Duck bedding?

[Nikosbirds]

I get cheap wood chips from the local septic guy. They are things like chipped roots: not your typical pretty yellow landscaping wood chips, hence the low price. But they work great for soaking up the mud and poo. When things start to get muddy or stinky, I drop a couple wheelbarrows full of chips. Don't even have to rake them, the birds will spread them for you.Twice a year, I'll go in and rake them up and add them to the compost. I have great compost.

 

[Jacob Duckman]

I've got a big Rouen Drake and a swedish crested female. They are free-ranging except for at night when I lock them up in their run/coop combo. I lock them up because I live in an area that's a major migration point for eagles, hawks, and falcons (a few miles from hawk mountain, PA).

I also set up a few places around my yard with cover so they can hide from the birds when they see them. I've seen some eagles and hawks fly very closely but I haven't lost a duck yet.

 

[sarahc63]

My duck run turned into a muddy mess about 2 weeks after I put my ducks outside. Ducks love mud! I put down a combo of river rocks and pea gravel about 2 inches thick. I rinse it down every day (every 2-3 days would be fine though) and I find it drains very well. I also put some straw down on top of the rocks in the drier areas so my ducks have somewhere warm and soft to rest their feet. If you do go the pea gravel/river rock route, make sure they are the smooth, rounded kind so your ducks don't hurt their feet!

 

[Thebernards]

Thanks everyone! Has anyone successfully grown grass in their run?

 

[Thebernards]

What kind of Ducks do you have????

Muscovy

 

[chickens really]

I do not think they will fly away if you let them out for supervised free range.....My Ducks stay close to the run and the House....


Cheers!

 

[sarahc63]

Thanks everyone! Has anyone successfully grown grass in their run?

Despite everywhere I read saying the ducks would turn it into a mud pit, I attempted this. The grass lasted for all of a 2 weeks before they killed it all digging for worms, bugs, and the like in the dirt. If you had a very large run (mine is only about 10ftx4ft for 2 ducks) and they spent most of the day free ranging outside of the run, it might work out. However if they spend lots of time in the run or it's not a huge area, I wouldn't suggest it based on my experience!

 

[Nikosbirds]

I have sectioned off areas of my run (which is very large) and planted fodder. About 2 days after they were allowed in, it was a mud pit. Basically, you would need a ridiculously huge run for a small number of birds. I really think your best bet is to find cheap or free wood chips and pull them out and compost them a couple times a year. The carbon from the wood chips and the nitrogen from the poo combine to create fantastic compost. Then you can grow forage crops elsewhere on your property.

 

[Nikosbirds]

Since I enjoy growing food plants, I really value the manure provided by the birds. For this reason, it feels like a waste to use gravel and hose it off.

 

[Nikosbirds]

Some kind of Carbon based bedding like wood chips or brown, dead leaves works great for absorbing the poo.