Our Cayuga Ducks
Mr. Cay who won Best Duck in Show at the Suffolk and Essex Spring Show 2003
Cayuga's are large, docile ducks, but not as big as the more commonly seen white Aylesbury or Pekin. They originate from Lake Cayuga in New York State, USA. They are too heavy to fly, so are easy to keep confined to their own gardens. The books vary in their estimates of how many eggs Cayugas lay per year - from 40 to 100. Mrs. Cay is a good layer and has laid us an egg a day since early March, so she's well over 40 already. She stops for a couple of days when disturbed (e.g. when she and Mr. Cay were displayed at poultry exhibitions at Agricultural Shows and when they first moved into their new home in May). The pair of them were very popular at the shows with their unusual glossy green/black feathers.
Our first four Cayuga ducklings this year. We hatched them in
the incubator as Mrs. Cay is a bit heavy and tends to crack her eggs when she
tries to incubate them herself. These pictures were taken when we first introduced them
to their parents in their paddock. The ducklings were very friendly, but Mum and
Dad kept running away from them at first.
They were hatched on 26th April 2003 and these pictures were
taken when they were 4 weeks old. The weather was very warm so they were
allowed out during the day, but were still under the broody lamp at night.
They
are now back with their Indian Runner Duck friends who look much bigger, though
they are the same age. Can you spot the Cayugas?
Six
weeks old today and everyone is getting those beautiful feathers that shine
green in the sun; but they still have fluffy down patches between them. Now they no longer sleep
with the light on to keep them warm they will soon be ready to go to their new
homes.
Our adult pair went into moult after the Suffolk and Essex Show so we couldn't
enter them in the Tendring Show. As the young ones had their feathers by then we
entered two of them in the show. They came first and second in their class and
the female won Best Waterfowl in Show
(Colchester Poultry Club) in July 2003.
Also we found out whilst on holiday in Canada that the name Cayuga comes from the Indian Tribe that lived in the area. The name means 'People of the Marsh' and 'Keepers of the Great Pipe'.
Chris and myself in Cayuga, Canada 2003
In November 2003 Mr. & Mrs. Green came to live with us. Mrs. Green is at least 5yrs old and has started to get white feathers coming through on her head and neck. The older they get the more white there is, and they can no longer be shown. She is still very attractive and lays eggs and is easy to identify when mixing with the rest of the Cayugas. Mr. Green is about the same age, but does not have any white yet so we will have to ring him soon so we can differentiate between him and Mr. Cay.
They are pictured above with our East Indian pair and Mr.
& Mrs. Trout (Indian Runners)