Coop

[angieangiebobangie]

Do ducks need to be in a coop at night? My run is secured with hardwire cloth and I have the dig defense aprons all the way around. I also have a tarp on top of the wire where the roof is. Is it okay to leave them out there during the night for a few weeks?

 

[Northwest_Wannabe]

How old are they, and will this be a temporary solution, or do you mean to do this for long term?

Long term, no. For maybe a week or two, maybe up to a month you could secure it in a way where they could. Is the entire run made of hardware cloth? I would hook up a tarp on two sides adjacent to eachother to make an area that wind/weather can't get through, and maybe something inside like a dog kennel or even a makeshift structure, just so they feel secure and can get away from drafts.

Long term you're really going to want a coop for them to go into and be safe at night : D

 

[Duck mommy 2019]

post a photo of your setup please

 

[angieangiebobangie]

How old are they, and will this be a temporary solution, or do you mean to do this for long term?

Long term, no. For maybe a week or two, maybe up to a month you could secure it in a way where they could. Is the entire run made of hardware cloth? I would hook up a tarp on two sides adjacent to eachother to make an area that wind/weather can't get through, and maybe something inside like a dog kennel or even a makeshift structure, just so they feel secure and can get away from drafts.

Long term you're really going to want a coop for them to go into and be safe at night : D

One of the them is 4 weeks and the other two are 2 weeks old. They are already off of the heat lamp. This will be only temporary

 

[Northwest_Wannabe]

2 weeks old and off of a heat lamp? How cold are your nights there right now? : D

 

[angieangiebobangie]

One of the them is 4 weeks and the other two are 2 weeks old. They are already off of the heat lamp. This will be only temporary

About 80 at night

 

[Ratchnick]

I was just contemplating this myself. I think the main two reasons to have a coop is extreme weather and predator protection. If your run provides enough of those things for your area i don't think you need a coop

 

[Pollo Blanco]

I think that a makeshift coop would work for short term.

 

[BigLar368]

Our ducks and chicks are about 7 weeks old. None of them have slept one night in the coop and prefer sleeping on the ground. Our coop and run is very secure with HC and concrete footers under the doors. I am sure one day the chickens might go in the coop but the ducks may never. We live in Southeast Texas where it rarely freezes and if it does it's not for very long. From what I have read ducks are able to tolerate cooler weather better than chickens. Also our birds only had the heat for 3 weeks and after that they stopped sleeping near it at night so we just removed it.