Marty and Higgins adopted us in June of 2019. My son and a friend of his decided it would be fun to get ducks. His parents decided it was a good idea for him and myself being an absolute animal lover responded with, yes, when my son asked if we could keep them. Why not? We already had 20 chickens and an orphaned goose so they would fit right in.

My son lost interest quick, naturally, but, then my youngest daughter claimed them as hers. They lived in a box for about the first month, going outside during the day and then coming in at night. I do give her credit for protecting them from the cats, dogs, and chickens.

We didn’t know at first weather they were male or female and we didn’t even know what breed they were yet. My daughter would fill the bathtub and bathe them even bathing with them at first, until they pooped with her in the tub. They learned their routine quickly, every night would they would come inside, they knew it was bed time, bed down and go to sleep as soon as we placed a cover over their box.

They enjoyed their time outdoors, exploring their home and meeting all their friends. Goose Goose was especially excited, he knew they were of his type, the billed type and not the beak type.

After Marty and Higgins began to get bigger I could differentiate that they were a pair, a male and a female. As their features became more prominent I started doing lots and lots of research, spending a few hours on Google reading about many different duck breeds. There are actually quite a few if you were wondering. I came to the conclusion that they must be a Muscovy cross.

Muscovy ducks are native to Mexico and South America and are primarily raised for their meat. They are not classified as a duck but rather a large water fowl. Males can reach 18lbs while females, 11lbs. It can get quite cold here in the winter and I was worried they wouldn’t survive, but the Muscovy breed can withstand freezing temperatures. They don’t fly as well as other duck breeds due to their large size.

The male, a Drake, has a low breathy call, almost like he is hissing at you. The female, a Hen, has a quiet coo. They both have prominent red knobs around their bill, with the males having more, they both have black and white feathers with some shimmery green throughout their black feathers, with the males showing more colors.

We are actively involved within our 4H club and my daughter was ecstatic when I told her we could take Marty and Higgins to show at the County Fair. We live in a small county, so they were the only ducks and she received many compliments. I think Marty and Higgins enjoyed the attention more than she did.

Marty and Higgins have become part of the family and when we arrive home, they don’t hesitate to join the dogs in welcoming us. They wag their tails like dogs do and Marty is very talkative whenever we are out in the yard.

At the beginning of this new year, Higgins starting laying eggs. We became aware of it when our 15 year old dog was doing his business in the yard and Marty came out of nowhere and attacked him, almost knocking him over. We were confused at first as to why he would do that and then realized there was a huge egg laying in the yard. It was about twice the size of a chicken egg and we knew it had come from Higgins.

I knew duck eggs were edible, but did not know their beneficial qualities. Duck eggs have a bigger and richer yolk, a higher concentration of omega-3 fatty acids, and more protein than a chicken egg. They have a much thicker shell than a chicken egg and can be quite difficult to crack.

Higgins hasn’t showed interest in laying on them yet. We’ve only received two and both found in the middle of the yard so she hasn’t even wanted to lay them where she sleeps. My daughter is really hoping for her to hatch some ducklings, but with 4H animals arriving soon and calving season in full swing, I think we can wait for ducklings.