Bedding for Duck House? Hay or Shavings?

[Miss Lydia]

Thanks! I just found another source for straw so I'm relieved, but I am less panicked in case we run out!

I have a male Pekin and a female Indian Runner.


I keep water for my ducks all the time, but I don't have an electricity source in the coop for a bucket warmer. This means I wake up VERY early (some mornings at 4:30) to change out their partially frozen water bucket for fresh water. However, during the last blizzard, I was away and my duck sitter was unable to get to them (state travel ban) for 24 hours. I was a wreck! But, they had water and they were fine.

They are adorable, and love their house. I am blessed to have power to 2 of mine so I use heated buckets but then if power goes out I'm back to hauling like I use to do. Sure do look forward to spring i bet ya'll do too.

 

[yarnchick]

These re my babies. The fawn and whites are 1 yr in another 5 weeks. The blue mountain are 6 + months. The BM eggs are all different shades of blue. One is dark blue, one is med blue, one is lt. blue and the other is white. They are desperate to see a blade of green. I have been leaving some water and feed inside their hut. That gives them a sense of where home is. I put their shreds out on the garden. They have shelter under their hit. They are going to get a bigger yard this summer. They are very good with vegetation as well. I protect the new garden leaves then when they get bigger they do not bother them. We have no bugs.

Also I have been giving my little girls thinned down oatmeal in the mornings. They are spoiled. I started doing this with one of the fawn/whites when she met up with a turtle last fall and had part of her bottom beak took off. Chopped fruit for lunch snack and a handful of meal worms to tuck them in bead. Their lot is right outside my kitchen door and they stand by the porch and let me know it is time to go to bed. I just love them so.

 

[Miss Lydia]

These re my babies. The fawn and whites are 1 yr in another 5 weeks. The blue mountain are 6 + months. The BM eggs are all different shades of blue. One is dark blue, one is med blue, one is lt. blue and the other is white. They are desperate to see a blade of green. I have been leaving some water and feed inside their hut. That gives them a sense of where home is. I put their shreds out on the garden. They have shelter under their hit. They are going to get a bigger yard this summer. They are very good with vegetation as well. I protect the new garden leaves then when they get bigger they do not bother them. We have no bugs.

Also I have been giving my little girls thinned down oatmeal in the mornings. They are spoiled. I started doing this with one of the fawn/whites when she met up with a turtle last fall and had part of her bottom beak took off. Chopped fruit for lunch snack and a handful of meal worms to tuck them in bead. Their lot is right outside my kitchen door and they stand by the porch and let me know it is time to go to bed. I just love them so.

Their adorable and I love their house, when you get your eggs post a pic I'd love to see the colors, my Muscovy's lay beige only get blue eggs from my EE hens.

 

[2ducksCT]

Their adorable and I love their house, when you get your eggs post a pic I'd love to see the colors, my Muscovy's lay beige only get blue eggs from my EE hens.

I didn't realize duck eggs came in different colors! How fun! My runner lays regular colored eggs but they are larger than chicken eggs. I miss them! She stopped laying a couple of weeks ago.Spring can NOT come fast enough!

I love Yarnchick's photo! Cute ducks and NO snow!

 

[Lynn Manes]

Our ducks 3 mallards are stinky and very messy. We haven't had a chance to build their permanent shelter so we're using 2 of my dogs 4x8' exercise pens linked together . About half the pen is cover with a piece of 4x8 plywood. Their pool is under the sheltered part. The food is hanging and their water is a fresh water pump system. We put pieces of plywood down on the ground on the open side where the food and water are bc they were making a muddy mess. This allows me to just hose it down bc they poop all over it. Our biggest problem besides the stench are flies. And boy oh boy we have tons of them. We have 5 fly deterrents around the outsides of the pen, have lemon Christmas tree car deodorizers and fly strips hanging out of their reach too. Yet we still aren't able to control the nasty flies. Please offer any suggestions bc our above ground swimming pool is very close to the pen and come summer the flies will be unbearable out there. They are now. We have little to no choice to relocate the habitat.

 

[OldTownKhakis]

For my Khaki Campbell's I started using pine bark mulch in the night run, and a layer of straw over wood shavings in the house. With the abundance of maple trees in my garden I switched to shredded leaves in the night run over the winter. When the snow drifted through the night run I felt better just raking out the snow and leaves together and refilling with fresh dry shredded leaves. I've had issues getting the wood shavings to compost down fast enough, so will probably stick with straw and leaves for now, and go back to bark mulch in the night run over the summer once the plastic sheeting comes off.

I've just put down a hay mulch in the day pen to try and help the grass recover, but the girls do not appear to like to walk around on it too much. Is it sharp on their feet, or do you think it's just new and they'll get used to it in time?

Cheers,
Neil.

 

[stevenz59]

Please always keep water very close to feed and nest if not one day u will find a dead duck from choking. .they always eat and ALWAYS need water close by. My enclosed chain link covered pen is on dirt and grass. I just pooperscooper every am and pm and there is no smell. I recommend STRAW

 

[festus6657]

I got my baby ducks 2 days ago started using shavings 1 is eating the shavings it is staggering around now will it survive this or will it die or do I need to take it out fo the shavings please help

 

[Debs Flock]

Welcome to BYC. Please answer some questions. We'll see if something can be done.

Are you sure the duckling is actually swallowing the shavings? Mine used to nibble at the shavings and then drop them from their bill.
How old are the ducklings?
What kind of shavings? pine? cedar?
What are you feeding them?
Are you adding a source of Niacin to their diet?
Is the staggering one pooping?
If so, please take a picture of it & also take a picture of the duckling with the problem.

@Amiga
@casportpony
@jtn42248
@Miss Lydia

 

[Amiga]

@festus6657

If you haven't subscribed to this thread, you won't get notices, so look for the blue letters near the bottom of the page to Subscribe.

Praying for you and your little ones.

We need to know what the duckling is eating (what kind of food), do they have water with food 24/7? Have you read the sticky on Raising Ducklings? It will help.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/750869/raising-and-caring-for-ducklings#post_10611711

And all those questions from Debs Flock - those can help us figure it out.

I won't be at the computer all afternoon, but I will check in when I can.