➡I accidentally bought Balut eggs: 2 live ducks! Now a Chat Thread!

[BantyChooks]

Bring the ducks inside.

HAHAHAHAHA. I wish. Alas for them, I still have the last vestiges of my sanity about me and prefer it to remain that way.

 

[Sara L]

HAHAHAHAHA. I wish. Alas for them, I still have the last vestiges of my sanity about me and prefer it to remain that way.

Build them a heated greenhouse to live in during winter?

 

[ShrekDawg]

I have thought about it, but the air temperature is still so cold that it would continue to freeze over everything once outside of the bowl. I'm not even sure the bowl would work for more than an hour. All the heated waterers I can find locally are only good down to 15* or 20*F. WOW, thanks, manufacturing people. That's about 0% useful. If it were that warm during winter, I wouldn't be griping about their water, eh. I don't even mind changing it 2x daily; I just get sick of the framing I put around it to cut down on the splashing getting 1" of ice and poop built up on it. Then it builds up from the bottom until the bowl gets frozen to the framing or the pine shavings it was recessed in. One year 3 of my waterers were so frozen into the bedding that I couldn't get them out until spring.

For now, I've rather given up on experimenting and simply put the bowls outside. They don't seem to mind walking over snow to get their water.

Oh wow that sounds totally not useful!! Lol the reviews on this one seem to say it works really well even in negative temps so maybe it would if you have one. or a deicer maybe? Like for horse troughs and such?

And wow that is really frozen in!! Haha

The buildup does sound gross lol

 

[BantyChooks]

Build them a heated greenhouse to live in during winter?

If I had the cash, I absolutely would.

Oh wow that sounds totally not useful!! Lol the reviews on this one seem to say it works really well even in negative temps so maybe it would if you have one. or a deicer maybe? Like for horse troughs and such?

And wow that is really frozen in!! Haha

The buildup does sound gross lol

The other issue is getting power to it. I'm not running an extension cord to the main coop, period. The last time I did, I nearly started a fire. I have a solar setup, but I doubt it would produce enough despite its claims of low energy draw.

 

[ShrekDawg]

If I had the cash, I absolutely would.

The other issue is getting power to it. I'm not running an extension cord to the main coop, period. The last time I did, I nearly started a fire. I have a solar setup, but I doubt it would produce enough despite its claims of low energy draw.

Oh wow that’s not good about the fire! I sometimes worry about that too but I have a cord cover on mine and also have it outside the coop. Plus it’s not that far from the house so not too big a cord. But I would never have a heat lamp or anything in the coop either. I have my waterer outside in the run on cinder blocks so I’m not too worried about it. It really helps. Although it does get dirty fast.

 

[CrazyCrttr75]

I'll pay 20 bucks to the first person that figures out a way to provide water to ducks in winter that isn't messier than a toddler with a chocolate bar. I've tried all that, but it ices over! Maybe I need to use super large grid welded wire and give up on moving it for half the year. It gets so cold here that the water droplets freeze pretty much instantly when they hit water or wire or the ducks' chest feathers.

Oooh, I'll show you what we do for winter! No fee required. For the chickens, we used the heated dog bowls that we got at Tractor Supply.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/farm-innovators-round-heated-pet-bowl-6-qt?cm_vc=-10005

This worked great! We just had cords running everywhere lol. For the ducks... We have a 5 gallon bucket like this one. I think we got it at Lowes or it might have been Walmart. Wherever, doesn't matter:

Then we cut 3 holes in it big enough for them to stick their heads in. I think we used a 4 inch hole saw. Then we had this hooked up to an electric cord for power:

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...-multi-use-utility-deicer?solr=1&cm_vc=-10005

And we had in down in the bucket during the freezing temps and it kept the water just fine. Hubby thinks a lower wattage one would've worked fine but that is the one that we picked up and used. We just cut a notch out of the lid of the bucket for the cord to come out of and we had a hook to hold the cord up away from nosey bills. Maybe others might have some better ideas but this is just what worked for us and what we did. Now their pools were a whole other story. Hopefully next winter we'll have a better idea on what to do about them.

 

[BantyChooks]

Oh wow that’s not good about the fire! I sometimes worry about that too but I have a cord cover on mine and also have it outside the coop. Plus it’s not that far from the house so not too big a cord. But I would never have a heat lamp or anything in the coop either. I have my waterer outside in the run on cinder blocks so I’m not too worried about it. It really helps. Although it does get dirty fast.

I am perhaps overparanoid, but I have a significant amount of funds, resources, and time invested in these birds, so I refuse to risk it.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I am perhaps overparanoid, but I have a significant amount of funds, resources, and time invested in these birds, so I refuse to risk it.

Nahh I don’t think that’s paranoid. Probably smart haha but people use these things for dogs outside in runs/kennels too and all sorts of things and it seems to be fine but idk if they use extension cords.

 

[BantyChooks]

Oooh, I'll show you what we do for winter! No fee required. For the chickens, we used the heated dog bowls that we got at Tractor Supply.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/farm-innovators-round-heated-pet-bowl-6-qt?cm_vc=-10005
View attachment 1858417

This worked great! We just had cords running everywhere lol. For the ducks... We have a 5 gallon bucket like this one. I think we got it at Lowes or it might have been Walmart. Wherever, doesn't matter:
View attachment 1858420

Then we cut 3 holes in it big enough for them to stick their heads in. I think we used a 4 inch hole saw. Then we had this hooked up to an electric cord for power:

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/p...-multi-use-utility-deicer?solr=1&cm_vc=-10005

And we had in down in the bucket during the freezing temps and it kept the water just fine. Hubby thinks a lower wattage one would've worked fine but that is the one that we picked up and used. We just cut a notch out of the lid of the bucket for the cord to come out of and we had a hook to hold the cord up away from nosey bills. Maybe others might have some better ideas but this is just what worked for us and what we did. Now their pools were a whole other story. Hopefully next winter we'll have a better idea on what to do about them.

Yep, the ducks' pool freezes solid before winter even really starts, so I don't even bother trying to keep it thawed. It lives beneath the snow for much of the year.

Thanks! I'll put a bit of research (again) into finding some heat sources, but they've got to draw some serious power to work in the temps I want them for, and unless it works off a 12v solar source by some magic it's not going to work.

 

[BantyChooks]

Nahh I don’t think that’s paranoid. Probably smart haha but people use these things for dogs outside in runs/kennels too and all sorts of things and it seems to be fine but idk if they use extension cords.

I run extension cords to my pens to power heating pads at times, but never to the big coop, which is where the ducks reside. I figure a fire in a separate pen would be sad but not devastating.