Back & Forth the entire time. Need help deciding!

[ducksupernewbie]

We keep deciding on ducks, then chickens, then ducks, you get the idea. I really want some of both, BUT we are 100% novices, and I don't know if it will work, reading blogs are great, but not really enough for reality.

We're in an urban setting, but nearest neighbor is across the street, no one on either side. How loud are ducks really? It's hard to tell on a farm setting, as it's in the countryside. I don't want the neighbors going insane at me (Ducks and chickens are allowed as per county codes)

Would they need their own houses, or can they share? If I have a stock tank for the ducks, will the chickens drown in it?

Please answer. i'm at a loss.

 

[ducksupernewbie]

Anyone?

 

[Sfraker]

We keep deciding on ducks, then chickens, then ducks, you get the idea. I really want some of both, BUT we are 100% novices, and I don't know if it will work, reading blogs are great, but not really enough for reality.

We're in an urban setting, but nearest neighbor is across the street, no one on either side. How loud are ducks really? It's hard to tell on a farm setting, as it's in the countryside. I don't want the neighbors going insane at me (Ducks and chickens are allowed as per county codes)

Would they need their own houses, or can they share? If I have a stock tank for the ducks, will the chickens drown in it?

Please answer. i'm at a loss.

I have no chicken experience, I can only comment on the ducks. My ducks start off REALLY LOUD, then seem to quiet down as they get older. They quack loudly when it's dinner time, when I come out of the house, when it's morning and time to be let out of the coop, etc... However once they are a few months old that seems to stop. Then they just quack when something is wrong and they are quiet the rest of the time.

I know people who coop them all together. You need to make sure the chickens have roosts and the ducks don't get poo'd on by the roosting chickens at night.

I would assume the chickens will not go into the stock tank, but I'm sure accidents can happen.

 

[Orca5094]

Female ducks can be loud, yes. It all depends on the breed (Muscovys are the quietest, call ducks are the loudest). But in general ducks aren't nearly as disruptive and noisy as a rooster would be. I have 5 female Cayuga ducks and they can be a little noisy when they see me coming and get excited, but overall they are fairly quiet. Male ducks of all breeds are pretty quiet, so maybe even a small flock of males would work if you're worried about noise (if you're not after the eggs of course). As long as there are no females, a few males can live happily together with no aggression issues.

I don't have chickens myself, but I've heard horror stories of people's chickens drowning in duck pools, so I'd have the pool in an area the chickens don't have access to. Many people do keep ducks and chickens together, but you must keep in mind ducks are much messier and will make everything wet, which is not good for chickens. So I guess I'd suggest deciding on one or the other to keep things simple since you are just starting out. I'm partial to ducks myself.

Also wanted to add: I love your avatar!! Too cute. ^-^

 

[ducksupernewbie]

thanks!

I'm definitely in it for the eggs, so the males won't work. we're in an urban setting, so I can't have any babies unfortunately. I also work full time, so they won't get much in the way of interaction during the day. would that be a deal breaker to ducks?