Bad living conditions for ducks?

[duckfat]

Quote:
The predators think so too.

 

[KansasKid]

Ya i see what your saying, as heavily wooded as it is, but you would think that they would seek safety out in the middle of the water. I have a decent size pond and have many coyotes and stray dogs that always try and get them but they've learned to stay out in the open water. I guess if you did have a pond like that it would be a let 'em out for a while when your home and put 'em up when your not kinda thing.

 

[duckfat]

Quote:
Well, sometimes they do, and other times they will hang out along the bank. There are other dangers that are difficult to see: snapping turtles and mink.

Today some of the more adventurous are swimming:

Ducks on a log:

 

[RockwaterFarm]

My ducks get to free range all day in the summer and go in the barn at night. they live ona dirt floor with hay to sleep on. its easier to clean with dirt, just rake, pick it up and go. in the winter its harder cause they dont go out as much and can make more of a mess. when its snowing a lot i give them their water in the barn, which they spill all over the place. And on days like today, its warm out and the melting snow goes right into the barn, making it muddy and distugusting. The way i look at it is, if i wouldnt live in it, the ducks shouldnt either.

 

[Miss Lydia]

duckfat that is just too beautiful! what a nice view to see everyday. How many ducks have you lost to predation since you started keeping ducks.. I know my ducks and goose would be in paradise if they lived there. [or maybe I would]

 

[duckfat]

Quote:
Last summer a mallard hatched out 16 ducklings. Within two weeks there were about two left. During this time, a bald eagle was hunting the pond. Snapping turtles were also preying on both the adults and ducklings. In total lost about five juveniles and adults this year out of 80. I would find them along the banks in the water pretty chewed up. About a six or so muscovy ducklings went MIA.

This non lethal wound was a common sight until I got more aggresive with rehoming the snapping turtles:

 

[sianara]

It's tough to see animals living in less then ideal quarters. Eight years ago I shared an order of ducklings with a relative and a friend (basically I GAVE them each 4 ducklings because I only wanted 3 and HAD to buy ten but ended up getting eleven). Anyhoo, a month later I called the relative to ask how their ducklings were and I got a return message saying "They are so stinky, we hate them!". I called back and asked if they wanted to get rid of them and they said YES so my DD (who was 11 at the time) quickly scavenged up a cage and went to the rescue. We were absolutely stunned when we saw the condition these very nice people were housing them in. They were in a 2'x2' cardboard box with no food or water and the waste was at least 2" thick. Yes, that's definitely bad but the worst of it was they were LESS than half the size of my ducklings which told me they were basically starving the things to death and had been for a few weeks. I quietly mentioned that I was surprised they were half the size of my ducklings and she started making up all these half a**ed excuses about why they were so small. I calmly picked up each duckling and put it in my cage and we carried the cage to my van. DD and I slowly fed and watered them all before we left the driveway. When they were all eating and drinking (ravenously I might add) we said good bye and left.

As soon as we were out of the driveway both of us started crying quietly. We couldn't even talk for a minute or two. We drove home and brought the cage into my ducks run and kept them in it so they could see each other but mine couldn't hurt them. I had to hook up a heat lamp for the little darlings too so once that was done I got on the phone. The friend that shared the order offered to foster them until I could find another permanent home for them as I couldn't house that many ducks at the time. It took about a week (I gave her a 50lb bag of feed as payment

) but she ended up finding them a home on a farm with a great big lake etc. The new owners knew their situation and promised to take care of them and I kept my fingers crossed that they did in fact end up living at this great new place.

The fact that you are concerned tells me your ducks are probably living in pretty good conditions. We all have our levels of comfort and I'm sure they range quite a bit. There are days when I'm ashamed that I haven't changed the shavings yet and there are other days when I think these ducks live in the lap of luxury. For me it's key to know they have a reasonably clean shelter, protection from the elements and predators and food and water at all times. I will say I still have two of the original three and they are healthy and happy eight years later so I must be doing something right. I'm sure you are too.

eta: Oh yeah, in answer to your question I would say my story is an example of bad living conditions for ducks...

 

[Miss Lydia]

well you have a beautiful place, I guess thats why we don't see an over abundance of wild ducks in our rivers and streams and lakes. It's mother natures way of keeping everything in balance I guess, glad to hear that little on made it..