We grow mulard at home

The first mention of the cultivation of mulard dates back to 1960 in France. Mulard is a hybrid of the meat direction, obtained by crossing the drakes of the muscovy (Indo-duck) and the Peking ducks.

The hybrid was created to improve the qualities of the parent breeds in order to obtain a new improved individual. Mulard cannot be found in the wild, they do not reproduce on their own and are grown only at home on the initiative of a person.

Description of the breed of birds

Mulards are big birds of white color with a black spot on the head, it is thanks to this trait that the hybrid is easy to distinguish from other ducks. Adults are larger than their parents (Peking and Muscovy duck). Torso dense, knotted, well-built, elongated, with tightly fitting wings. Head medium-sized, light beak, elongated, dark eyes, elongated neck. Short legs yellow, small tail.

Mulardy ducks on the pasture

Mulard do not give offspring, therefore, these ducks are not used for breeding. Sometimes drakes are sexually active, and ducks lay eggs, but due to the fact that they cannot be obtained without fertilized offspring, this fact has been proven by many studies and experiments. Hybrids are valued for their excellent, low-fat (the percentage of fat is only 3%) meat, like the Indo-milk, without a specific smell, and a fatty large liver, which is used to prepare an exquisite meat dish foie gras. Compared to Peking ducks, mulardy are calm, not so noisy and clean.

Conditions of detention and care

Mulards are suitable for industrial and home maintenance. In an industrial environment the hybrid is grown in special poultry houses equipped with all the necessary mechanisms and technologies. Ducks are mainly used for beef feeding, and drakes are used to obtain liver. The enterprises use floor and cage keeping of poultry.

Growing in household plots mulard does not differ from the content of ducks of other breeds and crosses. In summer, it is economically profitable to keep the bird on paddocks equipped with special feeders and drinkers. At night, the ducks are herded into the barn and closed. Mulard are rarely left for the winter, since they are unsuitable for breeding, and during the season you can get a duck ready for slaughter from a duck. Due to this method of cultivation, there is no need for capital and well-insulated buildings. For the correct maintenance of mulard a simple room with good floors and no holes for rats and other predators to enter is sufficient. There should be no drafts in the barn.On the south side, a hole is made into the poultry house, the hole above the floor should be 5-8 cm and be tightly closed with a door. The poultry house should be built based on the number of ducks per 1 sq. m 3 heads. On the walk the bird should feel free, therefore 1 square meter is allocated for 1 head. m area. For feeding, use special feeders 110 cm long and 23 cm wide for adult birds, and 100x14.5 for young animals. see A partition is made on top of the feeders so that the birds do not scatter feed. It is better to use nipple drinkers for water.

Mulard ducks on the street near the house

House temperature should be 16-18 ° C, with a humidity of 60-70%. The floor covering is made of sawdust, shavings or straw. The house must be regularly cleaned and ventilated.

Characteristics of adults: the weight of drakes and ducks

Mulard weight - 4-7 kg. The difference in weight between drakes and ducks is only 500 g. In 3 months the bird gains 4 kg. With long-term cultivation, the mass reaches 7 kg, almost like the weight of a goose. Liver mass mulard 500-550 g. Feed intake per day 340 g.

To obtain mulards, you can cross different breeds. Drakes of musk ducks interbreed with Peking ducks, Rouen ducks, Orgpington ducks, and Allies. As a result of such crosses, ducklings are obtained in different colors and shades.

Feeding and breeding

Since the mulard incapable of procreation, then musk and Peking ducks are used to obtain ducklings. To obtain mulards, families are created from 1 musk drake and 4-6 Peking ducks. The best age for mating is 7-10 months. Ducks begin lay an eggand in 180-210 days. About 15-20 eggs are placed under the hen.

IMPORTANT! The hatchability of chicks under a brood hen is 60%, and in the incubator it is almost 100%, which makes it expedient and cost-effective to use an incubator.

Despite the fact that the breed is distinguished by its unpretentiousness and early maturity, certain conditions must be taken into account when breeding. When ducklings begin to appear, they are prepared habitat... Depending on the number of chicks, this can be a box or a whole room. A litter of straw or hay is laid on the floor. Under natural conditions, ducklings receive heat from their mothers, and in artificial conditions, additional sources are installed. IN first days of life the house must be provided with warmth, temperature indoors 28-30 ° C, after a few days it is reduced to 23 ° C. Lighting plays an important role in the early days and helps ducklings adapt to external conditions. For the first few days, the lighting should be around the clock. After the kids grow up a little, the lighting is reduced to 15-17 hours a day.

Mulardy ducklings

On the first day after birth, ducklings cannot eat on their own, they are used to feed them special kitssold in veterinary pharmacies. The mulards themselves begin to eat for 2-3 days. After the ducklings have hatched and dried, they are soldered a weak solution of potassium permanganate... The first feed is a hard-boiled and finely chopped egg. From day 10, well-crushed grain is added to the diet. From 10 days of age mulards are fed 2 times a day. From 2 weeks it is necessary to give duckweed. An important element when feeding ducklings is meat and bone meal and bran. To normalize calcium in the body, crushed shells are added to the diet. Ducklings need feed with mineral mixtures: chalk, limestone and shell rock. To improve digestive processes, ducks are given gravel. Ducklings should always have clean water. If possible, as an additive, it is allowed to give cottage cheese in the amount of 1 gram per head.

IMPORTANT! Mulard is not limited in food, since they are not inclined to accumulate fat, and in the process of abundant feeding, only muscle mass grows.

Ducklings diet should contain up to 20% protein, 1 kg of feed accounts for 2800 kcal of energy. After 3 weeks, the feeding scheme is chosen: intensive, extensive and semi-intensive.

Mularda hybrid ducklings

Intensive technology is feeding pellets, which must contain at least 17% protein. Semi-intensive technology is based on feeding with granular, wet and bulk feed. In the extensive method, roughage and grain are fed using food additives. From 5-6 weeks the birds are released into the pasture. Slaughter is carried out at 3-4 months, when the mulards reach the optimal live weight.

Foie gras feeding mulard

Fattening drakes to get fatty liver consists of 3 steps. In the first 3 weeks of life, chicks are fed in the usual way. Then the bird is transplanted into narrow and small cages so that it cannot move a lot. For the next 4 weeks, the ducklings are fed a diet high in starch and protein, which contributes to very rapid growth of the bird. From 8-10 weeks of age, the forced feeding stage begins. The food is pushed down the throat using a tube auger, in this way the bird receives 1.8 kg of grain per day. Forced feeding lasts 12-21 days.

INTERESTING TO KNOW: the liver of mulard fed on foie gras grows 10 times its normal size.

Diseases of ducks during rearing

Mulards are very sturdy and disease-resistant hybrids... They tolerate cold and temperature extremes well. With a normally balanced diet, the bird grows quickly and does not suffer from vitamin deficiencies. But, despite their good adaptation conditions, mularda are still susceptible to some diseases, the description of which is presented below.

Mulard hybrid duck

Aspergillosis

The bird becomes infected with this disease by inhaling the saw, which contains a fungus that grows in moldy straw and old feed. In 50% of cases, death occurs. Symptoms: lethargy, poor appetite, vomiting, rapid breathing, nasal discharge and paralysis of the legs and wings appear in the last stages. For the treatment of aspergillosis, a not very concentrated solution of copper sulfate is added to the water, but nystatin is added to the feed.

Plucking feathers

One of the acute problems of mulard is feather pecking. The disease occurs due to significant lack of protein in the body or adverse conditions of detention. In a small, dirty and poorly ventilated area, bird feathers become dirty quickly, which causes ducks to clean themselves much more often. In order to prevent pecking, it is necessary to balance the rations for all macro and micronutrients and adhere to sanitary and hygienic standards in the poultry house.

Duckling Mulard

Cloacite

This disease occurs due to a lack of vitamins. A mucous membrane appears on the cloaca of the duck, and pus may appear at a progressive stage. For treatment, first of all, they clean the cloaca, lubricate the mucous membrane with an iodine solution and apply zinc ointment. If the disease is detected at the first stage, then the duck will not suffer and your farm will not be harmed.

Advantages and disadvantages of the breed

Dignity

Cleanliness. The hybrid is distinguished by its cleanliness and well-groomed appearance, thanks to this property, their fluff is widely used in industry.

Calm disposition. Unlike Peking ducks, mulards are not loud, behave calmly and do not annoy breeders with constant noise.

White duck of Mulard breed

Early maturity. Mulard very quickly gain weight with standard feeding, like other ducks, and already at 3-4 months they go to slaughter.

High meat characteristics. Females are mainly used for fattening. Mulard meat is practically lean, because in the process of growth the bird accumulates only muscle mass. The meat does not have a specific smell, is soft and tasty.

Foie gras. It is the mulard liver that is used to prepare an exquisite foie gras dish. To obtain foie gras, only drakes are used; during the fattening period, the liver reaches 500-550 g.

Unpretentiousness. Mulards do not require special care, their maintenance is much cheaper than ordinary ducks. Hybrids adapt well to cold and hot climates.

Flaws

You cannot get offspring. Since mulards are hybrids, young animals cannot be obtained from them, therefore, for breeding, it is necessary to cross a musky and a Peking duck each time.

They do not tolerate dampness. This is an uncritical drawback, but nevertheless it is better to keep mulardov in dry pens to prevent various diseases.

Hybrid breed Mulard

Reviews of the domestic breed of ducks and video

Breeding mulard at home is much easierthan a regular duck. You can buy eggs and put them in an incubator, or buy ducklings right away. Easy for the season a full-fledged duck grows, which can already be cut in the fall. There is a lot of meat and it is practically low-fat, it is better to cut it at 4 months, it makes no sense to keep it anymore, and the duck will be tough. Mulard feed does not consume more than Peking duck, but grows much faster and the carcass is larger. No need to build capital sheds for the winter: in the spring I bought ducklings, and in the fall I killed them and no trouble. The big plus is the same weight of ducks and drakes, not that in other breeds the male is large, but in the female there is nothing to see. Mulard is ideal for home growing: fast, inexpensive and tasty.

Mulardy are, perhaps, best duck hybrid. Everyone knows their meat qualities and fast weight gain in a short time. These ducks are very unpretentious and behave calmly in the yard. Ducks by weight no different from drakes... This hybrid is used to produce large foie gras liver. They do not breed themselves, but this is a small problem, you can always buy chicks or eggs for incubation. And if there is an opportunity and time, then in subsidiary farms families from Peking musk ducks are created and with their help every year you can get mulard offspring. Mulard - this is a great option for those who want to receive high quality and lean meat.

Mularda ducks have earned the attention of large poultry farms and owners of private farms due to their rapid weight gain and excellent quality of gourmet liver. This variety of poultry has already supplanted geese, which were previously considered by gourmets the best "suppliers" of raw materials for foie gras, and are increasingly grown for meat in the households of ordinary amateur poultry breeders.

However, among the breeds or species of domestic ducks, mulard cannot be found. The fact is that this is an interspecific hybrid, which saw the light only thanks to the inquiring mind of man.

The origin of domestic mulard ducks

The selection was based on representatives of muscovy ducks, which live in nature on the American continent, and common mallards of European and Asian origin. The ducklings obtained as a result of crossing were called mulard after two parts of the English names of the original species MUscovy duck and malLARD.

Today, muscovy ducks and birds of modern meat breeds are used to obtain a highly productive meat herd of mulard. Depending on the chosen parental pair, the cross gets its name and differs from others in the color of the plumage and some features of its appearance and behavior. Like other descendants of interspecific pairs, domestic mularda ducks are not suitable for further breeding.

Although both females and males of mulard can show signs of sexual interest, they are completely sterile. Therefore, breeding mulard ducks at home does not provide for the abandonment of the parent livestock. All hybrid birds raised are slaughtered.

The offspring obtained from mating of musky and common, Peking ducks retain the positive qualities of both varieties and, importantly, reduce the influence of their weaknesses. So, for example, domestic ducks of meat breeds, although larger than their American counterparts, quickly accumulate fat, which negatively affects the quality of products. At the same time, they do not differ in a calm disposition, are unscrupulous and do not always willingly hatch laid eggs. Muscovy ducks are not as early maturing as Peking or other meat breeds. But they have amazing tender meat containing record low fat, are excellent hens, calm and vigilant about cleanliness.

What mulard ducks will result from mating representatives of two different species? Most often, hybrid individuals have a variegated, black-and-white or white-brown color, but they are noticeably larger than their parents.

Features of breeding mulard ducks

To combine all the positive aspects and get strong offspring from interspecific couples as early as possible, male muscovy duck and common female mallard ducks are used. As a result of natural mating, which is used to breed mulard ducks at home, ducklings from such pairs appear in the incubator after 30–31 days.

For breeding, sexually mature birds are chosen at the age of 7 to 10 months. The best period when the percentage of fertilized eggs is highest is mid-spring to early summer. By this time, the parent stock is formed from Peking and musk ducks. There should be 4–6 ducks per male in the pen. It is better if such a family has their own house with a walking area at their disposal. Population density is calculated based on 1 meter of area for three birds inside the house and one meter per head for walking.

Since the incubation instinct in beef breeds is insufficiently developed, laid eggs are removed. For further breeding of mulard ducks, an incubator is used or up to 20 eggs are placed under a good hen, for example, under a musky duck.

Using this trick, experienced poultry farmers achieve a fairly high percentage of successful hatching. True, in this case, the duck will have to be taken care of separately. For the hen, it is very important not only to have drink and hearty feeding, but also to splash freely in the water. Damp feathers and warmth create the atmosphere necessary for the development of embryos. Therefore, in an incubator with laid duck eggs, irrigation with warm water is also used.

Growing mulard ducks at home

Newborn ducklings are usually strong and unpretentious. Therefore, the further cultivation of mulard ducks has almost no special features. At the same time, the main attention is paid to the selection of a diet for the fastest growth and weight gain.

Often from poultry farmers you can hear the opinion that mulard ducks, in the photo, grow well on almost any feed. From the age of one month, chicks are released for walking and pay little attention to feeding the birds, hoping that live inquisitive ducklings will independently provide themselves with food. Such content, indeed, relieves the poultry farmer of many problems. But a bird left to itself will not be able to show the results that are inherent in it by nature. Although by the age of three months, the chicks will grow larger than their parents, due to a lack of protein feed, an abundance of moisture, which contributes to the speedy removal of food from the intestines and serious energy expenditures per day, the mularda will not reveal the full potential of the mularda.

From the first weeks of life, chicks should have a balanced diet with a predominance of specialized feeds or nutritional mixtures based on grain.

The competent organization of feeding mulard ducks and their maintenance determines how much weight the bird will gain by 7-9 weeks and later, when the time for slaughter comes. For fast fattening of ducks, they try to restrict movement.Due to the ability passed from musky ancestors to grow lean meat with a low fat content, domestic mularda ducks do not get fat even on a hearty diet and without long walks. Therefore, free range is not provided for them, and feeders and drinkers are installed in the immediate vicinity of the herd location.

Raising mulard ducks is akin to keeping broiler chickens, when everything is aimed at a quick increase in carcass weight.

Juicy food and herbs are added to the mash or given separately. Water is offered in drip troughs. When feeding mulard ducks, the tendency to pecking is also taken into account, therefore sulfur and feed rich in calcium must be introduced into the diet. We must not forget about such important components of the menu as fish and meat and bone meal, yeast and mineral supplements. Ducklings should receive them from the first month of life.

Under industrial conditions, mulards go to slaughter at the age of 7-10 weeks. Ducks produce excellent meat, and today males are increasingly fattened to obtain the most delicate raw materials for foie gras.

When using forced feeding of mulard ducks by the age of 4 months, poultry farmers manage to obtain a 500-gram liver of the highest quality. By the same time, the weight of the bird itself can reach 4 or more kilograms.

A video about caring for mulard ducks will be a useful help for a novice poultry breeder. Subject to the rules of keeping, proper feeding and maintaining cleanliness in the poultry houses, this unpretentious, interesting bird will delight you with its rapid growth and excellent quality of meat products.

Cultivation of mulard ducks - video

Mulard is a breed of ducks that many budding farmers are interested in. These poultry have many features and benefits.

Mularda ducks

This is not to say that it is very difficult to breed mulard. The method of breeding them is very similar to the breeding methods of other breeds of ducks. But there are still a lot of nuances, so check out the characteristics of the breed and the principles of breeding its representatives.

In the photo mulard duck close-up

Characteristics of the Mulardy breed

Mulard is a hybrid, that is, the result of crossing an Indo-duck with a Peking or other domestic duck. The color of their plumage can be either dark or light, but all mulard have a distinctive feature - a dark spot on the head. Their approximate weight, which they reach in a season, is three to four kilograms.

The color scheme of Murads is clearly visible in the photo.

The main reason for breeding mulard is the desire to get a large amount of duck meat. The process of raising ducks of this breed can rightfully be called productive. Under good conditions and proper feeding per season, an individual gains about four kilograms of weight or more. Moreover, its breeding is not costly. It will take as much effort and finances to raise a mularda as it takes to raise any other domestic duck.

Mularda ducks have very tasty meat

If you fatten mulardov well, you can get another valuable resource - fatty liver. It is the main component of a topical and expensive dish called foie gras. In order for the liver of a duck to be fat, you just need to feed it tightly and grow it in cramped conditions.

It is worth noting that mulard's liver tastes different from that of a goose. It is highly valued, as it has already won the title of delicacy.

Mulard meat is as fat as that of a goose. It differs only in a more delicate taste and less specific smell. It will surely appeal to those who consider chicken meat a little dry, and goose meat not very tasty.

Fat carcass of mulard

Mulard have one serious drawback - they are not able to produce their own kind. Even if you see how the drake will cover the duck, you shouldn't wait for the offspring anyway. This process is ineffectual, because it is only an instinct.

Mulard table

Is it possible to breed this breed at home?

Of course you can.To do this, you need to stock up on female Indo-ducks and male Peking ducks. You can do the opposite, that is, purchase musk drakes and females of any domestic ducks.

How to breed and keep ducks

It is not at all necessary to get a home incubator. In this case, he turns out to be unproductive compared to the hen.

To get a good result, you need to consider a few rules.

1. Mate adult birds. If they are less than six months old, productivity will be low. Overly adults (over eleven months old) are also not suitable.
2. Do not forget to separate representatives of the same breeds. If you purchase males and females of each breed required and keep them together, the males will only cover “their” females. The result is not crossbreeding, but standard breeding.
3. Provide good conditions for the ducks. They should be warm, light and spacious. Of course, you shouldn't forget about feeding. Otherwise, the males will not cover the females.
4. Cross breeds during favorable times. The best time is from late April to mid-June.

When trying to cross, you may encounter an obvious phenomenon - a drake of one breed will ignore a female of another breed. Do not be upset, as it will adapt to new conditions a little later and will still cover the duck. If the male is a representative of the musky breed, you can go for a trick - paint the back of the Peking duck with dark paint.

It is very important to follow the rules for crossing individuals.

Before placing a hen on eggs, you need to provide her with good conditions. It is recommended to limit her from contact with other birds. Be sure to equip a nest for her. Suitable bedding can be made from straw.

Recommendations for the arrangement of the gosper

Not far from the nest, you should install a drinker, a feeder and a container of water in which the duck can swim. No more than fifteen eggs should be placed in the nest itself.

In order not to waste time, purchase an ovoscope. With this device, you can identify unusable eggs. In a fertilized egg with embryos, vascular networks will be noticeable - such eggs must be left. You need to remove only those in which there are no blood vessels or there is a red ring. In one month, the mulards should hatch from the eggs.

How to buy a healthy mulard duckling?

If you do not have enough time to breed mulard, and you have decided to buy little ducklings, be sure to read the information on how to make the right choice.

Little duck breed Mulard

Many breeders ignore the rules for raising mulard, so poultry purchased from them quickly die. If you have the opportunity to choose ducklings, immediately pay attention to their mobility. A fussy little mulard is a good choice, as this behavior speaks of his excellent health.

Choose an active, healthy duckling

Do not give preference to small poultry, which huddle in a corner and do not move. Sometimes healthy ducklings behave this way if they are tired and want to sleep, so you just need to make a loud sound to check. Even knocking on the tray where they are located will be quite enough. Mulards with good health will definitely react to it.

Another sign of a duckling that is not worth buying is the wings separated from the body. In a healthy small bird, they should be pressed against the body. Another sign of the disease is a dirty undertail. This area must be clean.

Signs of healthy ducklings

In what conditions to grow mulard?

Very young ducklings have high maintenance requirements. In the first week of life, they need to be in a room where the temperature will be about thirty degrees. After they are seven days old, the temperature can be lowered to seventeen degrees. In the first days of life, ducklings should receive a lot of light.You can either use artificial lighting or take the ducklings for a walk, if weather conditions permit.

Duck house device

For the first two weeks of life, ducklings need soft bedding. Hay or straw will do, but wood waste should never be used. Small mulards can eat them.

To prevent adult birds from getting sick, they need a closed room, that is, a barn. It should be completely closed to prevent the birds from blowing or wetting them with rain.

Experts recommend making windows to the south during the construction of a duckhouse, so that there is more natural light.

If you do not grow mulard for the sake of a valuable resource in the form of fatty liver, you need to remember that they need a large shed. It should not be allowed that there are more than four individuals per square meter.

In a closed room for ducks, you should install not only drinkers and feeders, but also containers in which they can swim.

Duck feeder

Walking is what the mulardam need. But a cramped aviary or a small fenced area is not good. One poultry should have one square meter. Prepare to enclose a large area if you want to breed many individuals.

Mulardy on the walk

A fence on the territory should be done only if any circumstances require it. Mulard are calm poultry that are unlikely to leave their habitat of their own free will.

How and what to feed mulardov?

If you have little mulards, get ready to suffer. At this age, they do not know how to eat, so each duckling will have to be fed. First you need to give the kids a drink with a very weak solution of potassium permanganate. This should be done on the first day of their life.

Next, you need to try to feed the little mulard with porridge with boiled chopped egg. From the fifth day of life, ducklings can be fed with grated greens, and after they are two weeks old, you can treat them to boiled potatoes.

Feeding ducklings

You can simplify the task if you buy kits for feeding small mulards of different ages in a specialized store. It is easy to find vitamin complexes for weak ducklings in veterinary pharmacies.

A very important condition is the constant availability of water in the drinking bowls. Mularda consume a huge amount of fluids, which has a positive effect on their health. When ducks drink, they can rinse their beak, so the drinker should be large and flat.

Drinking bowl for ducklings

Drinking bowl from a can and a pallet

So that mulards do not suffer from digestive problems, they need to be fed with special additives. You don't have to buy store-bought supplements if you make a feeder with chalk, crushed egg shells, shells and limestone. These mineral supplements will suffice. Cereals and bone meal also help to improve the digestion process.

Ducklings nutrition table

Several types of foods should be included in the diet of adult mulard:

• fresh green herbs. In this regard, mulards are unpretentious, so they can be fed with any greens, except poisonous ones. Clover, alfalfa and nettles are what ducks love the most. You can also feed them with some aquatic plants, for example, duckweed;
• vegetables. The most suitable are carrots and potatoes. The second food product can only be given boiled. Yellow pumpkin and cabbage are also suitable for feeding;
• waste. This group includes fish and meat products. They cannot be given in large quantities;
• cereals. These include oats, barley, corn, and legumes;
• cake. Soybean, cotton, peanut and rapeseed cakes are suitable;
• dairy. Usually they are fed to ducklings, but to improve their health, they can also be given to adult mulards. Low-fat cottage cheese is most suitable. The rest of the dairy products spoil quickly.

Ducks feeding

In the summertime, ducks should be fed at least four times. Dry and wet food should be fed twice a day.In addition, you should constantly feed the ducks with grass.

Grain mixture for feeding ducks

In the cold period, mulardam is enough to eat only a couple of times a day. The first feeding is dry food, the second is wet food and vegetables. The more varied both feeds, the better, because in winter mulardam really need vitamins.

Dry food for ducks

Special attention should be paid to the diet of laying hens. It should be as balanced and complete as possible, despite the season. The table shows example of a daily diet.

Edible salt	1,4
Grain mix	60
Bone flour	1,5
Boiled potatoes	45
Fresh greens	100
Waste	5
a piece of chalk	6
Barley or corn flour	110
Cake	10

Nutrition of mulard ducklings

Video - Ducks breed Mulard

Video - Breeding mulard and a few facts about them

Today, on personal plots, many people breed domestic animals for their own needs or for sale. This process is not so difficult, especially if there is a sufficient food supply. The easiest way is to grow a bird, since it is easier to feed it, and there is no need for specially equipped rooms for it, and it is not necessary to leave it for the winter. One of the most profitable breeds of poultry for domestic breeding are mulard (ducks).

Description of the breed

Mulardy is not so long ago an artificially bred hybrid, obtained by crossing in the classic version of the musky and domestic Peking white duck, intended exclusively for meat, because it does not give offspring. This breed was bred by French breeders who, while retaining the advantages of the original breeds, were able to practically get rid of their shortcomings.

It is easy to recognize these ducks by the black speck on the head, which is the only mark on a completely white body.

If a musk drake is crossed with a Rouen duck, a white alier or an Orlington, they also get an interspecific mulard hybrid, only their color can change slightly, a spot on the head remains.

Mulard are ducks that are suitable for both domestic and industrial rearing. They look tightly knit outwardly and are in good health.

Breed characteristics

Domestic mulard ducks are hardy, can adapt to any conditions, are resistant to diseases, give a high survival rate, are productive, their meat is less fatty and more tasty than that of ducks of other breeds. They easily tolerate temperature extremes and cold snaps and are unpretentious in food.

This bird is distinguished by enviable calmness and cleanliness. And also, compared to other breeds, it is very quiet. Ducks rarely quack and do not rush around the yard, especially if there is a body of water nearby.

The difference in weight between drakes and ducks of this breed is about half a kilogram. In two months, with proper care and nutrition, the mulard reaches a weight of 3.5 kg, and after another month - 6 kg. For summer residents who live outside the city for no more than six months and can release a bird to nibble the grass, this breed is especially beneficial with relatively low feeding costs.

Breeding mulard ducks

Ducks of this breed lay eggs, but they are unfertilized. Therefore, for breeding mulards, you can buy eggs in an incubator, but at home you need to organize an incubator with strict adherence to temperature and light conditions. Mulard ducks need this.

Breeding at home is also possible from chicks or an already grown-up bird that has characteristic external features of the breed. This way is safer, but the price of ducklings is quite high. You can reduce the cost of the purchase by purchasing young animals in bulk, if you need a large number of poultry.

Amateur breeders can breed the hybrid on their own. This path is longer, more laborious, but also more exciting. First you need a musky drake and two or three Peking ducks, or vice versa, as it turns out. This is not so important, although in the second case, the ducks will not turn out so meaty.Another thing is important: they need to be kept separate from the rest of the poultry, because it is difficult to get a drake to fertilize a female of a different breed and you should not leave him a choice.

Ducks hatch eggs as usual. You can also use an incubator, only in it the productivity is much lower - about 60%. And under the hen, at least 80%, or even 100%, is displayed. Ducklings are growing actively, after some one and a half to two months they already surpass their own parents in weight.

Features of growing mulard ducklings

If mulard ducklings are purchased for growing, immediately after delivery from the seller of the kids, you need to drink a light solution of potassium permanganate from a pipette.

In the first five days of life, chicks should be kept in a room with a temperature slightly below 30 ° C, next to a reliable source of heat and round-the-clock lighting.

Within a week, babies are not afraid of 18 ° C. And after a few days they are provided with lighting for no more than 16 hours a day.

The ducklings should be placed on a thick, soft bed of hay or straw. Sawdust cannot be used for this purpose: chicks peck at them and may die.

It is possible to release babies for a walk already in the second week of life, if the weather is warm and sunny.

Feeding mulard ducklings

Tiny ducklings have to be taught to eat. Today pharmacies offer special kits for feeding chicks at home. But this is, firstly, expensive, and secondly, rather laborious. Therefore, for babies, they prepare porridge from crushed rice or millet (small cereals) and mix it with mashed hard-boiled egg. This mixture, warm enough, is sprinkled directly on the ducklings to grab moving food, or on a dark surface where the light porridge is clearly visible.

By the third day, the ducklings are already starting to eat on their own. After that, finely chopped nettle greens or other herbs are introduced into the diet. At ten days of age, chicks happily eat boiled and mashed potatoes.

For the entire first month, ducklings are given low-fat cottage cheese and milk, they are added to cereals.

If there is a pond or a river nearby, duckweed is caught with a net and given to chicks starting from two weeks of age. Ducklings can be released and swim, but only when the reservoir is close enough.

Mulard are ducks and, of course, love water and drink it a lot. It is necessary to ensure that there is water in the drinker. Up to a month, ducklings are fed three times a day, then two.

Feeding adult mulard

Mulard duck at home should receive not only food, but also mineral supplements.

They feed adult mulards, like ducks of other breeds, with compound feed, wheat and corn.

Eggshells, chalk, limestone and shells are used as mineral additives, which are poured into a separate feeder. This feeder should never be empty.

Fine gravel is needed for the normal digestive process in poultry.

Ducks not only drink water, but also rinse their beaks and nostrils clogged with food with it. Drinking bowls should be deep, but not too wide.

An adult poultry should receive baker's yeast up to 1 g per day for normal digestion, wheat bran and meal, boiled meat waste and potatoes, meat and bone meal.

Keeping mulard ducks

Mulard are ducks, the keeping of which is no different from the conditions for other breeds of poultry. They spend the night indoors to protect them from precipitation and cold, the area of ​​which is calculated on the basis of 1 sq. m for 3 individuals. For walking, you need a fenced yard, in which at least 1 sq. m area.

It is worth keeping a bird for no more than three months. After 60 days, you can slaughter her, her meat at this time is very tender. Later, the duck begins to molt and is hard to pluck. It is believed that it is best to score a mulard at two and three months. In the interval, its sexual maturation occurs.

Mulard productivity

Ducks of this breed produce more than 3 kg of meat of very good quality from one poultry.For this, females are raised, which in adulthood reach a weight of about 6 kg. Males, on the other hand, are raised mainly because of the liver, which in a drake reaches more than half a kilogram of weight.

Meat is meat, but, which is especially important in summer cottage life, ducks begin to lay eggs at about three months of age and can bring more than 250 pieces per season.

Advantages and disadvantages of mulard

Endurance, vitality and calmness are not all the advantages that the mulard duck is distinguished by. Reviews of farmers begin with the profitability of breeding this breed from an economic point of view. Mulardy give an increase in live weight of about one and a half kilograms by the time they are ten weeks old. Compared to ducks of other breeds and geese, they fatten up faster, while the consumption of corn, feed, which is quite expensive, is much less.

Mulard are grown for meat, the special delicate taste of which is an undoubted advantage. The liver of these ducks is not much different from the goose liver in size and fat content. This is also a plus that only mulard ducks are characterized by.

Breeding at home for your own use does not require the preservation of the characteristics of the breed in several generations of the bird.

But for farmers and breeders, the one-season mulard is a disadvantage. It is much more profitable to purchase a bird that can regularly bring offspring that retains the characteristics of the breed.

Cooking mulard meat

The recipe for mularda duck with apples is very simple, few ingredients are used, because the meat is tender, devoid of a specific duck smell, does not require soaking in a marinade and a lot of spices. A cleanly washed carcass is rubbed with salt and pepper, generously smeared with sour cream to soften the skin and obtain a golden brown crust when baking, marinated for several hours, then stuffed with sour apples, cut into four parts and without a core.

Then the bird is baked in the sleeve for 2-2.5 hours, depending on its size, until the same golden brown crust is obtained. The meat is wonderfully baked and easy to cut.

A rather complicated recipe for mulard breast with lemon chutney with an abundance of ingredients and spices is impossible with fatty duck of another breed, which is melted into fat when frying.

It is believed that for the preparation of the famous foie gras (pâté made from fatty liver), not only goose is suitable, but also fatty nutritious soft liver, which is distinguished by mulard duck. Cooking this dish is a whole art. And the fat that is released when baking duck liver plays an important role both in the preparation of the pate and in its storage.

Mulard are ducks with a lot of advantages, the disadvantages of which are completely unimportant for home breeding. Dishes made from their meat and liver are delicious and nutritious. Any family can be provided with their eggs in abundance. Therefore, they are so beneficial for growing in personal plots, especially if there is a body of water nearby.