Do ducks need shelter?

[shadust1]

since mine were little they have a home in my greenhouse and we have them a pool right outside of it for them so swim...but....now that they r bigger and we want to introduce them to the pond it is hard because they are soo used to the greenhouse and pool...lol...so the day that we took them down to the pond to try to let them swim and were scared to death..i told my boyfried..ok that is enough...they dont wanna go into the pond yet...so i think what is gonna happen is when they do finally wonder further from the greenhouse and they find the pond and swim around they r still gonna come straight back up to the greenhouse and sleep...which is absolutely fine with me....i am willing to share my greenhouse with my poopy babies...geez do they poop..lol...

 

[stargazingmommy]

My ducks have a fenced run with a wading pool and a doogloo, insulated dog house. They only use the house to try t hide from me wwhen I'm trying to catch them. Little jerks

 

[Eroc1_1]

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x4 but I personally let mine free range all day but LOCKED UP tight at night.

 

[ducksinarow]

My ducks love their little house. I lock them up at night in it. In the day if they feel threatened they run to it. It makes them feel safe. I think they need it more for safety than from the weather. They never go into it to get out of the rain or storms.

 

[ChickInDelight]

I started my nine little darlings in an igloo doghouse so they would always know it is home. Ha! Silly me.

They stopped sleeping there before I even moved it outside. I locked them in it one night, but one Mallard was injured when the young boys caught the ducks for me.

I was delighted when one and only one night, 3 Mallards went under the tarp covering the igloo to sleep there away from the 5 others. There was corn under the tarp at the time.

Now, I put the doghouse in their favorite spot in the yard. I throw food to entice them in. They lay on the back stone porch or under my van when they want shelter. Never, do they enter the home they so loved as babies. I have failed basic duck training.

So.... in my opinion... and based on what I have read... yes, they do need shelter, but they will likely choose it themselves. I am personally not spending time on an elaborate duck house design.

 

[bluma123]

I bought a 20 dollar 2 man tent at walmart and my chickens and duck live in it in my house (inside...) with a kiddie pool lined with wood chips for sanitation. The critters are just too small to live outside and I live in Florida so I plan on putting the tent outside in the shade and they can live in it. I will just cut the bottom out so I can keep it poop free....and use the kiddie pool as a pond.

The tent is a temporary solution but it will do for now. I clean that thing 2 times a day, but its not so bad (rubber gloves and some mild bleach water ...takes me about 5 minutes). Its easier than trying to deal with flying teenage chickens in the house and the separation anxiety the duck has with the chicks. If I can find a smaller/cheaper tent I will buy a couple. I will keep you posted on how long they last as a shelter.

Bluma

1 Duck: Nixon, 3 chickens: Shaniqua, Juanita and Margaret, 1 Pit Bull: Destiny (rescue dog) 1 Ball Python: Lilith, 2 tarantulas: Alejandro and Guadalupe plus a bunch of fruit rats in the attic, a few cute wolf spiders and palmetto bugs in the bathroom...yet un-named. Oh, and the wildest animal of all..a ten year old female human.

 

[mhwc56]

during the day the girls stay in a dog kennel with a igloo dog house and a pool in it. at dusk every night " i tell them come on it's time for bed,let's go!" and when i open the kennel door they start quacking ,hop out of their pool and follow me to the shed. My 8 y/o grandson( the supposed real owner of the ducks) and i fenced off 1/2 the shed for ducks and they really like it.

 

[Geolady]

Have a question - someone dropped these 10 ducks off at the bottom of our hill by a private/closed community lake. I have been feeding them but am worried about them having shelter as it gets colder. They come within a foot of me and have only twice came up to our workshop to get food - is there any way to gain their trust enough to get them to come into an enclosure if we were to build one for them?

 

[June2012]

Please open up a new thread for this post. It might go unnoticed!! You can post it in this subforum, I believe, as it is on the topic of ducks.

 

[Ren2014]

Have a question - someone dropped these 10 ducks off at the bottom of our hill by a private/closed community lake. I have been feeding them but am worried about them having shelter as it gets colder. They come within a foot of me and have only twice came up to our workshop to get food - is there any way to gain their trust enough to get them to come into an enclosure if we were to build one for them?

Give them some treats. Most ducks LOVE peas, meal worms, and cracked corn. They will probably follow you once you see which they like best.

good luck.

Please open up a new thread for this post. It might go unnoticed!! You can post it in this subforum, I believe, as it is on the topic of ducks.

X2 post here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/737292/the-duck-thread