Ducks will eat most everything, but that doesn’t mean that they need to eat it. Lets say for example you were going to a pond and had some bread with you to give to the ducks. Well, sorry to break the news, but bread is not good for ducks. It will hurt their bellies and they will not want to eat their main food which, if living at a public pond, should be waterfowl feed. If the ducks are your pets and don’t live in the wild, they should just eat regular chicken feed, duck feed, or all flock feed.
We need to know what to give our ducks to keep them healthy. We also want to know what wild ducks eat so we can give our pet ducks food that relates to what wild ducks would normally eat.
WHAT WILD DUCKS EAT:
- Weeds
- Grass
- Worms
- Grubs
- Sometimes their own eggs
RELATIVE FOOD TO GIVE YOUR PET DUCKS:
- Cooked eggs
- Grass
- Weeds
- Etc.
Here are some treats that are good and tasty for your ducks to enjoy. I didn’t cover herbs, but if you can eat the herb then your ducks can too. That doesn’t t mean they’ll like it because of the strong flavor, but you can still give it to them. Alright…here are the treats- or let me say ‘some treats’.
GREAT TREATS:
- Apples- be careful, the seeds can be toxic
- Bananas- mash them for ducklings
- Peas- good when put in water so ducklings can fish them out
- Grapes- cut them in half
- Strawberries- they are a good treat to add into oatmeal
- Blueberries- are also great in oatmeal
- Figs/lemons/limes- these citrus fruits can soak up all of the calcium your ducks need for their eggs, so if you do choose to give them to your ducks, give them a limited amount, and make sure you have oyster shell or some other form of calcium for your duck to munch on at free choice
- Lettuce- make sure it is Romane lettuce, and it is fantastic if you give your ducks an endless amount
- Tomatoes- if they are not ripe they can be toxic, so make sure they are totally ripe, and don’t forget to take off the leaves and stem- they are also toxic
- Oatmeal- make your own using raw oats, but make sure you mix other food in with it- cinnamon, blueberries, strawberries, etc.
- Meal worms- you can buy them at your local feed store, online, or raise your own
- Green beans- make sure they’re warmed up- can warm in microwave or can cook on your stove if they’re frozen
- Watermelon – cut in half so they can dig in, and great for hot summer days
- Pumpkin- cut in half so they can dig in
- Cabbage- give them a head of cabbage so they can play with it
- Carrots- if they are hard you need to cook them so they get mushy
- Bell peppers- a great treat to give your ducks, but give them to your ducks wisely
- Weeds- ducks can eat most any weeds, and they should know which ones are toxic and which ones are fine
