Ducklings attacking chicks!!

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Ducks get protective of their family groups. I have had one group of ducklings chase off another group of ducklings that did not belong in their group. They will gradually come together but they need space so they don't feel threatened by the intruders.
 
We have a coop with a run, and then we also built a transition run, with shelter inside of it for our baby chicks. The transition run is attached to the adult coop and run but fenced off with fencing and hardware cloth. This way, the babies and the chickens and ducks are able to interact with the chicks before they come into the coop. When they are old enough, they will transfer from the transitional pen, to the chicken coop with the ducklings and the chickens. Sometimes we will go outside, and the chicks and ducks are laying right next to eachother, but they are still separated. It has worked really well for us. We even put the brooder outside in the transition pen, so we don't have to keep the babies inside.

Here are the two runs side by side.



Here is what the front looks like. You cannot tell there are two runs because, we built the second run right behind the first.

 
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Jujubeans2008 said:
We have a coop with a run, and then we also built a transition run, with shelter inside of it for our baby chicks.  When they are old enough, they will transfer from the transitional pen, to the chicken coop with the ducklings and the chickens.  It has worked really well for us.  We even put the brooder outside in the transition pen, so we don't have to keep the babies inside.
Click to expand...

That's really a good idea. I don't know if we would have room for another pen though. I would have to move the swing set. Not quite ready for that yet as our youngest is 5 months old lol. I suppose I could divide the run we have now since it's so big but I hate to take away room from the others. I might have to though if the ducks can't get along. They were doing much better last night though so we will see. :)
 
Hopefully they will get used to eachother. But if you have other poultry, your ducks will be almost the size of a hen by 5 weeks, so you should be able to transition them out fairly soon.
 
Jujubeans2008 said:
Hopefully they will get used to eachother.  But if you have other poultry, your ducks will be almost the size of a hen by 5 weeks, so you should be able to transition them out fairly soon.
Click to expand...

This is our first time with poultry. I mean I live in the country and all my friends grew up on farms but this is the first time I have been able to keep some. Our chickens are still young. We got our oldest at the same time as the ducklings. They get along well though.
 
We have had mallard, call etc ducklings with pheasant chicks . the first time it was because there was a lone pheasant . The ducklings would pick on him now and then but the little guy would turn around and peck them . They got along well the pheasant would actually climb up and lay across the ducklings to sleep lol ducklings grow much faster and soon were way bigger but they got along. have done that a few times now as some ducklings need to be shown how to eat. You could try them together and watch, if the bantams stand up for themselves i wouldn't worry but if they just take it I'd move someone out . We have 3 silver pheasants together with some call ducklings right now and they get along fine and I would think bantam chicks would be pretty tough .
 

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