Before I cut the opening for the duck house....HOW BIG?

[kwack]

We are going to be cutting the door soon and before we do we want to be sure.... we were planning 18" x 18". Is that too tall? Too wide too narrow? We were going for a little wider because we will close them in at night and didn't want a crazy smashing dash for the door in the morning.

We will have 6 to 8 ducks. Pekins, Cayugas and Welsh Harlequins.

Thanks

 

[jrleader99]

It probably depends on the type of duck that you have.

I am just starting out too and had this same question. I have 8 Indian Runners ducklings (about 2-3 weeks old) and I think that I made my opening fairly small but as of right now can open it up if needed.

 

[cherub78]

My ducks (Pekin, Swede, Rouen, and Pekin-Runner) use the same door as the chickens and the Pekin and Swede are pretty big ducks.
I think I had made the opening something like 15"x15". They haven't had any problem getting in or out, but they do bend down a little to come and go.
I might go a little taller on the next door- maybe 18".
Hope this helps.

 

[nettie]

for my runners, my door is about 16 in high and about 12in wide. They use it just fine, but this is a door to their nest box. (My ducks live inside)

 

[kwack]

Thanks for your input. Gotta get a move on. They ducks are 8 days and already twice their hatch size - YIKES!

 

[rfisherj]

18 x 18 is what mine is. I can crawl though it if there is a issue when the gate or door freezes. Also works for geese and chickens.