Cayuga Duckling Questions - When can they go outside?

[luckyduckys]

Hi there,

I'm about to receive two day old Cayuga ducklings on Tuesday. I was just wondering how old they have to be when they get to spend time outside. Is it dangerous to bring them outside on warm sunny days? I see videos of people outside with their ducklings, I'm just not sure about the rules. How old do they need to be? How long can they be out for? How old do they need to be for me to take them out of their brooder in the house, to hold/play with them? How long can they be out for? When can I transfer them to the duck house outdoors? So many questions!

 

[Amiga]

Here is a good intro

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/750869/raising-and-caring-for-ducklings#post_10611711

General guideline is 90˚F the first week, dropping 5 degrees a week. If it is not close to 80˚F and sunny, with a spot that is away from the breeze, I would hesitate having them outdoors more than for several minutes.

Another concern about outdoors is that since they don't have thick adult feathers, mosquitoes and black flies can bite them, possibly introducing disease.

What I liked to do was let the ducklings run around on an old sheet in the hallway. I would sit with them, talk to them, let them crawl over and around me.

Be careful handling them - they wiggle and hop, and it is too easy for them to fall. They need to be supervised nonstop if they are outside the brooder. They can get themselves into unimaginable trouble, quickly.

Fully feathered is the stage at which I feel it is okay to let them live outdoors, and there are always exceptions either way. My runners were inside for three solid months.

We had a blast!