Wood pellets for duck bedding

Has anyone used these for their ducks for years with no problems of them eating them or getting sick from them? I would hate to used them and it end up killing my daughters ducks.
I'm pretty excited about them because it sounds like they absorb so well and will reduce time spent cleaning up. I'm cleaning the straw twice a day. And I'm dealing with small pencil lead sized sores on one of my ducks feet. Im hoping that they wouldn't eat any remaining chunks.

Justpekin said:

Has anyone used these for their ducks for years with no problems of them eating them or getting sick from them? I would hate to used them and it end up killing my daughters ducks.
I'm pretty excited about them because it sounds like they absorb so well and will reduce time spent cleaning up. I'm cleaning the straw twice a day. And I'm dealing with small pencil lead sized sores on one of my ducks feet. Im hoping that they wouldn't eat any remaining chunks.

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Are you talking about the pellets they use in horse stalls? I am pretty sure there are members who use it so I'll give this a boost. Not sure if pellets for wood stoves would be safe, do they treat it with chemicals I use horse bedding that is shavings and it works really well for absorbing moisture, be sure to treat those sores so you don't end up with bumble foot.

Welcome to BYC!

I use pelleted bedding for my ducks and geese. They are much more absorbent than shavings, and easy to fluff up after a few days of use. They also compost faster than shavings because the wood particles are smaller. My animals have not eaten them to my knowledge, although if they did taste a few before realizing that they are not food, I'm sure they wouldn't harm them, also because of the small particle size.

Yes, they are used in horse stalls. I watched a you tube video on them and was hoping that others that have used them for quite a while with no problems would respond. And, I have been soaking its feet in Epsom salt and then using the clear iodine on her feet. I read somewhere on here that others have mentioned the sore will scab over and then they soak the feet until they can pick the scab off and pull out the puss filled sack. Didn't know of that detail till today. The sores look better in just doing the treatment for 2 days. If it scabs over they will be tiny.

How long have you used them? And, do you scoop out the clumps kind of like cat litter? Or do you just fluff and change out after a few days?

Thanks.

Justpekin said:

Yes, they are used in horse stalls. I watched a you tube video on them and was hoping that others that have used them for quite a while with no problems would respond. And, I have been soaking its feet in Epsom salt and then using the clear iodine on her feet. I read somewhere on here that others have mentioned the sore will scab over and then they soak the feet until they can pick the scab off and pull out the puss filled sack. Didn't know of that detail till today. The sores look better in just doing the treatment for 2 days. If it scabs over they will be tiny.

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Sounds like your on top of the foot problem that is good. You may not be dealing with bumble just burns from ammonia so you probably won't have to pick off the scabs if they look like they are healing well.

I've used them for a year with my birds, and have used them for horses extensively as well. For the ducks, the first few days or even weeks after the pellets are new, you can scoop out the solids which will be on top. They might have a few pellets sticking to them. Underneath there will be a wet spot where extra moisture from the droppings accumulates. This spot I fluff up and mix into the rest of the bedding. The moisture causes the pellets to break up into nice soft sawdust, and by absorbing the moisture, also absorbs the smell. After a while, the entire coop will be broken down into sawdust, and then the moisture won't be absorbed as much, so then I remove the wet spots. And then sooner or later, you'll just have to empty the entire thing and start over. You'll know when it's time.

In the winter, when things freeze solid (I'm in northern New England), I still use the pellets, but as a base layer. Over the top, I put a layer of hay, where the droppings accumulate and then freeze. They glue the hay together, which I can then remove in one piece when necessary. The pellet layer prevents the hay from freezing to the floor.

Must be ammonia burns then because I soaked her feet for 10 minutes today and the sore spot is not loosened up at all. I will keep treating until they are no longer there. Along with constantly cleaning the pen. Thanks for all the help and encouragement. Love this site.

Lots of good advice. I will be purchasing my first bags tomorrow. I'm really hopeful this will eliminate the sore feet problems, And will make it nicer for the ducks too. Thank you so much for all the info. I really appreciate everyone taking the time to respond and help me out. Thank you!

Justpekin said:

Lots of good advice. I will be purchasing my first bags tomorrow. I'm really hopeful this will eliminate the sore feet problems, And will make it nicer for the ducks too. Thank you so much for all the info. I really appreciate everyone taking the time to respond and help me out. Thank you!

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Let us know what you think of the pellets it will help someone else thinking of using them and sure hope your ducks feet continue to heal