Quack, Quack, Afflac!

Afflac is a Show Quality Pedegreed English Khaki Campbell Drake, from Holderreads' Waterfowl Farm in Oregon. He's always standing in classic poses, and very showy. He came with the rest of my Pedegreed English Khaki Campbells Ducks in the Spring of 2002. If you look in Dave Holderread's latest book, 'Storey's Guide to Rasing Ducks' you will see a picture of a Drake that is identical to Afflac, and a Duck Hen who is identical to another one of mine, Gertrude (her photo is not currently on this site).

WHY I ONLY HAVE HOLDERREADS' PEDIGREED ENGLISH KHAKI CAMPBELL DUCKS!! First off, I love eating Duck Eggs! I've had other breeds, even Welsh Harliquens and an Indian Runner, but nothing is like a Khaki Campbell Duck, for continuous egg production! I started, 6 years ago, with Khaki Campbell ducklings from a local feed store (they came from a large local breeder). This group ended up being all males. My neighbor and I split the next batch of 7 Khaki Campbell ducklings (ordered all females) from a well know mail-order breeder. I had 3 hens, he had 4 hens. Only a few months after they started laying, one of mine, and one of his developed problems laying eggs, where the eggs got stuck inside the hen. The pain I saw in the eyes of these hens was too much to bear, I butchered my hen. My neighbor kept his hen, she remained in this unbearable pain for a month. Then she got better. It took a month for her to start laying again, and soon afterwards she got the same egg problem all over again. My neighbor then butchered her. I had another hen of the same group, when right after she started laying she developed some kind of mental problem, where she would carry on like a broody hen anywhere she was. I gave her away to a friend with a pond. My neighbor gave me his duck hens, I think he got board with ducks, because he's more into Pigeons and Chickens. I then decided to start breeding for the next generation. I took a drake from my first group of males, and all the hens I had left. When the eggs hatched and their off-spring matured all were not Khaki Campbells, but one hen. I gave them to the same friend with the pond, and then they started to violently kill off her other ducks. She had to hire an professional animal trapper, to remove them. I had too many bad experiences. So, I just kept my only good hens, long enough to mail-order and raise a group of Holdrreads' Pedigreed English Khaki Campbell Ducks, and when they started laying, I gave away all my old stock. And yes, I am very happy with this group. I know that when there eggs hatch, they will produce ONLY Pedigreed English Khaki Campbell Ducks. Now, my new stock is just a year old, and I have had no problem where I needed to give-up any of them. Amazingly, after all I went through with the other ducks. This past winter I've had non-stop eggs, even with the record breaking constant freezing cold in my area. If you ask me, if I love my ducks. I'll answer you with, "Yes, I do!"

Afflac and Duck Hen.

More Ducky photos to come............

Things to know about Khaki Campbells!! All the Campbell Ducks I have, are Pedigreed English Khaki Campbell Ducks, from Holerreads' Waterfowl Farm & Preservation Center of Oregon, purchased in the Spring of 2002. This flock has the best of both light and dark varities. Dark Khaki Campbells ducks are used as Show Quality Ducks, these are handsome and even elegant (like my Afflac Drake)! The Dark Khaki Campbell duck hen's egg production is very good, but not as good as the light Khaki Campbell duck hen. Light Khaki Campbells duck hens are High Egg Production Ducks, these don't stop producing quality eggs year round. Some lay as much as 357 eggs in 365 days. All this winter(2003), in the severe freezing cold we suffered, but my light Khaki campbell hens did not stop laying! Khaki Campbell ducks lay white eggs, that average 28 to 32 ounces per dozen, with egg production that typically starts at 17 to 22 weeks of age, depending upon the percentage of protein in their feed. And, they can continue to lay this way for over 4 years. Dark Khakis are heavier and a few inches taller than Light Khakis. Both male and female of both types end up being between 4 to 5 pounds at maturity. It's easy to see why Holderreads' Pedigreed English Khaki Campbell Ducks are the finest laying stock available. In phone conversations with Dave Holderread, he shared with me on how to breed the Best Quality Show Drake or Duck Hen. After raising my group of Holderread Khakis, I've also learned how to sight sex them, and pick out the light from the dark, while still 1 to 3 weeks old. (You will find this information in "Egg & Duckling Help!", the link is listed at the bottom is this page.) I had such a great time raising my group last year. I have even learned a few tricks that have helped train them: to make them think I was their mother duck, and to teach them their names, so they will always come to me. The latter part takes time and patents, but I've done it over and over again with every group I've raised, and even with adults, that were given to me, I was able to teach them their names. This is stuff I never found in any book on ducks. Ducks are funny, silly, and goofy animals, they have cheered me up many times and get me laughing very quickly. But, I love raising ducklings, best of all. At any age they make lots of mess, I find, I don't mind cleaning it up, beause I love them more than any mess they could make. Oh, of all the different Khaki Campbells that I have raised, this group seems to always be nervous, more than the other Khakis. BUT, the egg production is so incredible. Experts contribute the high egg production to the fact that they are so nervous. I have one precautionary recommendation for this breed, particularly for this strain of early maturing Khaki Campbells. That is to separate any male that seem to have problems retracting his 'you know what' after mating. I had one such male, and I thought he would out grow the problem. It continued to get worse, then the other ducks would bite and pull at it, as if it were a worm. I nearly lost him, because it got infection. I was told that this is a rare case, maybe 1 in a 100. Never the less, I've concluded, that if I had only separated that male from the rest of the flock (when I first spoted the problem), he would have developed properly in 2 or 3 months, and then he could be added back to the flock. With no problems. If you want to know more about it, it's called, "Phallus Prostration". I hope, all this information can help you in the pursuit of the perfect Khaki Campbell!

"Imprinting" your Ducklings to Know and Love You! There is something else neat, you can do with your ducklings. The first thing you want to do with any duckling is what's called "Imprinting". That's where you take a newly hatched duckling or a young duckling, the younger the better. And you hold them close to your face and breath on them. A mother duck does this when she inspects her newly hatched young. Talk sweetly and gently to each duckling as you do this. They start to identify you and your voice. Hold them close to the side of your head or neck, so they know your sent. I have a tune I whistle to all my ducklings, that I learned from one of my very vocal Welsh Harliquen ducklings years ago. Then I also have sweet words and short phrases I use with a singing voice. It gives them a peaceful feeling when they hear me, and I use it later when they are grown to signal that everything's okay. You can develop anything you want with them, consistency is the key. Ducklings learn quickly, adapt well and respond positively to many situations. That's why you will always hear the most fascinating stories from people about a special pet duck. Every duck is uniquely different and very personable to a good owner. I think I have learned volumes from them, and enjoy interacting in each of their little worlds. More about that later! Here is a real neat trick I discovered when raising ducklings. I have this home made brooder, that I use for raising ducklings for their first 1 to 2 weeks. Last year, I noticed, when I approached the ducklings from the feeding area, some where happy to see me, but some got scared and ran. Then I noticed that when I opened their sleeping area. I have a dark closed area that they sleep in that's heated with a heating pad from above. If I open that area, they go nuts trying to play with me. Then it all made sense. When I open the heated side of the brooder, naturally they think I'm their mother lifting her wing to see the ducklings. For years I've raised ducklings in that brooder, and never really knew why some groups of ducklings were so easy to raise then others. So, that's how I continued to raise them, by approaching them from the sleeping area. I found the simple design for my brooder in a poultry book from England. The original design requires no heating. I just like using the heating pad when nights are cool.

2 day old dark and light Pedigreed English Khaki Campbell Ducklings from Holderreads'. The 3 black ducklings in this photo are Dutch Hook Bills also from Holderreads'.

Solid GOLD EARTHWORMS!! And, other Duckie Treats Earthworms might as well be made of 24k gold, the way the ducks go crazy over them. Which is why I use them for training my ducks. Nothing seems to be more important to them! Young ducklings quickly learn the value of earthworms. If you watch ducks out in the field or pond, you will see them hunting for something in the dirt, mud, and at the base of plants. Well, they love eating every kind of bug, some even eat bees and others won't. They love flies and hate maggots. But, the #1 favorite thing of all, is a soft and easy to swallow earthworm! It's funny to watch one duck with a worm in it's mouth try to keep it from the others and try to swallow it, at the same time. Sometimes it leads into a big long crazy chase. I've watched them spend their days hunting for bugs, there's few bugs left in my yard, any more. Then I will start to call them, as I turn over a log or stone, or dig up some soil. They suddenly become fearless as the first to arrive get the worms. If you don't like handling worms or bugs, just show them where they are. They will always be watching what you do. I was one of those kids who was fascinated with nature, I always had to have my hands in the dirt. So, I'm not afraid of bugs and my ducks love me. Names: You can teach them all their names. Say their name and hand them a worm. The more you repeat this, the quicker they learn. When in a group of ducks, say the name of the duck you are training and hand it only to that duck. You have to be good at keeping it away from the others, but the one you are training will position themselves so that they will get it. Usually by stretching out their necks and looking a you and not the worm. They learn very fast this way. All ducks have a desire to be special, when you treat them special they notice you more often. I have a hen who is beat up by a drake and neglected by the other. She was so beaten she would hide by herself and cry if she saw any come after her. Her eyes were sad and downcast and fearful. I couldn't take it any more and threw her a worm. After the second time, she brightened up when she saw me around. Training for shows: For shows you have to catch and inspect and wash your duck. They hate this. But, an earthworm treat here and there will make them forget their fear. Worm Jerky Treats! (Don't laugh, I did write that.) I could never get my ducks interested in the dried up earthworms, that I would find on the pavement. Until, I gave Afflac a half dried out worm. I guess it had enough worm taste for him to identify a dried out worm as the real deal. So now, I can have a dried worm collection to get them happy, in the winter or hot summer, when worms are hard to find. Man-Made Worms! Any cooked Spaghetti, Pasta, or Noodles they go crazy over almost like for worms. But, they seem to know the difference, especially if they get allot and some ducks will lose interest. I imagine the texture is almost the same as a worm. Vegetables as treats. Lettuce is the top treat, followed by celery and then any soft veggie scraps. Be aware, if you give them a vegetable that grows in you garden and they can reach it, it will be gone! I fence in my garden, and only give them access when the plants are large. Teach your ducklings to weed your yard. When the ducklings are small this is easiest to do. Just, cut up some weeds from your garden or yard for them to eat in their pen or water. Soon they develop a taste for that weed and will pick at it when they are older, just like we savor the old candy or food from our childhood. I hope you enjoyed my little knowledge of ducks, bugs and treats!

Q & A! Question: "Why do you call your Ducks 'Pedigreed Khaki Campbell Ducks'?" Answer: "Pedigreed English Khaki Campbells", is the heading over Dave Holderread's listing in his waterfowl catalog. Dave Holderread's book states, "The laying ability of birds(Khaki Campbell ducks) in some flocks (from other breeders) has been allowed to deteriorate and, much too often, crossbreds have been sold as Campbells." His book also says, "Longevity and lifetime egg production are valuable characteristics to select for. In our breeding program, we prefer to use ducks that have sustained high egg yields for 4 or more years. It is not unusual for these females to have lifetime production records of more than 1,200 eggs. Many of our lifetime layers have been produced by two-way or four-way line crosses. (A line is a carefully inbred family of birds.) When two or more inbred lines of ducks are crossed, their offspring typically have improved production." In a conversation with Dave, he told me that his ducks are 3/4 Khaki Campbell from English lines. England is big on making Khaki Campbells utilitarian (meaning that they lay lots of eggs). Americans seem to go more for the showy Khaki Campbells. Question: Do your Pedigreed Khaki Campbell Ducks has papers, like Pedigreed Rabbits? Answer: No, they don't have papers like rabbits. But, if Holderread calls them 'Pedigreed', I will too, because all my Khaki Campbell Ducks are from his stock.

This Web Site is intended as a place to share information, with other Poultry Enthusiast. I just want to share my knowledge of this area and present a place for experts advise as well. I do want people to know the kind of stock I have in order to share information. This is not an advertisement. E-mail me at: saraarmstrong@webtv.net

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