I've gotten a lot of messages and concerns about diapered ducks, so i thought i would make a topic explaining exactly how it works. I think many might have misconceptions about how the diapering works, and i don't want any one to worry or think my ducks (or other diapered ducks) are in harms way...
My ducks do not have feather rot
They are not unhappy
Being in a diaper is not torturing them
they don't hate their diapers
they don't sit for hours in a dirty diaper
the diaper does not impede on their movement nor their temperature
They do love living inside, and cannot live outside like a farm duck anymore.
First off, i'll start by explaining the diaper... it's a harness i make to fit my individual duck's bodies and they are adjustable. each time i put it on, i tighten or loosen it as needed. It's made out of lycra, or swimsuit material that is light weight and breathes. It can get wet and it dries very quickly when it does. It sits next to the skin, and does not dig into them. It's not tight like a swimsuit. It's best describes as a harness, like the kind a little dog might wear for walking, and a half of a baby diaper goes into a pouch under the butt. The diaper does not press against the bottom but rather hangs under the bottom. When the duck poops, it squirts down into the pouch and the liquid is absorbed by the diaper. Solids collect on top of the diaper, held in by the pouch. I change my ducks no less than EVERY 4 HOURS, often changing them within two. Four hours is the longest i reccommend any duck wearing a diaper going without changing... some people, i've heard, let them wear them all night and change them in the morning... i don't agree with this at all... I change the diaper portion in the harness usually every two hours or so to prevent feather rot and well, smelliness in general.. they do live in my house and smells are kept to a minimum. I even have a diaper genie, meant for baby diapers, that their diapers get deposited into.
On average, my ducks are diapered between 1-4 hours a day.... Most days they are diapered for 2 hours. They are diapered in the evening when we are home so they can spend time with us. They are both imprinted on me and humans in general, so they are happy when they are around us. They have their own play area with rugs, toys, a soft pet bed, etc that they play in each day in my frontroom. We give them treats like corn and peas, often hiding it in crinkled newspaper or spreading it around their play pen so they can "forage" for it.
When the two hours is up, they go immediately upstairs for their night time bath. I take their suits off and throw the diaper part away in the diaper genie. While they use their step stool to get in the tub, I hand wash their suits and hang dry them on hooks in the shower. The ducks swim in water deep enough to get off their feet for 1-2 hours. they are given and ample amount of time (they usually take 30 mins) to preen in the tub after the water drains. On a normal night, (right now it's different because they both need meds and ming needs bandages) they then go back into their pen (which is like any other duck pen other than the fact it's in our third bedroom instead of a barn or backyard). It has wood pellets as bedding and is cleaned very often. Spot cleans (aka poop scoops) are done daily with a little shovel to pick up any obvious messes. If an area gets too wet or poopy, it's completely cleaned out and new pellets are put down. The area by their water and food gets cleaned out every three days or so, while the min area doesn't need to be cleaned as often. Once every 6 weeks, the whole pen is shoveled out, sprayed with clorox anywhere spray (it's safe for pets, kids, and food), steam cleaned (by a very patient joe), wiped down with rags, and filled with fresh bedding. They probably have one of the cleanest duck houses known to man. They are indeed very spoiled and well looked after. they are very precious to us and we never do anything to harm them.
Now some get concerned about our ducks being inside and not living the life a duck should have.... One must remember that our ducks imprinted on me as day olds, and have never know of a life outdoors. after they fully fledged, they were allowed outside (but due to my townhouse in AL, they couldn't stay outside over night... it was against the rules, thus the beginings of indoor-duck-dom). They made it very clear how much they enjoyed the comforts of inside living when it was 100 degrees outside and i opened up the back door to let them out... they took one second outside, felt the heat, and immediately ran back in and sat under the AC vent. lol. they also hate the rain, snow, and whenever it's cold outside. I usually have to coax them out with food. this summer they got used out being outside more when i couldn't bring them in for baths (i was a guest at my dad's after i moved back to Chicago... he's not a pet kinda guy). they do get to go on walks outside, usually at a park. they are offered a chance to swim in a pond/lake but never want to (I think they think they are too good for that icky pond water, they only want clean lukewarm water in their tub).
they eat like kings, getting fresh fruits/veggies/ and sometimes meat every day. Their feed has a super mix of good things to eat including pellets, scratch, grit, oystershells, calf manna, dried peas of three varieties, barley, buck wheat, whole and cracked corn, sun flower seeds, parrot food (fruit flavored pellets), and vitamin powder. SPOILED! lol. they get a big bowl of fresh greens every night in the form of kale, mustard greens, turnip greens, or collard greens every day too.
They are very friendly and insist on being pet and rubbed down every morning when i get up. They also sometimes get cat food or oyster crackers as a mid-afternoon treat if they are being good. Their pen has a nest box, a first floor, and a ramp leading up to a second floor where their food and water is. they have an endless amount of toys too. They lead a very good life.
If any one has any more concerns, please feel free to express them to me either in pm or in this topic, and i will happily reply. I don't want anyone to worry. I guess a thing to remember is, is that all duck owners do things differently and have different opinions on how to care for their webbed feet pets.... and what works for one person, may not work for another... we're all here to learn about our ducks, share our info and experiences, and just be around people who have ducks...
There will be a TON of info about keeping ducks inside (either as pets or for injuries/sequestering) on my website... it's still in process, but it's getting there. My experience with ducks is probably a bit on the unique side and i'd like to share it with whoever wants to hear more.
My ducks do not have feather rot
They are not unhappy
Being in a diaper is not torturing them
they don't hate their diapers
they don't sit for hours in a dirty diaper
the diaper does not impede on their movement nor their temperature
They do love living inside, and cannot live outside like a farm duck anymore.
First off, i'll start by explaining the diaper... it's a harness i make to fit my individual duck's bodies and they are adjustable. each time i put it on, i tighten or loosen it as needed. It's made out of lycra, or swimsuit material that is light weight and breathes. It can get wet and it dries very quickly when it does. It sits next to the skin, and does not dig into them. It's not tight like a swimsuit. It's best describes as a harness, like the kind a little dog might wear for walking, and a half of a baby diaper goes into a pouch under the butt. The diaper does not press against the bottom but rather hangs under the bottom. When the duck poops, it squirts down into the pouch and the liquid is absorbed by the diaper. Solids collect on top of the diaper, held in by the pouch. I change my ducks no less than EVERY 4 HOURS, often changing them within two. Four hours is the longest i reccommend any duck wearing a diaper going without changing... some people, i've heard, let them wear them all night and change them in the morning... i don't agree with this at all... I change the diaper portion in the harness usually every two hours or so to prevent feather rot and well, smelliness in general.. they do live in my house and smells are kept to a minimum. I even have a diaper genie, meant for baby diapers, that their diapers get deposited into.
On average, my ducks are diapered between 1-4 hours a day.... Most days they are diapered for 2 hours. They are diapered in the evening when we are home so they can spend time with us. They are both imprinted on me and humans in general, so they are happy when they are around us. They have their own play area with rugs, toys, a soft pet bed, etc that they play in each day in my frontroom. We give them treats like corn and peas, often hiding it in crinkled newspaper or spreading it around their play pen so they can "forage" for it.
When the two hours is up, they go immediately upstairs for their night time bath. I take their suits off and throw the diaper part away in the diaper genie. While they use their step stool to get in the tub, I hand wash their suits and hang dry them on hooks in the shower. The ducks swim in water deep enough to get off their feet for 1-2 hours. they are given and ample amount of time (they usually take 30 mins) to preen in the tub after the water drains. On a normal night, (right now it's different because they both need meds and ming needs bandages) they then go back into their pen (which is like any other duck pen other than the fact it's in our third bedroom instead of a barn or backyard). It has wood pellets as bedding and is cleaned very often. Spot cleans (aka poop scoops) are done daily with a little shovel to pick up any obvious messes. If an area gets too wet or poopy, it's completely cleaned out and new pellets are put down. The area by their water and food gets cleaned out every three days or so, while the min area doesn't need to be cleaned as often. Once every 6 weeks, the whole pen is shoveled out, sprayed with clorox anywhere spray (it's safe for pets, kids, and food), steam cleaned (by a very patient joe), wiped down with rags, and filled with fresh bedding. They probably have one of the cleanest duck houses known to man. They are indeed very spoiled and well looked after. they are very precious to us and we never do anything to harm them.
Now some get concerned about our ducks being inside and not living the life a duck should have.... One must remember that our ducks imprinted on me as day olds, and have never know of a life outdoors. after they fully fledged, they were allowed outside (but due to my townhouse in AL, they couldn't stay outside over night... it was against the rules, thus the beginings of indoor-duck-dom). They made it very clear how much they enjoyed the comforts of inside living when it was 100 degrees outside and i opened up the back door to let them out... they took one second outside, felt the heat, and immediately ran back in and sat under the AC vent. lol. they also hate the rain, snow, and whenever it's cold outside. I usually have to coax them out with food. this summer they got used out being outside more when i couldn't bring them in for baths (i was a guest at my dad's after i moved back to Chicago... he's not a pet kinda guy). they do get to go on walks outside, usually at a park. they are offered a chance to swim in a pond/lake but never want to (I think they think they are too good for that icky pond water, they only want clean lukewarm water in their tub).
they eat like kings, getting fresh fruits/veggies/ and sometimes meat every day. Their feed has a super mix of good things to eat including pellets, scratch, grit, oystershells, calf manna, dried peas of three varieties, barley, buck wheat, whole and cracked corn, sun flower seeds, parrot food (fruit flavored pellets), and vitamin powder. SPOILED! lol. they get a big bowl of fresh greens every night in the form of kale, mustard greens, turnip greens, or collard greens every day too.
They are very friendly and insist on being pet and rubbed down every morning when i get up. They also sometimes get cat food or oyster crackers as a mid-afternoon treat if they are being good. Their pen has a nest box, a first floor, and a ramp leading up to a second floor where their food and water is. they have an endless amount of toys too. They lead a very good life.
If any one has any more concerns, please feel free to express them to me either in pm or in this topic, and i will happily reply. I don't want anyone to worry. I guess a thing to remember is, is that all duck owners do things differently and have different opinions on how to care for their webbed feet pets.... and what works for one person, may not work for another... we're all here to learn about our ducks, share our info and experiences, and just be around people who have ducks...
There will be a TON of info about keeping ducks inside (either as pets or for injuries/sequestering) on my website... it's still in process, but it's getting there. My experience with ducks is probably a bit on the unique side and i'd like to share it with whoever wants to hear more.
