Ok so I have been mad about ducks since I can ever remember.
I even got a really bad tattoo of duck when I was a stupid 18 year old who thought it would be cool to have a duck on her shoulder. And now as a forty year old, its not cool one bit!
The OH had some Muscovy ducks a few years ago but they aren’t the nicest ducks in terms of attractiveness- and I hate judging by looks yes even ducks – but they didn’t do much for me honestly.
My main attraction was to Indian Runner Ducks. they are unlike any other breed, and they are comical how they walk upright and seem to have lots of character when you look at them. There is something about their little faces that makes me think they are probably quite clever and cheeky.
We go to the auction regularly, to either sell some chickens or eggs, or to buy new chickens in. Sometimes there are runner ducks there, and I always look at them and how they look back at me its as if they are asking me telepathically to take them home.
But the OH has always said no. There’s nowhere for them to go he would say and annoyingly he would be right! And then he would laugh at me looking like a disappointed child who cant have a lollypop!
But oh how things change!
This is all thanks to the kids really eating their peas on the pen! As we decided to make a vegetable garden! Here’s the link to that post if you would like to know what I’m on about Spring is in the air
So, whilst trying to figure out how to keep the slugs from eating our newly growing (hopefully) fruit and veg, we found out that ducks love to eat the slugs and snails in the garden! So that was it, I was on it and guess what!
I got my ducks!
Not runner ducks yet, but some other beautiful ducks that will hopefully do the same job, and I can get some runner ducks when we make some more room.
We decided that the garden isn’t quite ready for ducks yet so we prepared the orchard for their new home
So I researched breeds of ducks for some weeks, and found I liked the sound of the Welsh Harlequins, and the Silver Appleyards.
And as luck would have it there where a pair of each in the auction this weekend.
The first cage are the Harlequins, the second cage are the Appleyards. As you can see its not that easy to see what they are like in the cage, but we took a gamble on them, and it definitely paid off.
I am really pleased with my four ducks. I am actually the owner of my own ducks! Actually to tell the truth I am completely in love with them! They are very pretty and although a bit shy yet they should become a bit more friendly as they get used to us more.
Here they are in their shed when we first brought them home, and the other pictures are on their first day in the orchard, getting to know their neighbours, our sheep and her nosey lamb.
What’s more they are told to be egg-cellent egg layers and hatch their own ducklings, so I’m hoping to sell their eggs sometime this year if they prove to be fertile!
I love a plan!
And I love ducks!
Juggling 6 Kids 