i just got two runner ducklings. thinking ahead, i'm wondering about how you get them to bed at night. i don't believe they will go into their coop like a chicken would, is that true? can they be trained to do so? thanks!
I trained mine to go to bed at night. It takes patience and consistency. You have to put them to bed at the same time every night and your best bet is to start off with treats leading to and in their coop. One they have a routine down they will put themselves to bed every night no problem you will just have to go out every night to check that they are in bed. I have one little stinker that gets it into his head that he can stay out swimming longer than the others so we have to keep an eye on him.
Mine go to bed in the coop with the chickens. They are call ducks. Geese also. Train them as you would chickens. Physically put them inside at dusk until they do it themselves reliably. This simple technique has worked for me for all manner of fowl.
My two runners got on a schedule pretty quickly when we had them still in the sunroom at night. It helped that we already had a bedtime routine for our two dogs. We kennel them at night. If we didn't things we be chewed up or pee'd on. So we had a bedtime @ 9 or 9:30pm and a 6am wake up time for them to go potty. The duck's jumped on that asap. Especially when we started putting them in their pen during the day, that is when they would start making noise and quacking when they would hear the bedroom door open @ 6am. As soon as I would coral them in their pen in the evening, turn on their light and close the sunroom door, they would preen and bed down for the night. Even though now, they are out in their pen all night, they still want to be let out at 6am, almost on the dot! They sleep in their pool, but I m not sure they stay there all night? One night I took it out and put them to bed, they seemed completely displaced without it. They just stood at the door and stared at the house. I kept peeking through the window to see if they would bed down and they didn't! They just stood there as in disbelief that I had taken "The Pool". After feeling guilty, I went out in the dark, put the pool back in their pen and filled it up. They were happy!
Quote:There have been more times than not that my runners have put themselves to bed too! It's nice just having to walk over and lock-em up for the night!
Yep, I go out at dark and close their door since they are already laying down in their house. I brooded outside on the patio in a large/huge dog kennel/crate. I fenced off a chunk of deck for them and would put them from kennel to deck for most of the day after a few weeks and then back to the kennel at night. Then it moved to the floor of the patio and I fenced off half the deck for them for the day. Kennel remained open and they just ran right in as it got dark. Then they got a duck house on the deck and I had to put them in a few times (they would go to the kennel instead). Then they just put themselves to bed there. Then I moved the duck house to another part of the deck and had to put them in a couple of times and then back to them going in on their own. Then I moved it off the deck to the ground in front of the deck in the little duck yard. Didn't have to put them to bed, they just figured they'd been moved again lol
Yes, my ducks figured it out pretty quick actually. As long as you put them away at the same time at night, they will start to realize that it is time to go to bed. I lock my ducks up every night when it starts to get dark out and now they are always in their coop.
My ducklings figured it out after the first night. Now I just go out to say good night, fill their water, and lock the door. They are almost 10 weeks old.
my chickens taught my ducks to go back in the pen at night. if you house yours separate or dont have chickens just throw treats in the pen before sundown
