Doing my best to raise these ducks

[Soon2BChixMom]

@Thebaconator (funny name!). Where are you located? If you do provide heat outside, you might want to make sure your ducklings cannot go from one extreme to another.
They can swim. I would keep the water shallow for now as they don't have feathering which has the oil to keep them floating and dry. If the water is too deep there is the potential to drown. As well, since they are not feathered, you want to make sure they are dry when finished and keep swim time short for now. They will grow fast as you can see on that thread I posted above.
With mine when they were younger, they swam for a bit, then I put them back into their brooder which was clean and dry and they had the heat lamp to return to.
Also, a great resource here on byc: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/raising-and-caring-for-ducklings.750869/
Here is a pic of my 8.5 week Muscovies (which actually grow slower than pekins believe it or not).

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

I didn’t buy any heat lamps because I thought they were 8 weeks old. I’m pretty sure they’ll be fine during the day without one since it was 86 degrees. It’s supposed to get 65 degrees tonight. Do I need to get a heat lamp ASAP or is there anything I can do to keep them warm overnight so I can pick one up tomorrow? Thank you for your help everyone, I don’t know what my ducks would do without you.

You might want a heat source at least until their feathering starts to come in to keep it constant. I would let them venture outside, but 20 degrees difference at night might not be good for them since they have no feathering. At 3-4 weeks I had the heat lamp on only at night.

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

@chickens really
@onaharley @CayugaJana

 

[Julie Birb]

@Thebaconator (funny name!). Where are you located? If you do provide heat outside, you might want to make sure your ducklings cannot go from one extreme to another.
They can swim. I would keep the water shallow for now as they don't have feathering which has the oil to keep them floating. If the water is too deep there is the potential to drown. As well, since they are not feathered, you want to make sure they are dry when finished and keep swim time short for now. They will grow fast as you can see on that thread I posted above.
With mine when they were younger, they swam for a bit, then I out them back into their brooder which was clean and dry and they had the heat lamp to return to.
Also, a great resource here on byc: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/raising-and-caring-for-ducklings.750869/
Here is a pic of my 8.5 week Muscovies (which actually grow slower than pekins believe it or not).
View attachment 1385546

Look at their webs. See how cute they are?!

 

[Julie Birb]

View attachment 1385420 I bought some ducks from a garage sale today. We have a fenced in area with a shelter for them but I’ve been keeping them in a box while we make repairs to it. How old are they? They can swim on their own and the Craigslist dude said they were about 8 weeks but I’m not sure.
View attachment 1385432
Also, do I need to have a water bowl that they stand in or just something they can drink out of? Or one of each?

Your ducklings are very cute and precious.

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

Look at their webs. See how cute they are?!

I updated my thread for you.

 

[sourland]

Perhaps 2 or3 weeks old, do not allow them to become wet as they are subject to chilling until they feather out.

 

[Julie Birb]

I updated my thread for you.

I love you. I saw the grown babies. Thank you.

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

Perhaps 2 or3 weeks old, do not allow them to become wet as they are subject to chilling until they feather out.

They can be wet (briefly), but they need to be dried off and their brooder needs to be kept clean and dry.

 

[Thebaconator]

@Soon2BChixMom
I live in Georgia. Will they be okay if they go for one night without a heat lamp and I pick one up tomorrow? They’re staying in a big box in my garage at the moment because we ran out of chicken wire to put over the top of the pen. I can go to tractor supply if I really need to but it’s a while away.

@sourland
Oh no! Earlier today I set up a kiddie pool and let them splash around in it because one of them had poop stains. I dried them off with towels and put them out in the sun and they ended up okay. I won’t be doing that again for a long time though, good to know that it’s bad for them at this age.