Triple Creek Farm

05/29/2026

I did not know that posting about the standard of perfection would bring out so much defensiveness.

Some people may like the production Indian Runners but it doesn't mean that they are correct for their breed.
They aren't....

🔥 Hear me out

Some people love their production type ducks for eggs and pets, but some people breed to preserve.
Many breeders strive to produce the "perfect example" of a breed.

Two totally different purposes and two totally different goals.

The Standard of Perfection defines the exact physical traits, posture, color, and characteristics of a breed. In this case Indian Runner.

Its primary purpose is to establish a unified benchmark for breeders and judges, preserving the breed’s unique, upright "penguin-like" posture, foraging agility, and historical utility.

Purpose and Function of the Standard

Preserving Heritage Traits: It ensures the breed maintains its extreme vertical carriage (a straight, 50-to-80-degree angle from head to tail), which historically allowed these ducks to easily navigate through dense rice paddies and forage for pests.

Show & Exhibition: It provides a strict scoring system used by poultry judges at fairs and exhibitions to evaluate how closely a bird aligns with the ideal breed type.

Exhibition vs. Utility

The strict adherence to the Standard of Perfection sometimes conflicts with utility breeding (focusing on sheer egg production).Exhibition (Bred to Standard):

Birds are leaner, taller, and stand completely vertical. Because they require highly specific genetic traits, they typically lay fewer eggs (80–150 per year).

Utility / Hatchery Quality: Birds are shorter and heavier, stand at a less-steep angle, and are bred purely for maximum egg production.

You could compare it to a dog that "resembles" a German Shepherd, and a registered German Shepherd that is bred to the breed standard.
Some would argue that the mutt is more vigorous, but that mutt would not be allowed in breed shows.

Edit. Many people are under the assumption that Indian Runners are suffering when they are so upright. They aren't. They were bred for centuries to specifically stand as they do, and to run and not waddle . Their legs are further back on their body which helps balance them.

❤️

Photo credit goes to respected owners 🦆

05/29/2026

Runners and friends 😂

05/29/2026

05/29/2026

Really like this graphic a friend posted a few days ago.

A great example of "egg production type" and Bred to Standard of perfection.

Each breed of poultry and waterfowl has a set of guidelines to breed by, just as dogs, horses, goats and other animals do as well.

🦆 💜

05/28/2026

I have some really nice boys available.

Some of these are pet quality and some have the potential to make nice breeders.

I have magpie, several colors of Ancona, Cascade, a blue Appleyard, a few silver Appleyard, Swedish. Black Pied Runner projects, blue fawn runner project

I have them priced between $20 and $30 each depending on the Drake, age and quality.

I do have more that are not pictured if anyone is looking for something specific.

Wilson nc
252-315-6720

05/28/2026

Available females

I have a little bit of everything in here.

Blue and chocolate Anconas (nice girls just extras)
Blue Fawn Runner project girls (Pet quality),
A few overmarked Magpies,
A silver swedish, an overmarked blue swedish.

Most of these are 10-12 weeks old.
The blue and black magpie are a year old.
Some of them are pet quality and some of them could potentially be breeder quality

These are $40 each.
We are available Saturday and Sunday for pickup.

First come, first serve.
252-315-6720

Pick up is in Wilson nc

05/28/2026

Time to sort through juveniles again :)

I will be sorting through approximately 100- 6-8 week old ducks hopefully tomorrow and posting availability. A little of this and that....

We always have a surplus of some very nice drakes, so if you just want pets, pond ornaments or pest control without the Easter egg hunt, we have tons of gorgeous batchelors that will fit the bill ages 4 weeks old to 1 year old.
They are already great foragers and will greet you on sight 😂

Looking for quiet pets? We have a drake for that.. 😂

Pet quality drakes start at $20. Ducks start at $40.

Pickup is in Wilson NC.

05/28/2026

Silver Appleyard vs Welsh Harlequin post

Crash course...

There are so many people trying to breed with Hatchery stock and the ducklings are not coming out marked correctly. 🦆 😢

These two breeds are frequently confused with each other and frequently mixed.
You have to remember that commercial hatcheries are breeding for quantity/pet/layer type animals.

Although the Drakes have similar plumage, there is a difference in size. The tricky part can be when Welsh Harlequin Drakes get older, they tend to get heavier and lose type making it very hard to distinguish the two breeds.

For ducks,
The bill color is usually the first dead giveaway of whether you have a mix or a purebred.

***Silver Appleyard Ducks will have an orange bill, eye stripes and black and brown plumage. Dark color bills are not acceptable and usually mean there is Welsh influence.

***Welsh Harlequin ducks have a dark Bill and legs and are a light breed of duck. Their base color usually starts off pale but as they age they turn more golden.
Light color bills are NOT acceptable. Leg color may change from juvenile to adult, but should be dark as an adult. Eye stripes are NOT acceptable for the breed and if present, usually means that there is Appleyard influence.

Silver Appleyard Ducklings will be yellow with a black Mohawk and a black tip on their tail. Sometimes dark phase M+ will hatch and they look like a mallard duckling. They should not be used in a breeding flock.
It means that one or more ducks in the breeding flock are not 100% restricted mallard. Some lines also carry recessive white due to crossing with Pekin. Those also should not be used.

Welsh harlequin ducklings
Ducklings are a smokey yellow with a smoky colored head, Smoky colored legs. They are about 80% sexable by Bill color.

Somewhere along the line, these two breeds were crossed, so it's common to see faults in Hatchery stock.

If you are starting from Hatchery stock, you can select the best specimens to move forward with and selectively breed away from the traits that are undesirable or you can purchase from a breeder that already has an established line and save time and money.

Appleyards on the left
Welsh on the right

Appleyards are an awesome breed, but are also challenging to breed correctly, not only because many lines are mixed, but also because there are other faults in the breed such as hoods, size and type , not to mention the limited numbers of quality breeding stock that breeders have to work with. They can be a very high cull breed.

05/27/2026

We are asking $40 each for the Chocolate Orpington hens.
📱 Well, I'll give you $40 for both because you're almost an hour drive.
Yeah I think not. 😂

05/27/2026