Can duckings eat chick starter/grower?

[333113]

i have been using chick starter with a lower % i just put them outside on the grass when it is nice. never supplemented, and have never had any problem.

Okay, you are lucky. Not sure (a) what breed(s) you are raising or (b) where you are located or (c) what type of grass you have. Sometimes breeds, location or type of grass can affect how much niacin is in the grass as feed.

BTW, it's really important to understand the needs of your flock versus what you are providing, PARTICULARLY when you are giving advice. I have twelve years of duck experience, and LOTS of research to understand how my environment is different than other environments. And, guess what...I still get it wrong sometimes.

I take a page from Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography, and always try to say, "in my experience..." or "in my opinion...." or, "as far as I know...."

We would all be better off practicing more humility. If we don't, Mother Nature will be happy to hand us a heaping plateful!

 

[Isaac 0]

i breed welsh harlequins, have raised up many batches to adults and have never lost one once hatched. had over 50 this year so i dont think it is just luck.
also, i have never had angel wings in my flock or any other deformity.

Do you feed your dog cat food?

I respect your experience, but I think I'm going to listen to logic here, ducks require almost twice as much niacin then chicks, feeding them chick starter is just being careless and uninformed on the subject. So please continue to do so, but just don't recommend it to other people unless you have actually have done some scientific research on the topic.

 

[Kabootar]

i breed welsh harlequins, have raised up many batches to adults and have never lost one once hatched. had over 50 this year so i dont think it is just luck.
also, i have never had angel wings in my flock or any other deformity.

Okay I can't go on arguing, it's upto the original poster to decide what course he/she takes, but I tell you one thing Churchill lived till his nineties, but that doesn't mean smoking is good.

 

[tielie135]

Okay, you are lucky. Not sure (a) what breed(s) you are raising or (b) where you are located or (c) what type of grass you have. Sometimes breeds, location or type of grass can affect how much niacin is in the grass as feed.

BTW, it's really important to understand the needs of your flock versus what you are providing, PARTICULARLY when you are giving advice. I have twelve years of duck experience, and LOTS of research to understand how my environment is different than other environments. And, guess what...I still get it wrong sometimes.

I take a page from Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography, and always try to say, "in my experience..." or "in my opinion...." or, "as far as I know...."

We would all be better off practicing more humility. If we don't, Mother Nature will be happy to hand us a heaping plateful!

Do you feed your dog cat food?

I respect your experience, but I think I'm going to listen to logic here, ducks require almost twice as much niacin then chicks, feeding them chick starter is just being careless and uninformed on the subject. So please continue to do so, but just don't recommend it to other people unless you have actually have done some scientific research on the topic.

i am in northern BC canada. and i have welsh harlequins. i know that almost everyone in my area uses the same method and here it is what i always recommend when i sell them here, but you are right maybe it is just my area and the grass. but it is what works here. i have herd it from several other breeders in my area who produce hundreds of ducklings every year.

 

[Texag87]

Isaaac has much more experience than I do. We have always brooded with a ten pound bag of Dumar non medicated chick starter with brewers yeast added. Then, at two weeks when the bag is low switch to Purina Flock raiser crumbles while still using brewers yeast Until 10 weeks. If your concern is wasting the starter, mix it in a 20% ratio with your regular feed and feed it to your older birds.

 

[Miss Lydia]

If the OP can find Purina Flock raiser crumbles that would be a good feed for ducklings and you never have to switch feeds again unless you want to switch to pellets later. I’d still supplement or at least have on hand Nutritional yeast . https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...vs-brewers-yeast.1393856/page-2#post-22891025. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/niacin-deficiency-in-waterfowl.1367557/. Just some valuable info.

 

[CaliFarmsAR]

Yes, but they will suffer from severe niacin deficiency unless you supplement.

Question, what do you put in it then?? I have raised all my ducklings with chick feed and not added anything to it! So is adding necessary?

 

[Kabootar]

Question, what do you put in it then?? I have raised all my ducklings with chick feed and not added anything to it! So is adding necessary?

I mix my own poultry feed, mostly home grown and locally purchased seeds. Totally soy free and non GMO. In a mill they turn it into pellets
and crumbles. It is 19-22% protein depending on the season. I feed it to all my birds of all species. However for waterfowl I mix Brewer's Yeast so they don't suffer from niacin deficiency. That's something I purchase from vet shop.

 

[CaliFarmsAR]

I mix my own poultry feed, mostly home grown and locally purchased seeds. Totally soy free and non GMO. In a mill they turn it into pellets
and crumbles. It is 19-22% protein depending on the season. I feed it to all my birds of all species. However for waterfowl I mix Brewer's Yeast so they don't suffer from niacin deficiency. That's something I purchase from vet shop.

Oh okay, so what is niacin deficiency?

 

[Kabootar]

Oh okay, so what is niacin deficiency?

Niacin is the chemical name for Vitamin B3. Lack of niacin causes a wing deformity called Angels Wing in waterfowl.