Ukrainian duck: description and characteristics of the breed, conditions of detention

The duck of the Ukrainian breed was bred near the city of Kharkiv, at the Research Institute in Borki as a result of crossing the best meat breeds. Ukrainian ducks are famous for their excellent appetite, they quickly gain weight and prefer to be on free grazing. Birds are mobile, unpretentious to food and conditions of detention, grow to large sizes. Young meat is tender and tasty.

Description and characteristics of the breed

Ukrainian poultry belongs to meat breeds and is very popular among farmers because it quickly gains body weight. Already by two months, ducklings weigh 1.8-2 kilograms, and at four months they reach 4 kilograms.Ducks have a good survival rate - only 3-5% of young animals die.

The plumage of Ukrainian ducks is quite thick and lush. If you properly feed and care for the bird, you can get a large number of eggs. The steppe duck of the Ukrainian breed got its name for its great love for spacious pastures. Birds are mobile, love freedom, swim well, quickly rise to the wing. They are vociferous, quacking can be heard from a distance from the paddock.

Appearance of Ukrainian ducks:

• white - the body is covered with completely white feathers, the beak is from bright yellow to dark orange;
• clay - brown plumage, green beak, red-orange paws;
• wild feathers - the feathers of these ducks can be golden, light or dark brown. On the neck of males there is a white stripe, a bright bluish-green plumage on top, orange paws, a greenish beak with a black dot at the end. During the molting period, males become similar to females;
• gray - the backs of these ducks are dark (from brown to black), the wings and abdomen are gray, bluish plumage is visible on the sides.

Ukrainian ducks have a powerful, muscular body, a strong neck, a wide chest, and a raised body. The head is elongated, the forehead is flat. The Ukrainian bird is mobile, rarely sits still, constantly looking for food and eating, due to which it quickly gains weight. Compliant character.

Ukrainian ducks are bred not only for meat, laying hens give 120-140 eggs during the year. With enhanced care and rational nutrition, you can achieve 240-250 eggs.

Pros and cons of Ukrainian duck

Ukrainian duck is famous for its unpretentiousness to the conditions of keeping - an adult bird does not need a warm heated room, enough dry and deep bedding. Other pluses of the breed:

• Mobility and the ability to get their own food;
• quick weight gain, so that the first slaughter of birds can begin as early as two months of age;
• high-quality meat - in young animals it is tender, soft and tasty;
• compliant and peaceful character;
• excellent down that can be used for stuffing pillows and duvets;
• high egg production.

The Ukrainian breed did not have a large number of minuses - ducks are susceptible not to cold, but to drafts and strong dampness in a cold room. Under the influence of drafts, the Ukrainian bird quickly catches a cold and gets sick.

Conditions and care

Ukrainian bird rises well to the wing immediately from the water, it can fly high enough, so the fences of the corral must be at least two meters high. Ducks do not tolerate crowded content, it is not recommended to place more than three individuals on one square meter of pen.

It is important to build a homemade swimming pool for the birds, because they love water very much. Deep troughs will do if it is not possible to bring ducks into the field and make a large artificial pond.

The bird is unpretentious to the conditions of detention, feels comfortable even in winter, in frosts. The only condition for a good keeping of Ukrainian ducks is pens in which there will be no drafts (the bird is very sensitive to them), warm and dry bedding on the floor made of shavings or peat. Ducks do not need a thick-walled building with powerful heating. They can co-exist in the same room with another bird, as long as the barns are not heavily overcrowded. For laying hens, it is important to build nests made of wood measuring 4050 centimeters. Up to five layers can be placed in one nest.

Bird Diet

The diet of chicks and adults is different. Adult ducks need to make wooden feeders for dry food, with walls not lower than 6 centimeters; for mixed feed, metal utensils 15 centimeters high are suitable.

It is important for young animals to enter into the diet:

• semi-liquid food with milk - in the first 1-2 days of life;
• mixed food from cereals - corn, wheat, barley with the addition of fish bone or grass meal, fresh herbs and vegetables;
• bone meal and crushed shell - young animals need to replenish the volume of minerals.

As young ducks grow older, they are transferred to the diet of adults. In addition to ready-made food, the bird is happy to eat food waste, herbs, grain (in summer it is given up to 25% of the total food, in winter - up to 50%).

Ducks can get most of their food during the summer season, but the farmer must provide the bird with food at least three times a day.Vegetables (beets, potatoes, cabbage, zucchini, pumpkin) and fruits (ranet, apples) are important in the diet. Compound feed is not recommended to be given in a dry form, it is better to mix it with juicy grass and vegetables. It is important to provide clean water supplies for ducks as they drink a lot.

Features of breeding at home

To breed Ukrainian ducks on your own, you need to take eggs no later than 20 days before the deadline for laying them in a nest for a brood hen. One hen is able to incubate 7-12 eggs. More eggs are recommended to be placed in the incubator. Ducklings hatch on the 29th-30th day.

Young animals are initially kept in a separate room with a temperature of 30 ^оС, after a few days the temperature is reduced to 20 ^оС. Ducklings need clean water, fresh food from boiled eggs, cottage cheese, wheat porridge with milk.

Possible diseases

Despite the good immunity of Ukrainian ducks, they can carry two types of pathologies:

• infectious, for example, paratyphoid - young ducklings are most susceptible to it. Mortality - up to 80%. It is manifested by diarrhea, inflammation of the mucous membrane of the eyes, poor appetite. Viral hepatitis is also dangerous - it leads to a mass death of birds;
• parasitoses - when infected with helminths, ducks lose weight, lose their appetite, internal organs and the immune system suffer.

To avoid disease, it is important to disinfect the poultry area, give ducks vitamins and nutrient-fortified feed. This strengthens the immune system and curbs epidemics of infectious diseases on farms.

Ukrainian duck is unpretentious and flexible, gives quality meat and is very egg-laying. The breed has long won the love of farmers, as it is suitable for home keeping and does not require special expenses.

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