Orpington Duck Breed – Everything You Need to Know

The Buff or Buff Orpington is a great meat duck as well as a prolific egg layer. These beautiful ducks with their pretty plumage and great characters are in need of more breeders.

They were once a sought-after breed for both their meat and eggs but due to large commercial breeders seeking cheaper alternative meat their numbers began to drop. The American Livestock Conservancy has them listed as a “threatened” breed.

They are really good all-around breed with a calm nature making the great pets, they are good foragers and make great exhibition ducks.

They also make a good starter duck for the first-time duck keeper and do well around supervised children. This is one duck that a duck keeper should look into owning.

GENERAL INFORMATION
Country of Origin:	England
American Poultry Association:	yes Recognized by the American Poultry Association
Duck Category:	Medium
Duck Class:	English
Colors:	Buff, Date of acceptance: 1914
Other known colors :	Blue, Black and White
Good starter duck?	Yes
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Other names known by:	Buff Orpington
Bantam Variety Available?	No
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APPEARANCE / IDENTIFICATION

DUCK BITS

DESCRIPTION

COLOR

EYES⇒

Dark Brown

BILL⇒

Long

M = Yellow
F = Orange/Brown

* Black bean tipped

CRESTED?

LEGS⇒

Short

Yellow/Orange

Same for the M & F

FEET⇒

Medium Sized

Yellow/Orange

FEATHERS⇒

M & F Similar

Buff

Soft tan color. The male has a grey head and grey stripe on his wings. Both M & F have white tipped wings

SKIN COLOR⇒

White

AVERAGE WEIGHT⇒

Adult Female:	8 lbs.
Adult Male:	7 lbs.
Mature:	**6-7 lbs. @ 8-10 weeks old

*Bean: This is also called the nail. It is a small round bump found at the end of the duck’s bill. It is used for defence and to catch insects. It is almost like a fingernail and is damaged can grow back. It can also get overgrown much like fingernails if they do not have something to grind it down on.

** Note: This is an average weight for the male duck and not a guaranteed weight

USE/PURPOSE

Females/Hens

⇒

Eggs, Meat, Breeding, Show and Pets

Eggs⇒
	Color:	White
	Qty/Yr:	150 to 220
	Size:	Medium to Large
	They will start to try hatch eggs from their first lay
	Start to lay around 25 to 30 weeks old. They lay consistently through the year
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Broody:	Yes	They do get broody
Mothers:	Yes	They make really good mother ducks
Meat:	Yes	They have a good quality of meat
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Pets:	Yes	They are very entertaining and friendly
Show:	Yes	They make good show ducks
Prime:	7 yrs	They lay right up to between 8 to 9 years of age if they stay healthy

Males/Drakes

⇒

Breeding, Meat, Show and Pets

Breed:	Yes	Should only start to breed them at 6 months old
Start:	–	Start to get fertile at around 3 – 4 months
No. Females	5	For every 1 drake in a flock
Aggressive	No	Unless they are watching over the eggs for the mother duck
Meat	Yes	A good quality of meat and they mature quite quickly
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Pets:	Yes	They are fun lively entertaining and friendly
Show:	No	They are beautiful show ducks
Prime:	4 yrs	It is best to mate the younger drakes of up to about 4 years old

TEMPERAMENT
“The Buff Orpington ducks have a very calm, gentle and friendly nature”
Good with Kids?	They are good around supervised kids
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Flyers?	They can fly but rarely even try
Noisy Birds?	No, they are not at all noisy
Interact with other ducks?	They are homebodies but will socialize with ducks .
Best duck breeds to mix them with:	Any domestic breed of duck
Other animals?	They tend to not be too fussed by other domestic animals but watch cats and dogs around them

IDEAL ENVIRONMENT
“They thrive in most environments as long as they are well looked after and are homebodies”
Ideal Garden Size?	Medium to large
Can be Confined?	They do not enjoy being confined though
Free-Range	As they do not really like to fly they will not go too far
Penned Free-Ranging?	It makes them feel safer.
Foragers	They are good foragers
Endures heat well	Yes
Endures cold well	Yes
Special Requirements?	No
Ideal Duck House:	As long as there are nice cozy nests or snuggling areas for them to sleep
Ideal Duck Pond:	A kiddie paddling pool or small pond that is not too deep
Flock/Paddling Size:	Two or more
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GOOD TO KNOW
“They have no real special requirements or needs. They are relatively low maintenance ducks”
Special Care/Attention Requirements?	No
Known Predators:	Check with animal control in your area for known predators
Conservations Status:	Threatened For more information on poultry, conservation status, check the American Livestock Conservancy Website
Breeders Clubs:	It is best to check with the American Poultry Association for various clubs and or organizations.
Where to buy them:	Purely Poultry , the APA or check with the American Livestock Conservancy
Other:	If you do not want to risk having your ducks shipped check with your local poultry farms for advice on your nearest supplier.

HISTORY

The Orpington duck breed was developed by a famous English poultry breeder. William Cook who resided in Kent, England developed the breed in many different varieties. These varieties included Blue, Black and White. The White variety was not very popular and soon their number dropped out of existence.

The Buff variety of the Orpington duck was developed by the pairing of Aylesbury, Rouen, Cayuga and Runner ducks. The Buff Orpington duck was developed in the 1800’s around the time that were Buff Poultry feathers were all the fad.

William Cook took his Buff Orpington to the Madison Square Garden Show held in New York in 1908. Here the Buff Orpington made its first appearance in the United States. They were accepted into the Standard of Perfection by the American Poultry Association in 1914.

The ducks gained popularity for their delicious large eggs and tender high-quality tasty meat.
But the Buff Ducks numbers began to dwindle when the commercial duck industry took to cheaper meat. And ducks that matured a lot quicker than the Buff duck did.

In 2015 the American Livestock Conservancy recorded the breeds breeding stock numbers to be around 1088 birds. They are still currently listed as a “threatened” status on the Livestock Conservancy list.
They are not difficult to breed and make a nice all-around bird for any duck owner looking for a good utility duck. That is also a prolific egg layer and makes a good addition to their duck flock.

Health

No known health issues

Ducks need water to ensure they do not get “wet feather” disease. This is where the preening gland dries out. Water also stops them from getting pests such as mites, fleas, ticks, lice, etc.
Well, fed ducks should hardly have any health issues.
Any birds kept in a flock need to be dewormed. Although ducks are not as prone as other poultry they should still have a de-worming regime. Speak to a local vet or poultry experts for advice. Our article on Healthy Ducks has some great tips and advice on de-worming ducks.