Can grown ducks take -30 wind chill?

[jvls1942]

How about it you northerners? wisc, minn, mich,up'ers.. anybody have a pond that is not froze over??

 

[spectrumranch]

Luckily none of our ponds froze up-- at least, compelety that is. They are reduced to small openings but at least everybody could still take baths today. It was -30 (actual temp, not wind chill) this morning.

This is what the ponds normally look like with temps down to 0:

This is what they look like at -30:

Randy www.spectrumranch.net

 

[poultrykeeper08]

I whent out to my duck/goose barn and found my male muscovey laying down with its wings spread and i didnt know why when i picked him up i found his feet were completly frozen . His feet were fanned out and the leg was frozen up to the joint i had to bring him in and put his feet in warm water !

 

[jmc]

Your birds will be fine.

 

[Wildsky]

Quote:
It should probably be cool water first so as not to damage tissue, warm water feels HOT when your skin is cold/frozen.

I had a duck that froze up after taking a dip and not drying off properly - I brought him in the house and put in in a cold bath tub - he had SUCH a blast I had to close the shower curtain to prevent the ENTIRE bathroom from getting wet!

all that dern splashing around.

 

[Wildsky]

Quote:

Love those pictures. How deep is that water?

 

[skylar]

hi do yo

u know me skylar herre is a recent picture of me

 

[spectrumranch]

The pool in photo- goes from 4 inches deep in the corners to 6 inches in the center on the shallow end (where the ducks are in the photo) down to 18 inches deep on the other end.

In the first photo- you can see the white muscovy hen is standing in the water. This pool is 8' x 16'

This photo is a few of our Cakler geese- hopefully you can see this pool a little better.

Randy

 

[Wildsky]

I need to get a pond built, yours look really nice! I was thinking of trying to find a cheap/free jacuzi (non working)on craigslist or something, and digging a hole and popping it in. I only have 6 ducks (all muscovy) but I'm sure they'd love it. If I ever get that far.

This is the first winter with them, and I've been filling those round rubber dishes - they fit in nicely one at a time, but they have been sneaking into the horse water tank.

 

[SunAngel]

I have to keep refilling the two waterers for our 8 ducks every couple hours because their little pond froze solid and the waterers keep getting slushy.

Each time I refil them, they take turns swimming in them. The wind chill here is -8 and they have ice crystals on their feathers from swimming. I was about to make a thread asking if I should find something smaller for water to keep them from swimming, but I the posts here answered that question...silly ducks!

Mine have an 8x4 A frame house with two bales of straw and a bag of pine shavings on the floor....no heat lamp. They seemed to survive the frigid night ok.