Instructions
Sexing Ducklings
Hold the duckling in one hand with its head facing down and with its rear end facing your face. Do not squeeze the the duckling too hard as this could injure the animal. Put two fingers on either side of the ducklings feet to prevent getting scratched.
Use the thumb of your hand holding the duck to gently press towards you, opening the ducklings vent. The vent is an opening on the rear end of a duckling which houses the duckling's genitalia. Do not attempt to insert your thumb into the vent, merely apply pressure around the vent to pull it open slowly.
Use the thumb and index finger of your free hand to fully open the duckling's vent. Look carefully inside the vent to determine the genitalia. If female, the vagina will be cone shaped, while the presence of a small phallus ensures your duckling is male. Sometimes the penis is not immediately apparent, so one must closely examine the inside of the vent, known as the cloaca.
How Can You Tell the Gender of a Duckling?
Ducks are popular farm animals used for their meat and eggs. There is often no apparent difference between the appearances of male and female ducklings. However, if one is careful and observant, it is possible to tell the sex of ducklings. Though the word gender is occasionally used to describe whether a duckling is male or female, it is more correctly referred to as the duckling's sex.