should I have a pet duck?
Image by Daveography.ca
Introducing my new photo project! Outside of Flickr Friday, I’ve been trying to find a new project, something that I could work through and publish as a photo book someday. So I decided, why not combine my other passion with my photography?
Spices!
I LOVE spices. There are over 350 known spices in the world, but most people are only aware of a handful, and own or use even fewer. Through this project, I hope to raise culinary awareness of the myriad selection of spices available to home cooks everywhere (and maybe a few actual cooks too), through a daily photo and description of one new spice every day over the next year!
I decided to kick off the project with Cardamom, a spice that is widely available but found in few home kitchens for some reason (determined through an unscientific survey of my own), perhaps because it is relatively expensive compared to others.
Cardamom hails from the India region (including Pakistan, Nepal, and Bhutan, though is now mainly grown in Guatemala), and can be bought as dried seed pods, or ground. It has a pretty strong flavour, slightly spicy and slightly sweet, and quite aromatic. It is widely used in Indian, middle eastern, and Scandinavian cuisine, and pairs well with many foods including chicken, curries, duck, lentils, peas, and squash.
NOTE: I don’t currently own all ~350 known spices, but am starting with the ones I do while I order new ones for this project and wait for them to be shipped.
Tune in tomorrow for a smoky favourite of Spanish cuisine…Happy April Fools Day!
Question by Casi: should I have a pet duck?
I want a pet duck but I don’t know and websites to look at to see if a duck is the right pet for me
Add your own answer in the comments!
13 Responses to should I have a pet duck?
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hahaa, yes ducks. are soo cute =]
brooke =)
April 28, 2014 at 1:16 am
ducks are not pets, you probably shouldn’t buy one, i don’t even know if you can, regardless ducks are wild and not the pet for you.
James S
April 28, 2014 at 1:46 am
they are cute but they sh!t everywhere.
Jamie
April 28, 2014 at 2:00 am
No, ducks stink to high heaven. If you have a pond outside or some sort of living environment for it outdoors you can keep it out there. But if you intend on keeping it indoors, don’t do it. I know from experience. My 6th grade class hatched two duck eggs as a class project, and every weekend a student got to take them home and care for them. They stunk and pooped everywhere, and their food and water got everywhere. They were too much responsibility, and very hard to keep clean.
Erin
April 28, 2014 at 2:26 am
my friend had a duck and its the funniest pet. she also has a chiwahwah and they play its the cutest thing ever. you will want to either raise it from an egg or buy it from a breeder when they are young so they get used to you. she had a duck diaper for it so it would go in her house. you will want to make an area outside for it and have a place for it in the winter. in my friends case she used a shower that was rarely used and made a place for it to stay in the winter at night. for the diaper she would just use sanitary pads because they were cheaper than the actual duck diaper. i recommend it, they are unusual and fun pets
Katie S
April 28, 2014 at 2:45 am
If you have a lake in your backyard, go right ahead. If not, don’t. Ducks are extremely high maintenance. They need to be groomed every day, ALLOT of space to walk around and fly, a full bath tub or a lake to bath in for at least half the day, and they are very very very loud! They never stop quacking. Ducks are very cute and they’re my favorite animal, but it ruins it if you have them as a pet. Their diet is very smelly and is very strict, or else they can get sick. If you’re willing to do this, go right ahead. But if you can’t give the animal what it needs, which is constant attention, then I don’t recommend it.
Jassica
April 28, 2014 at 3:02 am
To the person who said “Ducks are not pets”.
Well guess what.
I have 5 ducks and they are pets.
Ask any duck owner!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28557983@N07/2720377945/
Here are some web sites to look at!
http://www.minkhollow.ca/HatchingProgram/Ducks-Incubation/As-Pets.html
http://www.geocities.com/viperior/ducks/care.html
http://www.howtodothings.com/pets-and-animals/a3728-how-to-raise-a-duck-as-a-pet.html
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Park/5397/ourducks.htm
ADD: James S.
Not all duck breeds are wild.
A lot of duck breeds cant even fly! SO, how do you think that they would survive without us?
Oh, ya! They couldn’t!
My Cayugas are a breed that cannot fly.
They cannot even get 4 inches off the ground!
How do you think they would defend themselves against a predatore?
Oh, ya! They would be Predatore DINNER!
ADD: Jassica, wrong wrong wrong.
My ducks are on a Diet of Flock Feed that has no smell to it at all!
My ducks dont even fly.
And they groom themselves!
Why would you need to groom a duck?
Do you think wild ducks get groomed daily?
Uh, NO!
ADD: I dont live on a farm.
I just have a small/medium sized pond in my back yard.
They were raised inside the house for about their first two months.
And now they are just about reachins maturity, and yet, guess what! I haven’t gotten rid of a single one!
Why the crap would you get ducklings when you lived in a apartment?
See, this is a perfect example of why you SHOULD DO RESEACH BEFORE GETTING A PET!
ADD: Shera M.
All my ducks except the Mallard love being handled.
When you sit down in the grass they will come right over to you and sit in your lap.
PERFECT POMS *Abby*
April 28, 2014 at 3:27 am
I too have pet ducks, and I’m still not sure why people claim that they are not pets??
My ducks are awesome. I put diapers on them and put them inside.
To address the other answerer, ducks do NOT stink; in fact they always smell great if you give them a pool to bathe in. They are very very clean animals (cleaner then most humans I know).
They are great, loving, loyal pets. You just have to make sure you are prepared to care for them. It’s not okay to change your mind after a few months and drop them at the local park (they will not survive). If you are prepared to love and care for something for 15-20 years then a duck is a perfect pet! Check out the pics (this is my daughter Duckie)
Derek
April 28, 2014 at 3:46 am
NEVER get a duck unless you live on a farm. It will be the biggest mistake you have ever made lol. I can laugh about it now but last summer I got ducklings and I lived in an apartment. They pooped EVERYWHERE and were soo noisy. They had anxiety about me leaving and I felt bad about keeping them in a cage so I let them run around and they were MISERSABLE. I spent weeks cleaning up all their crap (on the carpet,walls,shoes, everywhere) after I got rid of them.
Plus, they are cute when they’re tiny and they get HUGE within like two weeks.
Oh yeah, the worst part about constantly cleaning up their poop is that it stinks horribly and its sooo runny.
Also… when you do get rid of them (trust me, you WILL get rid of them) its really really sad because they get hooked on you like you are their mother, but if you keep them anywhere other than outdoors with a pond you are just being pure evil. I found that out the hard way.
Angelina_Loves_Adam
April 28, 2014 at 3:57 am
I personally think it depends. Where are you going to get it? Can you give it enough attention and space considering it is a wild animal. But i had some one time that we rescued.
Sugar
April 28, 2014 at 4:15 am
They are VERY messy and high maitence. Here is what I can tell you from my experience raising them:
1. They must have kiddie pools if you don’t have a pond. For a group of 4, you should get 2 pools. They have to be changed every other day in the summer.
2. You should never have less that 3-4. They are flock animals and get very lonley and lound when they don’t have flock mates.
3. They don’t like to be pet or held. I have raised over 50 ducks in the past 6 years and only one of those will let you pet him, and he is mentally and physically handicapped. They will come close to you for treats and things, but forget holding them and petting them, they don’t like that.
4. They like to lay in flowers and gardens. They will lay there to the point they kill out the flowers.
5. They poop A LOT! I have never seen an animal poop more than a duck.
6. Most vets won’t even touch them, so if something happens forget trying to get him or her help. I live in rural KY and even here vets won’t see them.
7. Feed is at least 10.00 a 40 pound bag at feed stores. I have about 7 ducks and they go through about 3 bags a month. The price only keeps going up because its made with corn, in some places its like 15 dollars now. They HAVE to be fed either game bird crumble or layer ration when adult age. They love sweet feed as treats.
8. Depending on where you live, it may actually be illegal to keep them and the county could make you get rid of them, so check before you get anything.
Shera M
April 28, 2014 at 4:39 am
sure, but not if you have dogs.
my friend had chickens
and had a dog.
they came home one day.
and poof, it had eaten the chickens.
I dont know.
Get one if you can take care of it.
they are adorable
good luck! 🙂
Animal Lover ♥
April 28, 2014 at 5:06 am
tbh, allot of stuff said is alot os nonsense except fopr what perfect poms has said she is completley right =)
I have 12 ducks and I must say They are a complete Joy to watch with their funny antics and make such funny an cute noises!
Also ducks are Not smelly,theywill only smell if they are kept in squalid and un-hygenic conditions so they need a bit of space to roam around in, so if you live in a town with no garden ducks are not a good idea =(
also ducks do NOT need to be grromed for heavens sake like!
duck are atcually clean creatures and preen their feather very often throughout the day . . That’s why they are in the wayer kepping themselves CLEAN.
But i must say that during the messy and winter months ducks will sit in the puddles creating a bit of a muddy mess . . hence why my ducks are kept in their run (VERY large) during the wettest months =)
ducks are not even that time consuming they pretty much look after themselves . . all my ducks need everyday is their food and for me to let thm out in the morning and shut them back in for the night. . =)
also you CANNOT just get one duck
YOU MUST GET AT LEAST TWO =)
otherwise one on its own will be lonley and just literally pine away. . and they will not like human company 24/7 and hate living in a house with humans. .
Overall Ducks are very clean and robust little critters and with the right owner and enviroment and a bit of space and water . . they are a joy to have and are well worthit also you will get fresh eggs everyday just like me =)
XxJ3ssxX
April 28, 2014 at 5:29 am