Never forget

dnc said:

AZDuck said:

I was 12

Fuck off

Ducks are not as long-lived as geese. The average life span of a domestic duck is 10 years or less.

As a general rule, the larger breeds of duck have the shortest life spans. Seldom do they live beyond five to seven years of age.

Muscovy
An exception is the Muscovy, which may live to between eight and 12 years of age, or more.

Pekin
The Pekin (probably due to its rapid growth rate as a young bird) normally lives a relatively short life—perhaps five years. The first part of a Pekin to fail as it ages is often its legs. I suspect that rapid weight gain in its first year taxes its ability to support itself. The actual useful life of an exhibition Pekin may be only three years. “Useful life” is determined by the length of time it’s useful as a breeder.

Medium to Light Ducks
The average life span of the medium and light ducks (Cayugas, Blue Swedish, Runners, etc.) may exceed that of most large ducks by two or three years.

Keep in mind, however, that ducks kept for egg production may only produce an optimal number of eggs per year for two or three years. In fact, pushing female ducks to produce large numbers of eggs will probably shorten the life of a member of any breed.

Bantam Ducks
The longest lived of the ducks by a considerable margin are the bantam ducks—the Calls and Black East Indies in particular.

A number of mine have lived a decade or more and one Grey Call female lived 15 years. They also tend to have longer useful lives from a breeder’s standpoint, with males remaining fertile for as long as a decade and some females able to produce eggs for an even longer period, assuming the best of care. Because they carry less weight and don’t experience ultra-fast growth rates, their bodies tend to hold up longer.

Of course, a discussion of longevity in any breed assumes that the birds are provided with a good diet and appropriate housing and are not overcrowded.