Pekin Duck Breed – Everything You Need to Know

The Pekin duck is one of the most common ducks in the USA. It is bred primarily for its meat and eggs as a prolific layer that is not broody.

They are also a beautiful white duck with a tiny splash of yellow on their underbellies. They love to dabble in shallow water and make excellent pets as they are quite friendly.

As Pekin do not like to sit their eggs it makes it really easy to collect them being that most ducks will try and protect their eggs.

Pekin ducks are also not very noisy birds but do get up to some crazy antics. Most owners of these ducks say how delightfully entertaining they are. Their body shape and positioning of their legs give them the authentic duck waddle associated with ducks.

An excellent breed for the urban homesteader, first-time duck owners and families.

GENERAL INFORMATION
Country of Origin:	China
American Poultry Association:	yes Recognized by the American Poultry Association
Duck Category:	Heavy Breed
Duck Class:	Oriental
Colors:	White, Date of acceptance: 1874
Other names known by	White Pekin, Long Island Duck
Good starter duck?	They make a very good starter duck as they are calm, friendly, do not fly and are not a noisy duck.
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Bantam Variety Available?	No
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APPEARANCE / IDENTIFICATION

DUCK BITS

DESCRIPTION

COLOR

EYES⇒

Dark Brown

BILL⇒

Long

Yellow/Orange

Gently curves from the face with another gentle upward curve at the end of its bill. *Black bean tipped at the end of the bill.

CRESTED?

EAR LOBES⇒

Normal

Same as Feathers

Small, feather-covered holes behind the eyes

LEGS⇒

Wide Apart

Yellow/Orange

Wide apart and far back on its body. Gives the body a boat shape.

FEET⇒

Small

Yellow/Orange

Thin membrane webbed feet with three toes.

WINGS⇒

Not very long

White

Do not fly very well and usually do not even try

FEATHERS⇒

Soft

White

Were used as for down, they have a splash of very light yellow on their breasts

SKIN COLOR⇒

White

AVERAGE WEIGHT⇒

Adult Female:	9.0 lbs.
Adult Male:	10.00 lbs.
Mature:	**7.7 lbs. @ 7 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

⇒

Dual Purpose mainly meat and eggs + Breeding. They have a more upright stance and long bodies with graceful swan-like necks.

Eggs⇒
	Color:	White
	Qty/Yr:	200
	Size:	Large
	Pekin do not sit their eggs they will need to be incubated
	Start to lay around 25 to 30 weeks old. They lay consistently through the year
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Broody:	Yes	They are not broody ducks which make collecting eggs a lot easier
Mothers:	Yes	They are not the best mothers but will try. It is best to hand raise Pekin ducklings
Meat:	Yes	They are an excellent meat bird and are known the world over for their meat. Namely Pekin duck which is a top Chinese duck recipe.
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Pets:	Yes	These ducks are fun, friendly and very loyal pets. They will waddle after you and or your family in the garden. They do like to chat a bit as they go but not to worry they are not very loud birds.
Show:	Yes	They are accepted at shows
Prime:	7 yrs	They lay right up to between 8 to 9 years of age if they stay healthy

Males/Drakes

⇒

Meat, exhibition + Breeding. The males are quite hefty lads that can swim really well.

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	These big boys are actually big attention seekers and adore being made a fuss of. I have found the Pekin to be one of the most loyal of duck breeds.
Meat	Yes	They have good quality meat and make a great roast duck
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Pets:	Yes	Very good pets and with some training can be taught very well.
Show:	Yes	They do make a good show bird
Prime:	4 yrs	It is best to mate the younger drakes of up to about 4 years old

TEMPERAMENT
“They are calm and gently ducks. They are also very inquisitive and get themselves into all sorts of tangles. A pure delight that adds character to any back-yard duck flock.”
Good with Kids?	Yes, they are good around supervised kids
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Flyers?	They are poor flyers and most do not even attempt to do so
Noisy Birds?	They will have their quack but all in all are rather quieter than other breeds
Interact with other ducks?	This sociable breed gets along with most any other duck breed. As long as they have companions to waddle and paddle with they are happy ducks.
Best duck breeds to mix them with:	Any other domestic duck breed will mix well with Pekin ducks.
Other animals?	Most ducks are not too fussed with other animals. I would watch dogs and cats around them though.

IDEAL ENVIRONMENT
“A nice cozy duck house to nest down in for the night. A medium sized pool or a small pond with some pond plants in as they are dabblers. A garden with some grubs and insects for them to catch especially slugs and or snails.”
Ideal Garden Size?	They are adaptive to most environments
Can be Confined?	They are not worried about being confined.
Free-Range	They do love to explore but as long as it does not take them too far from their home.
Penned Free-Ranging?	They do not mind a closed penned off area to waddle and paddle in
Foragers	They are fair foragers
Endures heat well	Most ducks will take the heat as long as they have a cool clean dipping pond
Endures cold well	They do not mind the cold as long as they have some warm shelter to snuggled down in
Special Requirements?	They are pretty much a low maintenance breed of duck
Ideal Duck House:	Depending on the size of the flock a normal duck house with bedding and security from predators.
Ideal Duck Pond:	A medium-sized plastic kiddies pool or small shallow pond
Flock/Paddling Size:	Their needs to be at least two of them.
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GOOD TO KNOW
Special Care/Attention Requirements?	They are a hardy breed that does not have any special requirements or attention except for maybe keeping an eye on their feet.
Known Predators:	Check with animal control in your area for known predators
Conservations Status:	Not Listed 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:	Check with Metzer Farms, 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

As sophisticated breeders of ducks the Chinese have been raising and breeding them. It is thought that the Mallard had been domesticated by the Chinese over 3000 years ago. It was with this breed that they created a duck that was named shi-chin-ya-tze. Shi-chin-ya-tze basically means ten-pound-duck and is the breed which is the foundation for today’s popular Pekin duck.

The Pekin duck has been cooked in kitchens in China since the Ming Dynasty right through some six hundred years ago. The Forbidden City was a big draw to chefs from all over China wanting to be able to cook in the palace kitchens. This is where the Peking Duck was first cooked and the recipe perfected.

In 1911 with the end of the Qing Dynasty, the palace chefs disbursed taking the recipe with them where it was then cooked in restaurants all over China.

In 1872 15 Pekin ducks that had been hatched in Pekin were loaded onto a boat at Shanghai. They had been loaded by one James E. Palmer. Palmer was from Stonington, Connecticut in the USA. These ducks were bound for a businessman in the United States named McGrath.

The journey from Shanghai to New York took 124 days in which only 9 of the birds survived. The surviving ducks consisted of 6 females and 3 drakes. The ship arrived in New York in March 1873 which is the date documenting the first arrival of Pekin into the USA.

Of these 9 remaining birds, only 5 were shipped off to McGrath but did not make it to him as they were eaten on transit.

James Palmer had kept 4 of the ducks and these are the birds on which today’s American Pekin duck are founded on. By July of 1873 his ducks had laid over 300 eggs and by 1874 the Pekin duck had been accepted into the Standard of Perfection by the American Poultry Association.

The Pekin soon became the favorite as a meat duck as it has a lighter skin and white feathering which makes it hard to spot any left-over feathering on the carcass. Whereas the favorite meat duck at the time the Cayuga had darker feathering on a light carcass. This meant any left-over fluff could be spotted.

And for all those that love Disney, it is speculated that Donald and Daisy duck was modeled from a Pekin Duck.

Health

Their feet need to be watched as the heavier breeds are prone to some foot problems.

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.