The Pekin trio that I had gotten earlier this Spring have finally started laying eggs. We are excited about this because we are hoping to hatch out some Pekin ducklings. Our plan is to sell some of the ducklings and raise a few for meat.
The Pekin duck is a dual purpose breed that is best known for their meat. They are also a friendly breed that is gaining popularity as pets.
Pekin Duck Facts:
- Average life span is 9-12 years.
- Average weight is 8-11 lbs.
- They are a good egg layer but not known to go broody, often times an incubator is needed to hatch the eggs (or put them under another bird).
- An adult hen will lay on average 200 eggs a year.
- Because of their size they are unable to fly.
- They are good foragers.
- Easy to tame and are friendly when handled.
- They grow quickly.
- Will stay close to home.
- They can be loud. Our Pekin females are much louder than our Rouen ducks.
I’ve saved 8 eggs to add to the incubator to do a test hatch. Hopefully all goes well and we will have ducklings in 28 days.
Love duck eggs! And that is quite an incubator!
Yes, this is the first time I’ve used an incubator, it was an impulse buy at the local feed store 🙂