Anyone else have a duck that prefers to live in the house?

[duckylulu]

I am new to duck keeping and have an Aylesbury duck who is 6 weeks old but huge! (Had it from one week old). I did have 2 of them but one sadly died over a week ago. Our remaining duck has a pen outside which she/he (not sexed it yet) goes into for part of the day, the rest of the day it is loose in the garden. If the back door is open it comes into the house to look for me. I am now getting used to it wandering around the ground floor of the house (I have no carpets, just lino and tiled floors, so not worried about poop). It has also learned how to use the dog/cat flap and lets itself in when the back door is shut. It is often found lying on the dogs bed in the kitchen, with the dog either on the bed with it or sulking on the floor. The cats (5 of them) don't bother the duck at all and seem happy to share the house with it. The duck is put into an indoor cage from early evening till morning - a rabbit/guinea pig cage with a plastic tray bottom and caged top. I put a litter tray filled with water into a larger empty tray (to stop water from soaking bedding) and a cotton bathmat for the duck to sleep on (that gets hosed down in the morning and dried - got 4 of them on rotation). The larger tray is moved outside in the morning and filled with water for the duck to sit in. I will be getting a paddling pool for it soon. The duck is growing so fast that it will be too big for the indoor pen by next week. Any ideas for a safe indoor enclosure? Has to be fully enclosed as local cats sometimes enter my house at night, via cat flap (which doesn't lock and my own cats use it during the night), and I wouldn't be able to trust other cats not to attack duck. I have a walk in cupboard in my kitchen which is basically the space under the stairs so has a sloping roof. I am considering clearing that out and putting a window and vent in the door and making it into a night enclosure (not sure about the smell though). Am I going to too great extremes for a duck? After the other duck died (not sure why it died as I was sure I had done everything right) I am being very cautious. The duck certainly seems to want to be with us humans as much as possible and I am quite enjoying the fact that it comes to look for us and chatters away (not quite quacking properly yet). Am I doing the wrong thing by allowing the duck to make itself so much at home in the house? I have found that its poop is more solid since changing to growers pellets, (plus sweet corn and peas), and takes less than 30 seconds to pick up poop with a piece of paper and mop the floor. Really not sure if I should think about getting another duck of a similar age as a companion. Sorry for the long post, just want to know I am not creating a problem by domesticating the duck too much. Photo is of the duck (Matilda/Matty) and my Shih Tzu,(Sophie).

 

[Orca5094]

Lots of people have house ducks, so no you aren't doing anything wrong! Poor thing is lonely and needs you guys for companionship right now. It would still be best for the duck if you could get it a friend or two of similar size/age to bond with. And I do believe they are happier outside when they have other duck friends to hang out with, but like I said many people do have House Ducks. For now it seems like you have a great system worked out to keep the duck happy, healthy, and safe. He/she is beautiful, btw!

 

[DucksAndGardens]

My Flock aren't house ducks exactly but since I keep them inside at night they all come in the house when they are tired of being outside unless I shut the screen door. As long as a duck has access to food and water they can live in the house. It's just up to you if you want to keep up on cleaning the poop. Mine have to stay in their pen when they come in because I have carpet.

 

[Amykins]

Aww, poor duckie! I think there are a couple of us here at BYC that had a house duck "choose" them. Some ducks are just silly like that, they see that they have all this warm space and food inside and go "I want me summa that!"

I don't see anything wrong with having a house duck! If you get her some new friends and she still prefers to stay inside with you, then it'll be your call if you want a house duck or not. If she does, you could try training her to wear a diaper. Here's Wobbles modeling his lovely one courtesy of Kukupecpecpec:

 

[DuckyLovin2]

Aww, poor duckie! I think there are a couple of us here at BYC that had a house duck "choose" them. Some ducks are just silly like that, they see that they have all this warm space and food inside and go "I want me summa that!"

I don't see anything wrong with having a house duck! If you get her some new friends and she still prefers to stay inside with you, then it'll be your call if you want a house duck or not. If she does, you could try training her to wear a diaper. Here's Wobbles modeling his lovely one courtesy of Kukupecpecpec:

Where is your favorite plce to get their diapers?
I'm having the hardest time

 

[SuperDuck]

Chuck and Buck are indoor ducks. They're messy but.... oh well! I swear we will be finding feathers 20 years from now. They are certainly social birds.

 

[ronott1]

Cute little Duck!

 

[DuckyLovin2]

Chuck and Buck are indoor ducks. They're messy but.... oh well! I swear we will be finding feathers 20 years from now. They are certainly social birds.

Define messy I want mine in at night and want to know what I'm in for lol do you diaper your babies or buy stock in paper towels chasing behind them? Or do they go in a pen inside the house? Just wondering what you do

 

[SuperDuck]

At night they're "supposed" to sleep in their big old crate but they spend the first few hours with my son who always has an old towel or blanket under them. Whoever goes to bed last (me or the husband) gets the chore of putting the ducks away and taking the nasty towel to the laundry room. Come morning the boy has to clean out the crate. Poop everywhere!

They don't have their diapers yet. They're being made. During the day our floors are covered in old sheets. We do more laundry for the ducks than we do for ourselves. And there is always a rouge poop that escapes somehow and I always seem to find it with my clean socks.

Feathers. Feathers everywhere. I'm half tempted to start making pillows. They come out of every nook and cranny. And have I mentioned the poop?

If it's rainy, they spend all day indoors. They're too prissy to go outside. And then there is poop. And feathers. That's when we break out the baby toys. I no longer have babies in the house but those bright, light up musical toys make them happy. Buck spent over an hour with a fake plastic cell phone the other day. And then there was poop. With feathers.

Basically, it's like have 100 naked, starving, non potty trained toddlers in the house. I look forward to nap time. And have I mentioned the feathers? And poop?

 

[DuckyLovin2]

At night they're "supposed" to sleep in their big old crate but they spend the first few hours with my son who always has an old towel or blanket under them. Whoever goes to bed last (me or the husband) gets the chore of putting the ducks away and taking the nasty towel to the laundry room. Come morning the boy has to clean out the crate. Poop everywhere!

They don't have their diapers yet. They're being made. During the day our floors are covered in old sheets. We do more laundry for the ducks than we do for ourselves. And there is always a rouge poop that escapes somehow and I always seem to find it with my clean socks.

Feathers. Feathers everywhere. I'm half tempted to start making pillows. They come out of every nook and cranny. And have I mentioned the poop?

If it's rainy, they spend all day indoors. They're too prissy to go outside. And then there is poop. And feathers. That's when we break out the baby toys. I no longer have babies in the house but those bright, light up musical toys make them happy. Buck spent over an hour with a fake plastic cell phone the other day. And then there was poop. With feathers.

Basically, it's like have 100 naked, starving, non potty trained toddlers in the house. I look forward to nap time. And have I mentioned the feathers? And poop?

Superduck
Omg so many things to look forward to
They go through so many towels it's insane I'm still working on the diaper thing as well but I want them out as much as possible which is conflicting cuz I'm such a clean freak they go against everything but I love them so much I have to adjust and find a clean mess
When u bring them in at night do they have food and water all night as well ?