True or False - Ducks are better than Chickens? What's your opinion?
#1. True or False? Ducks tend to be healthier than chickens...
#2. True or False? Ducks are more tolerant to the cold than chickens...
#3. True or False? Ducks are more tolerant to the heat than chickens...
#4. True or False? Duck eggs are better than chicken eggs...
#5. True or False? Ducks are less territorial than chickens...
#6. True or False? Ducks are easier on your landscaping...
#7. True or False? Ducks are better and bug control...
#4. False... Yes.. False... If you take the same quantity of duck eggs and compare them with the same quantity of chicken eggs, you get this: (right click - open in new tab - expand)
Chicken egg have less carbohydrates, less fat, and more protein than duck eggs.. Surprised by this?
#2. Statistically False... Over 90% of all fowl raised on farms/homesteads are from hatcheries (Local feed store, Tractor Supply, ect.). Why? We've grown used to technology/convenience and rely on others to provide a product over incubating/brooding ourselves. Ducks in their natural environment are seasonal birds (they fly south for the winter / North for the summer). Even farm ducks that aren't happy with their environment will attempt to escape (because it's in the ducks traits). Which is why you have to either crop or clip your ducks wings. Chickens are domestic, like pigeons, they return to the same spot at the end of every day that they call home. A change in climate will not deter a chicken from its home. Chickens will share body heat and huddle up. Ducks don't usually share that trait... Winner in this case is Chickens...
#1. True and False... Ducks clean themselves, so naturally (in nature) they would be flying to ponds and cleaning themselves on a daily basis. In captivity, the owner of the duck would have to provide the means of cleanliness (a small pond or a little kiddie pool). Without the husbandry of the person keeping the ducks, they would not be necessarily healthier. Chickens on the other hand, clean themselves using a dust bath. If your chickens are free range, no work is required for him/her to know that the chickens are staying clean (the chickens will do that work by themselves). If the chickens are in a pin, the owner would just simply have to provide a pan with sand in it. When having to provide cleanliness to ducks and chickens, the big difference is that ducks will destroy their source of cleanliness (you will constantly be changing the water / cleaning the source / because ducks defecate in it), and chickens will guard their source of cleanliness (they will keep their dust bath area clean). Winner in this question - Chickens....
#5. Neither True or False... My ex-wife and I could get along if you gave us enough space! Animal husbandry is about the "Proper" care of all of your animals. In this case, we are talking of male ducks and chickens. Females tend to get along (unless cooped up / brooding). Males, however must have space, but (allotted that space) will get along. True.. There will a time when you'll come across an animal that wants to be more Alpha male (which doesn't exist by the way). That's just an animal you just need to put on the dinner table... You want a co-existence with your animals... Give them enough space, and they will thank you for that!
#3. False... Refer to the reply in question #2 above. Ultimately, it is the husbandry of the owner of the animals that keeps his/her fowl warm or cool in the yearly seasons.
#6. True... Of this entire list, it is true that ducks are less rough on your land. Chickens are scratching for critters, and tend to scratch at the surface of the ground (sometimes up to an inch). Ducks have webbed feet (with nails) and it's sensitive to the ducks, so they will not scratch like a chicken.
#7. False... For the same exact reason #6 is True... Chickens share some of the same DNA traits of a T-REX (well all birds evolved from dinosaurs - but chickens have the largest genetics related to them compared to any other fowl [Except Ostriches] ). Chickens are bug hunters! Ducks not so much - they aren't equipped with the same features as chickens, so they are limited in their bug hunting capapbilities.