How much do you feed your ducks in cups

I am interested in knowing about the spent grains from the brewery. My neighbor has a regular supply from his brewery and it would be great if I could use it to supplement their feed.

Yooperducker said:

I am interested in knowing about the spent grains from the brewery. My neighbor has a regular supply from his brewery and it would be great if I could use it to supplement their feed.

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This is something that I have just started doing with my ducks. Currently, my boyfriend has been giving me just under five gallons ( in a five gallon bucket) of the spent malted barley.
When he begins brewing thirty gallons of beer each week, we will have MUCH more, and it is essentially free so I hope to incorporate it into their diet.

I read somewhere online that you can determine the quality of the beer you are making based on how the ducks respond to the spent grain. So if you give it to the ducks and they excitedly start chowing down, that means that a lot of sugar persisted in the malted barley...which isn't always ideal for the outcome of the beer. And if they eat it but aren't entirely sold on it, the sugar wasn't taken out with the barley. I don't remember entirely but that is the gist I think.
If you feed it to them, make sure it is cool enough for them to eat. Also, I wouldn't allow it to sit around for too long, it molds quickly and you don't want your ducks to eat anything moldy. Next time I feed it to them, I am going to try mixing it into a shallow bowl of water to make a "soup" for them. Best of luck, let me know how everything turns out! If I find anything else out I will be sure to post!

kysilkies said:

I didn't know we were suppose to ration it, I just make sure their feeders are always full..

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So how much food do you go through a month?

ddlucille said:

After my ducklings are 6 weeks old, I can start to feed them 3 times a day correct?

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Yes I think three times a day should be enough. Right now I really only do one large feeding in the evening before I put them in at night. I let them out in the morning and I rip up lettuce and other leftover greens in the fridge or from the greenhouse and let them forage. Sometimes I throw some mealworms in the grass for them to find. I've found that if I free feed, i lose quite a bit of food and money to other animals like crows, chipmunks, and it encourages rats to come out during the day and venture to the food. ( haven't had an issue with rats yet this year....)I try not to feed them in the same place they sleep, to keep rats and mice out of their sleeping area.

Something you can try if you are worried about feeding them enough is a flock block. You can find them at Agways, or Tractor Supply. Usually 12.99 or so. Great for if you are going away for the day or overnight too and are worried about them not getting fed.

Does anyone use custom feed that is premixed for them from a feed store? The stores around where I live only sell chicken feed. When I had ducklings I would supplement with niacin in their water, but I was wondering if anyone had any luck finding a business that sells food just for ducks.

Niche Flock said:

Does anyone use custom feed that is premixed for them from a feed store? The stores around where I live only sell chicken feed. When I had ducklings I would supplement with niacin in their water, but I was wondering if anyone had any luck finding a business that sells food just for ducks.

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Apparently Mazari waterfowl...

Chickylove12 said:

Apparently Mazari waterfowl...

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MAZURI WATERFOWL FEED

Not available everywhere. I have never seen it in any feed stores around my neck of the woods. But an alternative is Purina Flock Raiser it is formulated for all poultry so those of us with other poultry besides water fowl can feed it to them from hatch till end of life.

Miss Lydia said:

Not available everywhere. I have never seen it in any feed stores around my neck of the woods. But an alternative is Purina Flock Raiser it is formulated for all poultry so those of us with other poultry besides water fowl can feed it to them from hatch till end of life.

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Can you tell me if there is niacin in it and if so..what percentage if you don' mind please?

You'll have to look here https://www.purinamills.com/chicken-feed/products/detail/purina-flock-raiser Doesn't show niacin levels but since I had mama ducks and geese raising their young I never added any niacin to their feed. Only time I added Nutritional yeast [has good source of niacin in it] Was when I brooded any myself. 1 Tab per cup of feed.