Blagovarskaya duck is the most productive representative of waterfowl, which gives dietary meat, has high egg production rates. Check out the features, strengths and weaknesses of this breed.
History of breed origin
The duck, bred at the Blagovar State Poultry Plant (Bashkortostan) in 1998, is widespread not only in Russia, but throughout the world. Musk birds have a rich pedigree, descend from a white Peking duck. The main tasks that breeders set themselves are stable immunity, intensive growth of hybrids.
For selection, 2 similar lines of birds were used - Blagovarka-1 and Blagovarka-2. As a result, a new cross appeared with high rates of egg production, excellent meat qualities. Experiments with the Blagovars ducks are still ongoing. The main goal of continuous breeding is to improve bird performance.
Description and characteristics of the breed
Blagovarskaya duck surpasses its relatives in terms of characteristics - “Peking”. The weight of females is 3.2 kg, drakes - 3.5 kg. Cross from its predecessors is resistant to infectious diseases, strong immunity, high growth rates, tasty meat without a specific smell.
Distinctive features of the breed are snow-white feathers, bright orange paws and beak. The color of the lower extremities allows us to judge the health status of the Blagovars ducks. If the paws and beak turn pale, this is the first sign of poultry disease amid violation of the rules for keeping and feeding domestic ducks. A rich orange hue characterizes healthy ducks.
After birth, ducklings survive almost 100% of the time, grow rapidly, and slaughter at the age of 2 months.
Paternal and maternal line
Poultry obtained by crossing Blagovarka-1 on the paternal side, Blagovarka-2 - on the maternal. Parental genes determine the physical data, productivity, and character of the Blagovarsky duck.
From the father, ducklings inherit:
- intensive growth;
- fast weight gain;
- preservation of body weight during molting;
- fast plumage;
- high taste qualities of meat;
- calm behavior;
- high egg production (up to 200 eggs in 40 weeks);
- fertility rate - 93%, ducklings birth rate - 75%.
From the mother, the chicks inherit:
- high egg production (210 eggs in 40 weeks);
- fertility rate - 94%, the number of hatched ducklings - 80%.
Appearance
Blagovarsky ducks are distinguished by a large, massive physique. The body is wide, located in a horizontal plane. The head is large and massive, set on a long, flexible neck, which is constantly in an elongated state. The wings fit snugly to the body, which increases frost resistance, adaptive properties of individuals.
Outwardly, these are very beautiful birds in which snow-white plumage is combined with bright orange paws and a beak.
By nature, the birds are calm, balanced, characterized by increased activity, if necessary, they can stand up for themselves. They are friendly towards other inhabitants of the poultry yard. Blagovarsky ducks become the highlight of any farmstead, bring a stable income to the breeder.
Productivity
Blagovarsky ducks are representatives of a meat breed with a high egg production rate. A bird at the age of 6 weeks weighs up to 3 kg, a drake of 8 weeks - 4-4.5 kg. The carcass contains about 40% fat, the rest is fresh meat.
Removing plumage after slaughtering the Blagovarskaya duck does not cause any particular difficulties. The carcass has a presentable appearance, which attracts buyers. After plucking, no black stumps remain on it.
With economical consumption of feed and slight weight loss during molting, meat has good taste. The product is dietary, contains a small amount of cholesterol. The best period for slaughter is the 2-month-old age of the birds.
For 9 months, the duck carries up to 240 eggs weighing 90-95 g each. The fertility rate is 95%, the safety of ducklings - 80%. Blagovarskaya duck can live up to 20 years, while egg production lasts only 5 years. In the second year of maintenance, the laying indices improve by 10-12%, the eggs give the best incubation qualities.
Conditions for keeping and growing
Special bird care is not required, financial and time costs are minimal. Blagovarsky ducks need a complete and balanced diet, which, in addition to special compound feeds, includes vitamin and mineral supplements, fresh vegetables, premixes.
The birds need clean water not only for drinking, but also for swimming. Birds regularly clean feathers and beaks, like to take water procedures. Blagovarsky ducks are distinguished by their cleanliness, so cleaning the house from the litter is a mandatory daily activity for the breeder.
You can clearly see the tricks of keeping and feeding ducks by watching the video below:
What should be the house?
Blagovarsky ducks live in a poultry house, shed or other warm room with an equipped perch. Primary requirements:
- For 1 square. m accommodate up to 3 individuals 3 weeks of age. Crampedness reduces the productivity of birds.
- Treat the floor with slaked lime, place a bed of straw, sawdust, peat on top.
- To avoid dampness and infections, regularly change the litter, clean the shed of bird droppings.
- Eliminate the presence of drafts, close all cracks through which rodents can also enter the house.
- Take care of the heating and lighting of the house. The daylight hours for Blagovarsky ducks are 12-14 hours.
- Near each roost, place water cups, grain feeders, containers with sand and gravel.
- Control humidity (60-75%), temperature (15-18 degrees) and ventilation in the room.
- Next to the house enclose a spacious enclosure, place a container with water for swimming birds.
If possible, make available the exit from the indoor poultry house to the aviary so that poultry can graze on their own and, if the weather worsens, return safely to a warm room. On the territory, install canopies from the sun and rain.
Nutrition
Ducks are grown on complete feeds. In the daily diet, vegetables and root crops, juicy grass are welcome. At the same time, it is not recommended to reduce portions of special compound feeds, otherwise the indicators of egg production and meat quality are reduced. Birds lose weight, symptoms of vitamin deficiency are not ruled out.
With a well-developed feeding scheme, the Blagovars ducks gain weight quickly. At 3 weeks they weigh up to 550 g, at 4 - up to 1.5 kg, at 6 - 2.4 kg, and at 8 - up to 2.5 kg. For better digestion, the poultry’s daily menu requires gravel and sand, which are canceled only 1 week before slaughter.
Ducklings
On the first day after birth, ducklings feed on crushed egg yolk. Sprinkle crumbs on the back of the birds to develop a grasping reflex in the cubs. Without it, it will be difficult to find food for already grown individuals.
On the second day, chicken protein is crushed to the yolk. The rules for feeding are similar. Such a limited diet prevails in the life of ducklings from 1 to 3 days from birth, then it becomes more satisfying, varied.
The fourth day is different from the previous ones in nutrition. Meat waste, finely chopped greens, a little low-fat cottage cheese, bone meal and chalk for better digestion of ducklings are introduced into the daily diet.
From 10 days to 1 month of life, ducklings are allowed to give boiled potatoes, pre-chopped grain waste, salt and fine gravel. Milk and yeast contribute to the rapid weight gain of young animals.
When feeding ducklings, use specialized “starter feeds” enriched with vitamins and minerals.
Adults
In addition to the grain feeder in the house, there should be a container with gravel, shell, bone meal and salt as mineral additives. It is important to observe the diet - 4 times a day.
Features of the diet depend on the goals that the breeder sets himself:
- For quick weight gain and tasty meat, birds should always be full of feeders. The food is varied and fresh, the water is clean, otherwise digestive problems are difficult to avoid.
- For laying ducks, a special diet is needed, which differs from the nutrition of meat representatives. The main goal is to eliminate weight gain and obesity, to support the body during the period of intensive egg laying.
Features of the diet of adults:
- Make roughage the basis of your diet. Include chopped grain (corn, oats, barley, wheat), bran, cake in the menu.
- From a month of age, give ducks wet knitties cooked in broths. Otherwise, digestion is disturbed, a high probability of intestinal obstruction.
- Include in the diet high-grade feed with a high content of vitamins, trace elements for bone strength, immunity, prevention of vitamin deficiency and improve digestion.
- Diversify the menu of poultry with juicy root vegetables, fresh grass, fruits and vegetables.
- An alternative to expensive compound feeds is a mixture of grain and green feed with the number of meals 2-3 times a day.
- Add crushed eggshells, chalk daily to the diet. A week before slaughter, remove this mineral supplement from the daily menu.
Remember that special feeds for duck weight gain remain a priority in the daily diet. When you try to replace them with grain, vegetables and root crops, the weight decreases. For 1 kg of live weight, 3.5 kg of fortified feed is necessary.
Breeding
There are 5 sexually mature ducks per 1 drake. Keep the layer up to 3-4 years. Add calcium to the daily diet of drakes. Such recommendations only increase duck egg production.
Since poultry are bred artificially, their maternal instinct is poorly developed. When trying to put a duck on a nest, she gets up from him and runs away, the eggs freeze. Offspring is not able to sit.
Use the hatchery to breed the Birds of Good War. The birth rate of ducklings is more than 90%. The incubation time varies from 26 to 28 days.
Valuable recommendations from experienced breeders:
- Collect eggs for incubation no more than 7 days old, store at room temperature.
- Lay eggs in the incubator, set the temperature to 37.5-38.5 degrees, humidity - 50%.
- Turn them up to 4-5 times a day.
- In the third week of incubation, ventilate the incubator 2 times a day for 10-20 minutes.
- During the period of hatching ducklings, increase the humidity to 80%.
Hatched ducklings weigh up to 50 g each, have a rich yellow plumage, squeak from the first minutes of life.
Find out more about duck incubation here.
Baby Care
Caring for ducklings is not difficult, the main thing is to feed them on schedule, to keep the house clean.
Valuable recommendations:
- Once the babies have hatched, drop them from the laying hen into the brooder. You can use a clean box or a cage, the main thing is to provide round-the-clock lighting and a constant temperature.
- From the 8th day of life, reduce the lighting time of the brooder by 1 hour, from 21 days the daylight should be no more than 15 hours, as in adults.
- From day 1, the brooder temperature is 33-35 degrees, from day 5 - 28-33 degrees, from day 11 - 22-25 degrees, from day 20 - 17-19 degrees, as for adults.
- Provide a clean bed of straw, sawdust or paper. Change it once every 2-3 days, as it gets more often.
- Avoid dampness and drafts, otherwise the infection develops, the young growth begins to hurt en masse. Permissible humidity limit is 60-75%.
- Increase the walking time of the younger generation gradually. Release ducklings in the fresh air from the first week of life in good weather.
Remember that birds need space. If immediately after hatching 1 square. m is enough for a comfortable habitat 13 ducklings, then by 10 days the population density of 1 square. m should decrease to 7-8 cubs.
Advantages and disadvantages
Blagovarskaya duck is popular with beginners and experienced breeders. High productivity indicators, economical feed consumption and low maintenance are attracting attention. On this list of benefits of the breed does not end there. Breeders distinguish:
- large size of birds;
- high meat performance;
- fast weight gain;
- egg production;
- unpretentiousness in food;
- safety of weight during molting;
- presentable carcass;
- healthy offspring;
- stable immunity;
- quick shedding process (compared to ducks of other breeds);
- productive period of laying up to 5 years.
When breeding, breeders find certain disadvantages of the Blagovars ducks:
- growth period - the first 2 months;
- the need to purchase feed;
- compliance with the diet, otherwise the duck is losing weight;
- regular walking;
- high price of hatching eggs, young animals;
- lack of maternal instinct;
- the difficulty of buying purebred individuals.
Farmers reviews about the Blagovarsky duck
Angelina, 43 years old, farmer, Sochi. I have a full poultry yard of Blagovarsky ducks. The breed is unpretentious in food and care. Birds quickly gain weight, and already at 2 months go to slaughter. The carcass has an attractive appearance, without black stumps, which are difficult to get rid of. The meat is tasty, dietary, healthy. A duck gives a lot of eggs, which I sell in dozens and make good money. So I pay back not only the content of the breed, but also make a profit. In general, the bird does not differ from other meat breeds, does not cause any special trouble.
Martha, 38 years old, housewife, Anapa. These ducks suit me with their unpretentiousness in care and maintenance. They live in a house with other breeds, calm, balanced, do not conflict. If there is no water and not enough food, they become aggressive and restless. It is better not to bring to such situations, to control this moment. Otherwise, there are no problems. The meat is tasty, the carcass is attractive, for a season, a layer can lay up to 200 eggs. Compared to other breeds, these are high rates.
Maya, 52 years old, agriculture, Kerch. I have been dealing with the Blagovars ducks for several years. This is a good business for me. I sell carcasses and eggs. The products are tasty and healthy, so there are enough orders. I only spend on compound feed. In the summer I send ducks for grazing, and so it turns out to save on feeding. Otherwise, ducks quickly gain weight, I slaughter them at 2 months of age. The content - unpretentious and clean, by nature - non-conflict. So for beginner breeders, I can only recommend this breed.
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Blagovars ducks are excellent for small-scale agriculture and for breeding on an industrial scale. Moreover, these poultry attract attention with their exterior, become the "calling card" of any poultry yard.