Kiddie pools are the greatest invention for keeping a few ducks happy.
When I was a kid/teen, I had a small group of about 10 mallard/rouen ducks
that I could walk about 1/4 mile from our house to a stream and they would
swim and bathe for about a half hour and them come back to the bank
to dry...
Not sure where you live but one of the main "mess factors" is they need water for bathing...not a huge amount but a tub which can be emptied easily and big enough for everybody to get into. Other than that choice of breed is your choice because care is pretty much the same. I've kept mallards...