C'mon Duck people!

[Stormhorse23]

now that winter is over and i have become an expert at dislodging food from Angels mouth, bandaging up Peter after i stepped on him (all better!),sewing up big mama, pocket brooding, and catching a pigeon sized chicken that im not too sure is a chicken...i want a new challenge. i absolutely love my chickens. and have 10 beautiful ones now. i am not a buy and sell kind of person and keep what i have for its whole life. i am really interested in getting a pair of ducks. just a male and a female. they would have their own area and a kiddie pool and MAYBE a real one (but small). i know they will eventually hatch ducklings but i would just find them homes and try not to get attached. what kind to you guys suggest. i am ordering them off of ideal poultry. I like the magpies, the crested buffs, the crested fawn and whites, and the snowy mallards. which would be the tamest of these? do they need a little "coop"? can you eat their eggs? thank you so much! and how much room would a pair need in their run?

 

[deeszoo]

Ducks are great!! I am no good at choosing, so I won't help you there.

Their eggs are simply delicious! They do not have the sulpher smell that chicken eggs do, and if you are allergic to chicken eggs, you can usually eat duck eggs.

They don't need, or want, very much shelter. Mine can go in the barn with the chickens, but are just as likely to sleep out in the open. They need a three-sided shelter with a top to get out of the worst weather, and that is about it for that. And, the pen needs to be predator proof.

I highly recommend moving their pen around some, if you can - or let them free range. They love to eat grass. They will eat very little feed as long as they have fresh greens to eat. They also love to eat slugs and all sorts of bugs. The other reason is that their poo doesn't smell very good. Deep sand would help with that.

You know the term, "loose as a goose"? Same applies for ducks.

They don't have to have a pool or pond, but it so much healthier for them! They do, however, need to be able to put their heads in the water at least up to their eyeballs, so chicken waterers don't work real well for them.

Geese have even less need to be in a pond than ducks! But they, too, need water up to their eyeballs. Geese and ducks have to keep their noses and sinuses open and will blow bubbles and all kinds of fun stuff in the water. Being water birds, they drink lots, too.

Downsides? Ducks will "drill" into the dirt where the water splashes out of their ponds. They will make big holes in your yard. If you move their waterer a lot, it helps with that because it won't be as muddy there. Putting big rocks around the edge of the "pond" helps, too.

They are also very nosey and want to know what you are doing! The ladies can be very vocal, with the males having a softer voice.

Can you tell I love my ducks and geese??

That is all I can think of right now.

DeAnna

 

[Stormhorse23]

awesome. i was thinking. since i screwed up my first chicken coop and pen (too small, no roosts) and i am making a new coop for my chickadees, id give their coop to the duckies. set up the old pen...BUT i want to expand it so it goes way far out from below the swingset and that would probably give them 90-80 sq feet run space. here is my chickens current coop that would belong to the duckies. i will take out the dividers, though. and since i am only getting 2, i dont think size will be a problem.

 

[pavafricangrey]

I definitely second moving their pen around unless you give them a very large permanent pen or free range. My duck area has expanded more than once since I got them because they turned the smaller areas into a muddy mess very quickly (and maybe because I keep getting more

). Once thing I eventually did that helped a lot was to put the waterer on a raised wooden frame topped with wire so that they don't drill all around the edge as much.

I really like using a kiddie pool. The ducks love it and it's easy to clean. They get it dirty really fast!

The eggs are a little bit higher in cholesterol, some people like them,some don't. I don't think they taste that different. I've heard they are better for baking.

Of the breeds you're interested in I think the Buffs are the sweetest (I don't have any experience with Magpies). My Buffs are the first to approach me everyday and the least skittish about everything. I've had my runners much longer and they are quite a bit more high-strung, but I love them because they are so much fun to watch. I actually like every duck I've ever met so maybe I'm not the best person to suggest, but whatever you get I'm sure you'll love having them!

Christie

 

[Stormhorse23]

yes i looked at pics of the buffs and loved them. im using the kiddie pool. if i expanded my chicken run to 200 sq feet and i will end up with probably 6-8 chickens in the end (currently 10). could the ducks live with the chickens? i have silkies, a brahma, a barred rock, and one that i dont even think is a chicken.

 

[pavafricangrey]

I've heard mixed reviews about ducks and chickens living together. I've seen it done and there didn't seem to be any problems. But I've heard stories about serious (fatal) aggression problems.

I think if you let them check each other out through some sort of barrier for a while it could probably work. I don't know much about chickens, but ducks can take a long time to accept newcomers and can be pretty aggressive about it especially the drakes. If it happens gradually they are much more tolerant.

 

[Katy]

You should consider call ducks....they are the sweetest little ducks. Mine have loads of personality.

 

[Stormhorse23]

looking at ducks and reading about them, i think i like them more than..... somebody stop me before i say it....

 

[okiechick57]

Wish I could stop you

Nah.go for it...you will love owning ducks....I have 3 Muscovies and 3 runners and 1 Roeun and !mallard mutt

 

[Stormhorse23]

oh. i had a quick reality check and ya know, they are georgous and even more so than chickens in some ways.....BUT i need to think. can i really take proper care of them? with all i have going on right now, the chickens are enough. but thank you all SO MUCH for the information and no doubt when things calm down and i cut back my chickie population, ducks will come back into the picture. thank you all.