confinement; they are quiet, docile, and form a strong attachment for their home, evincing no inclination or desire to stray far away from the place where they were bred. They are hardy and prolific, producing from 80 to 90 eggs in the spring, and sometimes they also lay again in the autumn. They are easily kept in good condition, but if fed too liberally they will fatten too quickly and will become too heavy behind. The ducklings are hardy and easy to raise, and attain good size and weight at an early age.

The head of the Cayuga is small, with glossy black plumage; bill rather short and broad, of dark color, black being preferred; the eyes dark hazel. The neck is medium, gracefully curved, clad in black feathers with a greenish luster; the back is broad, and the body long, well rounded, and very plump, the feathers being of a glossy black hue. The wings are long and are carried smoothly against the body, and are black in color, excepting those of the duck, which are sometimes of a dark brown. The coverts of the drake are a very lustrous green black; the tail feathers are black, as are the thighs. Black shanks, toes, and webs are preferred, though dark slate color is permissible according to the standard requirements. The color of the plumage must be lustrous black throughout, and feathers of any other color will disqualify a bird in the showroom.

=Weight.=--The standard weight of the adult drake is 8 pounds; adult duck, 7 pounds; young drake, 7 pounds, and young duck, 6 pounds.

COLORED AND WHITE MUSCOVY DUCKS.

=History.=--Muscovy ducks (fig. 6) form a distinct genus, having several peculiarities or characteristics which make them different from others. They are sometimes called the Musk duck, owing to the odor of musk which pervades the skin, but which is not noticeable when cooked. These ducks are found wild in the warmer regions of South America. In Brazil they are extensively domesticated and are prized very highly for eating. In this country and Europe, particularly in Germany, they are bred in large numbers. Wild Muscovies are easily frightened and very good flyers; they fly into trees when alarmed and remain there for long periods of time before leaving their place of concealment. They sometimes build their nests in branches of trees, and also in hollows near water.