How wonderful it must be to just have them pop up at any given time. They're infrequent in the wild up this way but they are a wonderful whispering duck. I hear they eat like veal rather than fatty like mallard. And I just adore the way they swish their tail feathers. I can't tell you how I love sharing our space with them. Had to nurse a two week old back to health the other night after one of the drakes tried to drown it. Presumably a future drake. It's not an uncommon occurrence.

Since you broached the subject Andrea:)

Heidi is sitting on a clutch in her dog house. Don't know how many. She eats out of my hand so I don't want to impinge on our familiarity.

Blue(a reference to her coloring, the blue being a grey/blue) had a clutch of ten about two weeks ago. And it appears she's begun to lay again. The drakes are relentless, and are what our kind would call date rapers(at best). Two clutches per summer seems pretty standard.

Just a week ago we took an as yet unnamed Mama and her clutch of 12 off a ladies hands from over the mountain somewhere and they've settled in nicely. One of the lessor drakes has taken to helping her herd her clutch. He seems happier playing a leading role than being a sumo uncle(the unmated males have some awe inspiring matches). She seems happy for the company too, it's a pleasant surprise for us and what I'd hoped for one of the uncles. Mama's going to make a nice addition to our blood lines what with her green tints and her attentive mothering skills.

And next week, this years batch of chickens(got three varieties coming) and a mess of Quinea will arrive. The Quinea aren't great mothers but one of the reasons I chose Muscovy, apart from their being virtually mute in adulthood is the females will brood and herd others layers eggs.

And I've fenced a new -really large- free range rabbit pen, so we're pretty well surrounded.

Can't wait to get some goats but that looks to be another year removed and a lot of electric fencing to install(which is fairly easy compared to the bunny pens, but still, whew, I ain't gettin no younger, though this has decidedly improved my conditioning, especially all the new gardens, talk about a full time job, and this is my retirement plan:).

Butchering is about to become part of the program, if only out of necessity, LOL.

Anyway, thanks for letting me spill. I'm a happy homesteader despite the daunting learning curve. Anyone who intimates general purpose farmers are stupid, crack em one(there is just so much to know).

peaceably, assuming the family is well!-)