I like ducks. At the Fat Ewe Farm, there are a lot of ducks and every summer, there are a lot more. I do not raise ducks for meat, but I eat quite a bit of roast duck! And duck eggs are delicious. They have more nutrition than chicken eggs, are larger and make the finest, moist baking. 
There are Ancona ducks, a drake and a duck, which are lovely random patterned black and white medium sized ducks. The drake has green feathers on his head that gleam in the sunshine. I think if I just had one breed of ducks, it would be Anconas, except they do not lay as many eggs as the Rouen ducks. The Muscovy ducks lay a lot of eggs too and are are really great at hatching babies on their own. A couple of years ago, 5 ducks nested together in one of the sheep shelters that was not being used and hatched over 80 ducklings. Wow. But the ravens moved in and in two days there were 18 ducklings left, so now when a mamma duck emerges with her tribe, I lock them up in a shelter until the ducklings are a month old. The ravens tend to leave them alone then, but they surely love them when they are new. 
The Muscovy ducks are the only ones that are not derived from the Mallard in North America and are actually from South America. While they can survive our frigid winters, they do need some extra care and good shelters with lots of straw. Most of the Muscovy ducks sleep in the chicken coop, which is insulated and they are fine, but on occasion, some think they will sleep with the other ducks and geese and if it is very cold, they do not fare well. I have tried to lock them in the pen, but they fly well too, at least the females do. 
Another breed of duck I enjoy is the Khaki Campbell. They are flighty and nervous ducks and never get used to me around, but they lay a lot of eggs and catch tons of flies. That is one of the reasons I have ducks. The barnyard flies can become overrun rampantly and the ducks will eat their weight in flies in a day. Between them and the sparrows, it really does keep the fly population at a manageable pace. 
The ducks do not get supplemental heat or light, so do not lay in winter. The break allows the hen's bodies to rest, as in nature and does not force them to perform. I think they are healthier and live longer with the chance to take a break. Today, there were 3 duck eggs, the first of the season, but when we had a warm spell in January, there was a single goose egg laid, so the geese beat the ducks this year. 
I do not sell the eggs unless people come to the farm specifically for the eggs. Since I source grain that is not sprayed and it always costs more and the birds are truly free range, running all over the farm, the duck eggs are a dollar each or ten dollars a dozen. In Edmonton, our closest large city, the eggs are 2 dollars each, so those who understand the value of duck eggs do not mind paying for them. Some people who cannot eat chicken eggs, can tolerate duck eggs and they also come to buy them. 
In the picture is a trio that I have for sale, which includes a chocolate male , a chocolate female and a pied black female. Muscovy ducks do not quack and in places that allow them, they are preferred because they are quiet. North American breeds can be very noisy, but Muscovy ducks kind of sound like they have laryngitis. These three love to be together and were curled up in the sunshine for a snooze. It was minus 15 here today with a very cold wind, so they sought the warmth and comfort of each other. Pretty duckies in a row. 

Some of these little fellows came in a box from a hatchery. The eggs were artificially incubated and at a day old they were transported two provinces away in a small box. They had no food or water or mother, only each other for company and security. Some were hatched by their mother, but with the ravens around the farm, duckling and gosling makes a mighty fine breakfast, so they hatched and snatched away and put in a brooder with the box babies. The birdies from the hatchery are Blue Swedish ducklings, Danish White Geese and Pekin ducks. Both Danish White Geese and Pekin Ducks are noted for fast growing fat birdies that are raised for meat. If I can determine the sex of these birds, the females will stay and one of each male, possibly two,  depending on the ratio of male to females. Then next year they can lay their own eggs and hatch them and have their own babies. In this group there are also four Muscovy ducklings that were hatched by their mother. Muscovies do not survive long here either, I am not sure why, at least not the babies. 

So, into the brooder they went and they grew quickly. This is the friendliest bunch of babies so far. I am sure it is the docile breed of geese, but there are three or four home hatched goslings that I stole from the mother as well. That was for their own protection. Geese make excellent parents and will fiercely protect their young, but ravens are clever and wait for the most opportune moment before swooping down and whoosh, the gosling is lunch. So were the pot belly piglets as they were born. Bad ravens. 

The goslings are getting their adult feathers already, but the geese are a little behind. I cannot yet sex the ducks. Usually the bill colour gives the males away, but I do not believe that the males and females in the Pekins have any differences except a curl on the tail feathers of the adult males. The ducks that are more than I wish to overwinter will be advertised to sell as breeders, though in the fall most people are looking to get rid of ther waterfowl due to our harsh winters. So, they may go to the butcher shop instead. Pekin duck, next to Aylsbury or Rouen , is purported the tastiest. I guess I will eventually compare. 

It is interesting how the broods all stick together. There is a brood a few weeks older than this one and they do not socialize at all. The Sebastopol geese have given themselves the roles of watching over the babies, one for one group and one for the other. The gander is as attentive to his foster babies as the goose to hers. Isn't nature wonderful?  Duckies and goslings are so personable and so interesting to watch. They talk to each other constantly and sing themselves to sleep. I am with them a lot during the day and they are curious when they see me in case I have something tasty for them. I could have a duck and goose farm, I enjoy them so much, but boy, do they eat a lot! 5 gallons of grain per day is fed to the birds on the farm, and a few red winged black birds who have been hanging around. When they are out of the fast growth stage, the amount of feed they eat will drastically drop. I currently only feed them at the end of the day, which forces them to forage eating bugs and worms and grass. The goslings eat mostly grass all day long and the ducklings prefer a mix. They have a large fenced pasture for themselves when they feel comfortable enough to use it, and they have been offered the area around the house for now, though their deposits make them somewhat unwelcome visitors. Since the big rains in the past 3 days, the grass is growing everywhere again and they will be forbidden out of their own yard once more. 

Wouldn't you enjoy a gosling for a pet? 

In the old days, a chicken flock was self perpetuating, that is, the hens laid eggs and hatched them to produce new birds every year. This provided eggs for the farmer and meat at the end of the summer when the roosters and old hens were butchered. The chickens lived in coops not well insulated if at all. Some farmers would pile straw over the building, but most did not. The body heat of the birds had to keep the coop warm enough for them to survive and they had to be hardy. 

The Fat Ewe Farm Flock is a flock of various breeds chosen for three things: winter hardiness, foraging ability and egg laying, but broodiness is a factor as well. The Chanteclers, both the Partidge and the Whites, are excellent brooders. I have two Silkie hens and they too are known for being great setters. 

In addition to these birds, there is a Khaki Campbell on a nest, which is considered rare for that breed. They were bred for egg laying and the broodiness trait was left out, but I have a strain of the breed that will hatch their own, thankfully. Every year, one or two of the Khaki Campbells hatch babies. There are also two Muscovies sitting on nests and a half bantam hen that I know of. That does not mean there are not others. Last year there was a hen who hatched 12 babies under the sheep shelter, and I was not aware of that until she came out with them. That is the true meaning of free range chickens. You never know where the heck they are! Every day is an Easter egg hunt too, because they are inventing new nests and laying anywhere but the nest boxes which are now mostly occupied by brooding hens. 

I am thankful for the hens and their ability to raise their babies without me having to incubate and brood the chicks myself. Isn't nature so grand?

It is early this year for the birds to lay so profusely. The geese have even started to lay and usually they have not been interested until May at the earliest. Evecn the turkey has laid an egg! I know the tom turkey has certainly been very adept at showing himself off, drumming and fanning for his two hens and the chickens who are at all interested, but most are not. 
I would like to say that the eggs come pristinely clean from the nests, but they seldom do, even when I put fresh straw in the boxes. The turkey and goose nests are barrels with ovals cut for openings and they have a piece of cemet board for a roof and another peice of plywood for a screen to their entrance, just enough to make them believe they are private. That is essential for nesting. They need to think they have chosen a spot that is safe from predators and prying inquiries. 

It is too early really for any to hatch the eggs on this farm since they have no enclosed area in which to rear their young. They do have areas that are protected but not from the elements except in the coop. This year, my plan is to remove the babies as soon as they are hatched, that is from the guineas, the geese and the ducks, because they loose to many to the ravens. The chickens seem best at protecting their babies and keeping them out of harms way, so I will attempt to have the chickens hatch and raise the ducks and goslings this year and see what happens. Some babies, I think I will have to brood, or at least eclose the mothers until the babies are big enough that the ravens and hawks leave them alone. Last year, there were about 80 ducklings hatched all in a couple of days, and in the first day, over half of them were eaten by predators. The dogs do not seem to bother with the ravens, likely because the chickens fly as well. 

The goose eggs that are too early, such as these, go to the Easter egg painters, particularly the Ukrainian egg artists. These two goose eggs are already spoken for. I sell the goose eggs for $5 each at this early stage. They may have gotten too cold to be viable for hatching, but they could certainly be eaten or blown out for decorating. 

The turkeys on the farm are cross bred Standard Bronze heritage turkeys and wild turkeys, with little of the wild and more of the bronze. They look quite amazing in the sunlight when their feathers assume a life of their own, shining with hues of bronze, gold and brass in the sunlight. They lay a large speckled egg. The eggs, like all eggs, are white and the second to last function is to lay down colour on the egg, prior to the bloom, which protects the egg from bacteria and keeps the moisture in so it does not dehydrate, yet is porous enough so the chicks can breathe. It is really very amazing! 

I am grateful for the birds on the Fat Ewe Farm. Given that I was truly phobic and terrified of all birds, even the tiniest sparrow or hummingbird, when I first arrived, I have evolved and conquered my fears with much effort and steel of will. I can pick up a turkey or a goose and am not in the least bit afraid. Only going into a coop where there are roosters and hens flying at me, is the last of my hair raising fears, and I am conquering that too, thanks to the Fat Ewe Farm birds. These initial eggs are being sold as hatching eggs and the excess are going to be used to make dog biscuits. Great stuff, really. Ewe ought to try some.