Duck Advice Needed!!

[missrobinson]

Calling duck folks!

So I would like to add ducks to my poultry collection, I prefer their eggs for baking. My flock is separated into hens and roosters until I figure out what I'm breeding. The hens are at my neighbor's house (temporarily) and the roosters are at mine all 5 months old.
The 4 roosters are fenced in a huge grass filled riding arena connected to a paddock and barn, with seasonal access to pasture. They share this with the horse, llama and cows. Like I said, alot of space!
I want to keep the ducks in this area for fly and general bug control, the roosters didn't help much this summer.

So duck folks, how do I introduce ducks to a bunch of roosters safely? Should I start with only adults that can hold their own? Or is this something I shouldn't even consider?

 

[CelticOaksFarm]

the same way you introduce a new bird to the flock. Safety fencing between them at first and NEVER put ducklings with full grown chickens (hens or roosters)

 

[missrobinson]

Thank you very much. I'm still new to poultry

 

[jtbrown]

Great advice above. We were one year into chickens when we got ducks. We have 6 ducks, 2 drakes (one WH one pekin) and 4 hens (one WH and 3 pekin). We didn't allow them to integrate until they were full size, but they could see each other in the meantime. It has been a great experience, easier than integrating chickens for me (the chickens ignored the ducks -- except for the food, which was like the forbidden treat the chickens couldn't ignore).

Good luck.

Just so you know, young ducklings are MESSY, MESSY, MESSY. Trial and error on the set up that works for you, but there are some awesome set ups here to get ideas from. I was never so happy to get those little boogers out from under the light and in the outside pen (with shelter but an entire enclosed area) for them to grow in. I swore these were the only ducks we would have, but now. . . I love them. They are so fun, they make us laugh as all six of them waddle throughout the yard while free ranging. They are easy to get back in their pen at night, they are not real cuddly, but we easily can be a few feet from them without chaos. Their absolute delight at sitting in the grass in the sun is catching. I think you will love them. I cannot tell you how good they are at pest control, we have dozens of chickens, a dozen guineas and then the ducks, so pests don't stand much of a chance on our little farm.

Enjoy.

edited to add -- we didn't rush getting them away from heat lamp, but it was a relief when they were growing enough to get off the lamp and the weather warmed up to make it safer.

 

[maggiem]

I got a couple of ducks by default (they needed homes). They had 11 little ones and next thing I knew I had 13 ducks, they pretty will distroyed my koi pond. I found a home for 6 of them, which is a little better, 2 appear to be drakes. I still want to have a koi pond, how do I keep them from destroying it?

maggie

 

[Miss Lydia]

I got a couple of ducks by default (they needed homes). They had 11 little ones and next thing I knew I had 13 ducks, they pretty will distroyed my koi pond. I found a home for 6 of them, which is a little better, 2 appear to be drakes. I still want to have a koi pond, how do I keep them from destroying it?

maggie

Don't let them in it, give your ducks their own pool, kiddy pools work great, but I have a small pond with pond goldfish in it and I had to put up a fence to keep out the ducks/geese.