CHAPTER VII 

 Commercial Duck Fanning — Marketing 



On commercial duck farms, the business consists 

 mainly of producing large quickly grown ducklings 

 which are marketed before they are mature. Be- 

 cause of this immaturity, the ducks are quite com- 

 monly termed green ducks. The business has also 

 become so highly specialized on Long Island and 

 this is such a center of the industry, that the birds 

 are commonly quoted on the New York market as 

 Long Island ducklings. 



Proper Age to Market. It is important that the 

 ducklings be marketed as soon as they have reached 

 the proper age and stage of development. When 

 the ducklings are about 10 to 12 weeks old they be- 

 gin to shed their first growth of feathers. This is 

 apparent first on the neck and breast, giving them 

 somewhat of a rough appearance. The ducklings 

 must be marketed within one week after they begin 

 this moult. If they are allowed to go longer than 

 this they will begin to get thin and as it will take 

 them 6 weeks or more to grow a new crop of 

 feathers it will be a considerable period before they 

 get back in market condition again and any addi- 

 tional weight which they may attain will not be suf- 

 ficient to pay for the feed eaten during this period. 



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