For the past ten years’ we have had ducks on our suburban homestead. They lay eggs, are good pets and enjoyable to watch. Our ducks love to play in their pond, winter or summer. They have their own area of the yard and a duck pen for night. Ducks are actually very easy to maintain. Our ducks are Pekin. Pekin ducks are friendly, but skittish.
Over the summer last year we purchased some Khaki Campbell ducks. They meshed in well with the Pekin ducks and are very low maintenance. No eggs yet, so it is still too soon to tell if they will be good egg layers. The books say that Khaki Campbell ducks lay very well and are good for homesteads. For us, the Pekin have worked well for eggs. Our female lays one egg a day. She is reliable, consistent and we can always find the eggs. Our previous duck was a Roen. She “Mario” was a good egg layer too, and her wings were clipped. The only thing she did was hide her eggs. Every time I went looking for eggs it was a search. “Mario” liked to hide her eggs in the nest mud. That was always fun.
We have had three of the several breeds that can be good for suburban homestead’s. We would probably get a Roen again because “Mario” was a favorite.
Pekin Duck Breed
Pekin ducks are the ones that we started with 8 years ago. They grow really quick. Great for egg laying, as they were consistent with one egg a day. In the winter, we have less eggs. The female Pekin duck is very gentle, whereas the male is dominant and less friendly. This duck breed is beautiful, lays one egg a day and has a long life span if taken care of well.
I would not describe their nature as docile. Our ducks let us know when it is time to feed them. The loud honking noise is prevalent. As far as good pets, maybe when they are on their own. We have found these ducks to be extremely skittish around us. To define them well would be to acknowledge they are herd animals. Where one goes, the others follow.
As a pet, I would recommend getting one chicken, and one duck. That way as they grow, the attachment is with a human.
Khaki Campbell Ducks
Khaki Campbells are a quiet duck breed. Not very friendly. If looking for eggs they are reliable. Likewise, if you want them for a pet they are not pet material. We have had ours for almost four years now.
Although not long on our suburban homestead they are adored. Very pretty colors on the male, as his head is green with black feathers. The female has stayed brown. She seems to follow him around more. Due to us having a herd, it is hard to tell how they would do as a one on one pet. Maybe better because of the bonding with the handler.
Our Pekin ducks are more bossy and that makes the Khaki Campbell seem quiet. The male and female stick close together. We named our Khaki Campbell ducks “Hershey” and “Ariel” The male is “Hershey”. When he was little his feathers were very dark.
Cayuga Duck Breed
Another good suburban duck breed to consider is the Cayuga. They are quiet. Cayuga ducks do not have a loud quack like the Pekin duck. Our homestead does not have these ducks as of yet, but we do intend to get some next fall. In addition to egg laying, which we do sell ours to help with feed, this breed is calm. They have a reputation for needing a lot of foraging room to keep them quiet. Small suburban homestead’s would not work for this duck breed.
Cayuga ducks look black, but are green when the light hits them. The iridescent color is beautiful. In addition to being good egg layers, they are recommended as a pet.
Roen Ducks on a Suburban Homestead
Roen ducks are another great, reliable duck breed. Not good pets. For pets my recommendation would be Cayuga ducks. We had two suburban ducks on our homestead that were Roen. They were both female and very sweet. Great egg layers and produced consistently. The Roen’s we had were “Mario” and “Luigi”. Both loved their small duck pond in the backyard.
After some time, they were more friendly then the Pekin duck we had. Dinner time made them more friendly. I want to say that they were easily trained to follow us when it was time to eat.
For a suburban homestead I would recommend this breed as a pet. They are not aggressive, do not get extremely big, and are friendly.
Final Thoughts
Much research should go into any animal before acquiring it for a pet. Some families may want a loud duck that is an egg producer, and others’ may not care about either quality.
Choosing the right suburban duck breed as a pet on your homestead is going to be an asset.
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If you have ducks on your homestead let me know which breed you like in the comments.
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