Purchasing Your Ducklings

Though Mallards are available at most farm-supply stores in spring, accessing a wide variety of interesting breeds typically involves ordering from a reputable online hatchery such as Murray McMurray (mcmurrayhatchery.com), Holderread Waterfowl Farm & Preservation Center (holderreadfarm.com), Stromberg’s (strombergschickens.com), or Metzer Farms (metzerfarms.com). An added bonus to shopping online: hatcheries that ship ducklings across state lines are required to maintain fully vaccinated breeding stock, and the National Poultry Improvement Plan assists them in monitoring for a variety of diseases.

Count on spending $5 to $6 each for common breeds and $7 to $8 each for rare breeds in a straight run (ducklings whose gender hasn’t been identified). Sexed ducklings (males and females whose sex has been determined) cost a couple of dollars more per bird. Keep in mind that even within a breed, characteristics vary considerably by strain.

When your hatchlings arrive, transfer them from the shipping box to a brooder, a sturdy cardboard box lined with several layers of chopped straw, pine shavings, or paper towels. The box should be large enough to grant each duckling about 0.66 square feet. Mount 75-watt bulbs in conical aluminum reflectors over the box to maintain a temperature of 90 degrees inside for the first week. (Make sure the lights don’t touch anything flammable.) Each week thereafter, move the lights and reflectors farther from the brooder to decrease the temperature by 5 degrees until the temperature drops to 70 degrees, at which time you can begin introducing the rapidly growing ducks to their outside home.