The breed of ducks, agidel, was bred in our country not so long ago and immediately gained simply huge popularity. This cross of the meat direction of productivity is characterized by rapid weight gain, high egg production and unpretentiousness in the content.
Withdrawal history and lines
The Agidel duck was obtained by crossing two highly productive hybrids: Blagovarsky and Super M (the famous English company Cherry Valley) with Indian runners. In total, breeders have drawn three main lines of this cross:
- A3 and A4 (based on super M).
- A5 (based on super M and Indian runner).
- Parent form A45.
Based on the last line, two hybrids were obtained: agidel 34 and agidel 345. A characteristic feature of these ducks is their white plumage and excellent productivity, and hereditarily fixed.
Agidel duck: breed description
Agidel ducks have a pronounced "meat" appearance. Their body is wide and long, horizontally set. From runners, they took excellent productivity in terms of egg production. From Super M - the ability to quickly increase body weight at low feed costs, and from Blagovarsky cross - a soft feather of pure white color, which is very much appreciated in the market. During the productive period, from one layer, you can get up to 240 eggs (88-100 gr). At seven weeks of age, the drakes weigh more than three kilograms, ducks - about 2.8 kg. In addition, the meat of the duck breed Agidel has a great taste. It is considered dietary and refers to a biologically valuable product.
The nature of ducks agidel is very calm and flexible. This quick-witted bird easily gets along with any other inhabitants of the homestead economy and understands perfectly the requirements of the owners.
The maintenance of ducks of this breed is also not too complicated because they are resistant to many diseases. For example, they are practically not susceptible to leukemia. Resistance to this disease in ducks agidel is approximately three times higher than in other breeds.
Content Features
To successfully grow such a poultry as duck agidel, it will be enough to build a small shed with a range on the site, as well as stock up on a certain amount of inexpensive feed. The presence of a nearby reservoir is not a prerequisite. However, it’s still worth digging a small container of water for duck swimming somewhere in the area. You can install it right in the paddock. Sometimes, so that the ducks do not get dirty and do not drag the dirt around the house, they arrange an artificial pond somewhere in the back of the garden, from time to time expelling the birds to take water procedures. The fact is that dirt and dampness on the paddock and in the barn can lead to a deterioration in the quality of the pen.
Hybrid Advantages
Thus, the duck agidel, whose photo can be seen just below, is distinguished simply by a huge number of advantages. These include:
- fast weight gain;
- unpretentiousness in relation to feed;
- tasty meat;
- high egg production;
- calm friendly disposition;
- disease resistance.
Agidel duck (the characteristic of this breed, as you see, is just excellent) is also appreciated because of the pure white color of the feather. The carcasses of this bird look very neat, as they are completely devoid of dark “stumps”.
What should be a house
As already mentioned, the agidel does not make any special requirements for arranging a shed. However, it is still necessary to observe some rules when constructing a house. Despite excellent resistance to various diseases and the ability to quickly adapt to any conditions, the bird of this breed does not like drafts. Therefore, during the construction of the duckweed, care should be taken to ensure that there are no cracks in the walls. If the house is a panel house, there are three pieces of wood on the frame: two end-to-end and one overlap.
It is best to plaster the walls inside the caddy, and fill the remaining gaps at the door and window with mounting foam. Litter of sawdust or straw is laid on the floor. In the future, it will have to be changed from time to time. Otherwise, parasites will enter the birds' feathers. The density of the “population” in the house should be no more than 2-3 animals per 1 m2.
Utopian ventilation, lighting and equipment
With success, you can grow a bird of this breed in an ordinary barn. However, a window in it must be required. These ducks do not like stagnation of air very much, quickly losing in productivity. It would even be better to arrange elementary natural exhaust ventilation in the house, making a small hole near the ceiling. A particularly strong and healthy agidel duck can be grown in such a room. A photo of a shed suitable for this species of poultry can be seen below.
Feeders in ducklings are usually used low and long, in the form of a trough. Install them most often close to the wall. Drinking bowls, so that ducks do not climb into them, are placed on a small hill (15-20 cm from the floor). You can also use drip or nipple modern designs.
Nests are placed along the wall, opposite the feeders. A very good option is their usual roomy wicker baskets. You can use just low wooden boxes. In addition to nests and feeders, small containers filled with ash are often placed in the house. Ducks love to wallow in them. In addition, many types of feather parasites are afraid of ash.
Feeding Features
Agidel duck, the description of which was given a little higher in all its details, is absolutely not demanding in relation to the diet. It is usually made up of very inexpensive feed. Most often these are cereals, grass and vegetables. Very often, these ducks are simply allowed to graze near the house. In this case, they quickly find food among the herbs. However, of course, it is not worth transferring the bird completely to pasture . Cereals and vegetables in the diet of ducks are agidel, at least in small quantities, but must be present.
Ducks agidel: reviews
The fact that this hybrid is actually characterized by high productivity and is very convenient in maintenance is eloquently evidenced by at least the fact that many of the largest domestic poultry farms have come to the decision to breed it on a large scale. One of the enterprises, Eurodon, even announced that it was going to produce duck meat based on agidel on an industrial scale. This cross has earned such popularity among large manufacturers mainly due to its unpretentiousness and quite tasty meat.
Owners of small household plots also deserved very good reviews. This bird grows very quickly and does not require large maintenance costs. True, some summer residents say that the meat of this bird is slightly greasy. Especially in comparison with the musk duck. They do not consider him too cloying, but they still advise them to provide the bird with a natural walk and add more grass to its diet. In this case, the meat will be lean. Well, of course, do not delay with slaughter. This procedure is performed before the start of juvenile molting - at 55-60 days of age.
Breeding
Many homestead owners lay the eggs of these ducks in the incubator twice a year: in summer and spring. Agidel duck chicks are born on day 28. The fertility of eggs in this hybrid is approximately 93%.
Look after the hatched chicks in the same way as the ducklings of any other meat breed. That is, for kids, it is necessary to fence off a corner in the house, as well as arrange a separate small walk, covered with a grid of forty and a raven on top.
After hatching, ducklings are usually kept in boxes. The air temperature in such a manger should not fall below 30 degrees. Over the next three weeks, it is gradually reduced to about 16 degrees. The first five days the lights in the box do not turn off even at night. Starting from the moment of birth to three weeks of age, the density of ducklings should not exceed 25 individuals per 1 m2. After the chicks are 21 days old, they should be transferred to a larger room. On 1 m2 accommodate no more than 16 three-week-old individuals.
As you can see, the agidel duck is a very unpretentious bird and at the same time extremely productive. Judging by the reviews of many owners of suburban areas, to maintain it is actually very simple and at the same time quite profitable.