American Pekin duck is an old but very popular dual purpose duck breed. It is very good and used for both meat and eggs production purpose. It was developed from the ducks brought to the United States from China in the 19th Century. Now the breed is available in many countries around the world, and it is one of the most popular commercial duck breeds.
Pekins arealso known by some other names, such as the American Pekin duck or Long Island duck. Main reason of the name "American Pekin" is to distinguish the breed from the German Pekin.
German Pekin is a distinct and separate duck breed which also derived from the same Chinese ducks. Sometimes they are also spelled as Peking ducks. The breed was brought to the Western World in the middle of 1800s.
The Pekin duck is now the most admired commercial meat duck breed in the United States. Their egg laying ability and fine meat quality made them the first choice of the American duck farmers. Today the Pekin duck is very popular and available throughout the world.
American Pekins are not only popular in commercial duck farming industry, but also raised as pets, kept in backyards with other farm animals. They are very popular on homesteads across the country.
American Pekins are docile and affectionate in nature, and these are the main reason of high popularity of these ducks. They are very strong and hardy and they do extremely well in free-range system. However, read more information about this American duck breed.
Characteristics
Pekin ducks are very beautiful. And the breed is in the heavy breed class. They have long bodies and quite long necks. They are very large breasted and have yellow skin. Their feathers are of white or creamy white in color. Their legs are a reddish or orange-yellow, and the bill is yellow.
They have short wings. They have a more vertical posture than dabbling ducks, and have an overturned rump. The eyes of these duck boast grayish-blue colored iris, when observed closely. But when observed far away, their eyes seem to be black in color. On average, adult ducks weight between 3.6 and 5 kg in captivity. Photo from Wikipedia.
Housing
Housing requirements are simple like most other domestic ducks. Your ducks will be happy if you provide them with basic housing facilities. We recommend building a good house with all required facilities. Always keep the house clean, and keep some baskets or similar thing inside the house for laying eggs.
Feeding
Feeding the ducks with very good quality and nutritious food is the most important part of commercial American Pekin duck farming business. These ducks actually enjoy natural food along with commercial foods.
They will eat their favorite food from nature if you allow your flock to free-range. Commercially prepared poultry or chicken feed is often given to these ducks in commercial production. And you can feed the ducklings with chick started feed.
Breeding
American Pekin ducks are naturally very good breeders. They will breed easily if you keep good ratio of males and females in the flock. Generally one drake is enough for breeding around or up to 10-15 ducks.
Caring
American Pekin ducks are naturally very strong and hardy birds and they generally require less caring and other management. Although taking additional care will help the birds to stay healthy, grow better and produce more. Providing the ducks with good housing, feeding them nutritious food, and monitoring their health on a regular basis are the most common caring tasks for these ducks.
Behavior
Both American Pekin ducks and drakes are known to be friendly and non-aggressive. They even sometimes accept being petted by the keepers who are raising them as either a pet or egg or meat birds. Pekin drakes are relatively quiet as compared to the ducks (the ducks are a bit louder).
They do excellent in free range duck farming system. Not only can they forage for the bulk of their diet naturally in most environments, but they also remain keenly aware of threats and rush back to the safety of their coop and run when necessary.
Eggs Production
American Pekin ducks are very good layers, and they lay pretty large eggs (90-100 grams each). On an average, a duck can lay between 200 and 300 eggs annually. The ducks generally start laying eggs within their 5-6 months of age.
Meat Production
This breed is also very good for meat production. Their meat is a rich source of protein, and has a delicious flavor. Average body weight of a mature American Pekin duck is between 3.6 and 5 kg.
Uses
Pekin duck is a dual purpose utility breed. In America they are raised for meat production. And around 95 percent of duck meat consumed in the United States is Pekin duck. But the breed is also suitable for eggs production.
Special Notes
Pekin ducks are popular for producing quality meat, as well as for their egg production. They are good layers and a duck will lay an average of 200 white colored eggs per year (if the duck is prevented from hatching the eggs or if the duck does not try to hatch her eggs).
Pekin ducks are very intelligent bird. They will quack loudly for warning others about any predators near them. They tend to be broody, if not bothered and make good mothers. The ducklings grow very fast as compared to other meat duck breeds.
Pekin ducks have very good temperament and they are friendly in nature. And they are also very good as pets. It is a very long-lived bird. The average lifespan of these ducks is 9-12 years. Some ducks also live longer. Review full breed profile of this duck bred below.
| Breed Name | Pekin |
| Other Names | American Pekin or Long Island duck |
| Breed Purpose | Dual Purpose (eggs & meat) |
| Special Notes | Calm, Friendly, Good as Pets |
| Breed Class | Heavy |
| Broodiness | Average |
| Weight | 3.6 to 5 kg |
| Climate Tolerance | All Climates |
| Egg Color | White |
| Egg Size | Large |
| Egg Weight | 90-100 grams |
| Egg Productivity | Medium |
| Flying Ability | Poor |
| Rarity | Common |
| Varieties | White only |
| Country of Origin | United States |
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