Considering some ducks

[Chickety Charcoal]

This feedback is fantastic and exactly what I was looking for....thank you everyone!

I think I will try out ducks first and see how that goes. As I said, the yard is small so I think geese wouldn't be as happy. As my experience grows with raising fowl, I would see if they could fit into my lifestyle.

What makes me hesitate with ducks is the water situation. I was thinking of providing a kiddie pool for their bathing and already have ideas for their feed and drinking water. Emptying and refilling a kiddie pool everyday of the year can be a challenge though (running a hose to the pool, how do I keep the hose and pool from freezing, how to help that much water drain away from the house and coops and not create a flood area, etc). There are logistics I need to work out.

It seems that ducks do not automatically go into their coop each night as chickens do, so I would not be able to let them have the run of the yard during the day (I often get home after dark) or would I? If I need to build a walk-in enclosure that they are in (to avoid predators), that will affect where I can put them and what breeds etc I can get. Are there any of you that don't have your ducks in enclosures? Do they get picked off by racoons often? Since I can't usher them back into a protected coop each day this concerns me. Also, do they need to have access to grass each day?

Having said that, the breeds that I keep looking on are Welsh Harlequin, Cayuga, Khaki Campbell, and Indian Runners. I am open to any that best suit my situation however, these are just what catch my eye.

 

[FenDruadin]

They *will* get picked off by predators if they're not closed up at night, unless they have access to a large body of water (like a large pond or a lake). This is just how it is, unfortunately.

You can get them back into an enclosure at night easily by only feeding them in there, and only at night (once they're full grown). They also love bird seed as a treat, so if you give them bird seed at night in their pen, that's another way to get them in. But, obviously, you have to be there to do it. So perhaps you only let them range when you know you'll be home before dark, otherwise make sure they're locked up in a run.

Water is the big issue. Most of us use kiddie pools, except the lucky souls with access to large bodies of water. They're just the easiest thing to dump & refill, and the water WILL get yucky in a hurry, so you do have to dump and refill. How often will depend on the number of birds and your tolerance for yuck. I do it about every three days for six ducks with a high tolerance for yuck. Mine also have access to a large farm pond that they use during the day... so there's a good chance you'll need to dump yours daily.

Hope that helps!

 

[redsoxs]

I do the kiddie pool thing - the ducks love it, but as I mentioned, they bore holes wherever there is water....such as they water they splash. This spring when I get more I'm going to try something different. I'm thinking of building a two by four square frame - maybe 8' x 8' and putting sand or gravel inside. On top goes the pool. My hope is that the water that is sloshed out soaks into the sand or gravel instead of just onto bare ground, which invites their drilling and probing. And yes, the filling and refilling can be a pain. But it's so fun to watch then play.
In terms of enclosures - I kept mine separate from my chickens and did not allow free ranging for a few days until they recognized their new run and house as "home." Never had the chickens attempt to go into the duck house, nor the ducks into the chicken house. Ducks always went in on their own - but usually right at dark and after the chickens - they seem to have better night vision.
Breeds - check out the Metzers website - great guidance about breeds and their uses. I plan on getting a mixed flock of 10 this spring comprised of 5 different breeds - some for eggs, some for meat. Good luck to you, Chickety Charcoal!

 

[DallasCriftins]

I am in the middle of our first duck experiment
result:

Mud
Mud
Muddy drinking water
More muddy drinking water
Mud
Mud
Muddy puddles
More muddy puddles
Grass
Less Grass
Bore holes
No Grass
Mud
Mud

Chickens are so much easier!

I have had Chickens for a while but this year took in an Apple-yard Drake
Then went to an auction and bought him 2 Apple-yard Ducks for company.
Then went to buy one Chocolate Runner and came home with 5!

Now I have an Acre and a huge pond that they will eventually have available and I have already concluded their shed is going to the far side of my field to keep the mud as far away as poss from our backdoor.

At the moment though my Ducks and Hens share the same temporary compound which is about 80' X 40' whilst I fence off the rest of the field for them to use

In just four weeks the Ducks have turned 50% of the compound (pretty much a 20' wide swath from their shed to the pond) that was originally good pasture into Mud and I mean Mud to Battle of the Somme standards!

So mud management is our primary consideration for the next stage of the experiment especailly as we plan to have about 20 in total
Just trying to remain upright walking through their compound to open the gate in the fence around the pond is a challenge!
We are on poorly drained heavy clay soil here and we have had the wettest summer since bods with big hats started keeping records, even now it is absolutely chucking it down out there!

If you are on sand or chalk you may fare better.
But if you only have a small area you may need to consider rotation of the pen and run as in a small area they will decimate it no time, limiting yourself to a pair or trio and see how it goes would be sensible

Personally seeing the mess mine make I would never consider the use of a kids paddling pool as in no time at all the water would resemble coffee and I would be stressed and forever emptying it out - to where? The ducks may well be happy in the gloop but I would feel uncomfortable!

The term Duck-boards seems very fitting I have just bought a load of Plastic Pallets for £5 each and I am going to cut them in half and try using them as 'paving' over the sea of Mud
They should be easier to use and lay than paving slabs as well because here paving just slowly sinks!

Now as for getting them in I have absolutely no problem I taught our first Duck to go to bed the same time as the Chickens in his little dog kennel.
Then when the others came along I bought them a bigger shed and made sure he taught the others what to do so it is easy they all run around at dusk for awhile going in and out of the shed a few times then stay put and that when I shut them in.

Ducks are simply great to watch though especially if you can give them a proper body of water to play in! because they play and party all day (and night)

As I type this I can hear an Owl
I wonder what the Ducks will think of that tucked up in their Plastic (Ketter) Shed!


Here is "Duck Norris" in the foreground



Almost the same view point 8 years earlier!
Creation of the Mk1 Duck Pond



Invaders! testing the Pond long before I bought our Ducks



And this is why you will love your Ducks

 

[Going Quackers]

This feedback is fantastic and exactly what I was looking for....thank you everyone!

I think I will try out ducks first and see how that goes. As I said, the yard is small so I think geese wouldn't be as happy. As my experience grows with raising fowl, I would see if they could fit into my lifestyle.

What makes me hesitate with ducks is the water situation. I was thinking of providing a kiddie pool for their bathing and already have ideas for their feed and drinking water. Emptying and refilling a kiddie pool everyday of the year can be a challenge though (running a hose to the pool, how do I keep the hose and pool from freezing, how to help that much water drain away from the house and coops and not create a flood area, etc). There are logistics I need to work out.

It seems that ducks do not automatically go into their coop each night as chickens do, so I would not be able to let them have the run of the yard during the day (I often get home after dark) or would I? If I need to build a walk-in enclosure that they are in (to avoid predators), that will affect where I can put them and what breeds etc I can get. Are there any of you that don't have your ducks in enclosures? Do they get picked off by racoons often? Since I can't usher them back into a protected coop each day this concerns me. Also, do they need to have access to grass each day?

Having said that, the breeds that I keep looking on are Welsh Harlequin, Cayuga, Khaki Campbell, and Indian Runners. I am open to any that best suit my situation however, these are just what catch my eye.

I too use kiddy pools but yes, your right it creates quite a muddy, watery mess.. all my pools are gone for the season, i do not maintain them when the temps drops.. i kept them as long as I can but without a heater they pose a hazard. I do keep a heated bucket for the drinking water though, plus honestly around the area where the duck barn is has low laying water so for today they have puddles lol (were +5C)

I have some who will go in the coop by themselves but many a night they are outside, we just herd them in.. were dark by 4:30+ so i leave them for a bit but i should mention there coop is surround by 5ft fence, they can leave if they choose too(all full flight) but are not out in the open as they are prone to predators just like any other poultry are.

Grass? well mine have access to it till it's covered by snow, again they can forage the farm and the area that is fenced is 1/3 of an acre so while the spot where the pools usually sit is a mud hole they have yet to destroy all of the grass in the higher parts of the "pen" .

 

[Going Quackers]

I am in the middle of our first duck experiment
result:

Mud
Mud
Muddy drinking water
More muddy drinking water
Mud
Mud
Muddy puddles
More muddy puddles
Grass
Less Grass
Bore holes
No Grass
Mud
Mud

Chickens are so much easier!

I have had Chickens for a while but this year took in an Apple-yard Drake
Then went to an auction and bought him 2 Apple-yard Ducks for company.
Then went to buy one Chocolate Runner and came home with 5!

Now I have an Acre and a huge pond that they will eventually have available and I have already concluded their shed is going to the far side of my field to keep the mud as far away as poss from our backdoor.

At the moment though my Ducks and Hens share the same temporary compound which is about 80' X 40' whilst I fence off the rest of the field for them to use

In just four weeks the Ducks have turned 50% of the compound (pretty much a 20' wide swath from their shed to the pond) that was originally good pasture into Mud and I mean Mud to Battle of the Somme standards!

So mud management is our primary consideration for the next stage of the experiment especailly as we plan to have about 20 in total
Just trying to remain upright walking through their compound to open the gate in the fence around the pond is a challenge!
We are on poorly drained heavy clay soil here and we have had the wettest summer since bods with big hats started keeping records, even now it is absolutely chucking it down out there!

If you are on sand or chalk you may fare better.
But if you only have a small area you may need to consider rotation of the pen and run as in a small area they will decimate it no time, limiting yourself to a pair or trio and see how it goes would be sensible

Personally seeing the mess mine make I would never consider the use of a kids paddling pool as in no time at all the water would resemble coffee and I would be stressed and forever emptying it out - to where? The ducks may well be happy in the gloop but I would feel uncomfortable!

The term Duck-boards seems very fitting I have just bought a load of Plastic Pallets for £5 each and I am going to cut them in half and try using them as 'paving' over the sea of Mud
They should be easier to use and lay than paving slabs as well because here paving just slowly sinks!

Now as for getting them in I have absolutely no problem I taught our first Duck to go to bed the same time as the Chickens in his little dog kennel.
Then when the others came along I bought them a bigger shed and made sure he taught the others what to do so it is easy they all run around at dusk for awhile going in and out of the shed a few times then stay put and that when I shut them in.

Ducks are simply great to watch though especially if you can give them a proper body of water to play in! because they play and party all day (and night)

As I type this I can hear an Owl
I wonder what the Ducks will think of that tucked up in their Plastic (Ketter) Shed!


Here is "Duck Norris" in the foreground



Almost the same view point 8 years earlier!
Creation of the Mk1 Duck Pond



Invaders! testing the Pond long before I bought our Ducks



And this is why you will love your Ducks

Lovely pics! I am seriously LOL at your mud comments, yes they ADORE mud.. i have pics of my last hatch this summer in it at only a few weeks old.. we would fill these holes on purpose. We have a small farm so mud is part of life here, you'd die if you saw my horse paddock right now..

but this is also plays a role in why i generally prefer to free range ducks it's quite hard to maintain an area for them since they need and love water, so if you want quite a few you need a big spot to pull that off whereas i have found with chickens while they are hole diggers with top honors they don't make such a mess since they are 'drier' birds.

 

[Chickety Charcoal]

Thanks again for these great comments!

I am in the middle of our first duck experiment
result:

Mud
Mud
Muddy drinking water
More muddy drinking water
Mud
Mud
Muddy puddles
More muddy puddles
Grass
Less Grass
Bore holes
No Grass
Mud
Mud

Chickens are so much easier!

Oh boy, that's what I was afraid of. If they could turn your 20' lot into mud in 4 weeks, they will destroy my suburban lot. Maybe I better rethink this. I just don't know how I would drain that area. It would not make my wife happy. But they are just too dang cute......

(Gorgeous pictures btw)

 

[FenDruadin]

Keep in mind that smaller numbers of ducks will make MUCH less mess. If you just want them for the cute factor, consider getting a pair or a trio. They won't be so overwhelmingly messy, and you still get the adorable factor.

 

[Going Quackers]

That's quite true, that is why said if you want quite a few you have to allow for the area needed. A few isn't as bad as heading in double digits/teens. Yet, i still will stand by the chickens are cleaner and easier to keep that way lol

 

[FenDruadin]

Yup, totally agreed. Chickens are way less messy at any number!