Cold weather and age of ducks

[Bakinbaker]

Here in central Oklahoma it's been in the 60s - 80s until the last 2 days. Today I got up at 7am and it was 31 degrees F! I've been putting the older ducks (5 weeks old - 1 Jumbo Pekin and 1 White & Fawn Runner) outside in their hutch during the day and if it's warm enough at night leaving them out then as well - they seem to be enjoying it.

This morning I went ahead and moved them out (after reading the past few days about temps that ducks can handle and such) but left their blanket over the top to break the wind and added back their light (not a heat lamp but a 20-watt orange bulb that we used in the brooder box) for a little extra warmth.

They've not opted to go into the bottom and they don't seem to be huddling up too much, kind of off and on but that's normal for them. Should I be concerned with the low temps today and in the coming days? It's not supposed to be lower than 30 degrees F which was today and will be warmer and warmer each day up to about 70 by Tuesday.

I'm a city girl and this is my first experience with anything other than cats, dogs, rabbits and a hamster.

 

[Kevin565]

Ducks have quite a bit of down to keep them insulated. However with them being so young they do not have as much protection from the cold. At this point I personally would have some sort of heat source on them and make sure they are in a draft free area.

 

[Amiga]

You are being very conscientious - yay!

Keep watching closely, keep up with a good healthy diet, give them options as you can (warmer, cooler).

My runners - perhaps because they were bred in a warm climate - do not thrive below 40F. That is fine since we have the infrastructure to keep them at that temperature at least. But many if not most ducks do well below that. Dry bedding makes a huge difference in the cold.