Are ducks right for me?

[KLC321]

I have 8 hens& 1 rooster. Someone offered me 3 young Indian Runner ducks she is not able to keep. She thinks she has 2 males&1 female. I've never had ducks before & I was excited about getting them. but after researching the topic I'm wondering if I should pass on them. I have separate houses for the chickens & ducks but wanted them all to free range on 5 acres. Any advice appreciated.

 

[Pyxis]

Them free ranging together shouldn't be a problem. However, if she truly does have two males and one female, you're going to need to either get some more females, or rehome one of the males, and even if you do rehome one of the males you'd probably still want to get another female.

They're messy with their water, so you'd want to try to keep it outside their coop, and they greatly benefit from swimming water, so you'd want to have a kiddie pool or something for them.

Otherwise, they're pretty much the exact same as taking care of chickens.

 

[bhopper]

I AGREE!!

I have 11 ducks who live with 35+ chickens and 5 guineas(until my babies get bigger). They all run amuck in the yard and I rarely have an issue. On occasion the drake will chase a rooster but never any injuries!

Ducks are fairly easy to handle but you will definitely want to change your M/F ratio. Their gender ratio is similar to chickens.

 

[bhopper]

Here are some of mine together

 

[Miss Lydia]

Nice group @bhopper

 

[bhopper]

Nice group @bhopper

Thanks

 

[KLC321]

Thanks so much for the help! I don't think I'll get the ducks- not sure I can get the Male/ female ratio right & I don't want problems in my flock.

 

[bhopper]

Thanks so much for the help! I don't think I'll get the ducks- not sure I can get the Male/ female ratio right & I don't want problems in my flock.

Don’t let it scare ya, all the birds I have are a result of trial and error.

 

[happy duck]

Ducks are great! If you have to you could keep both males and find a new home for the laddie so you won't have over mating. Don't let this stress you out tho. I mean you could even try it with 2 males and 1 female and if there seems to be a problem then you can fix it. If they are all wonderful ducks then you might be able to make the trio work. Good luck and if you decide to keep them post pics!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Sure hope your friends can find a good home for them. I love my Runners.