Hi!
My ducklings are arriving in a little over a month. This is my re-entry into duckdom, so I can tell you what I have found from this forum and from Storey's Guide to Raising Ducks (if you can get it, I think it would really help you). Storey's Guide is so full of details on everything I have been able to think of!
I got a couple of pounds of chick grit. It is small. I posted a photo on a topic called chick grit on this forum. Once they are foraging outside, they will pick up most of the grit they need, more than likely.
I am making sure my duckling feed is nonmedicated. There are duck people here who say that some types of medicated feed are okay, but not all of them - you need to make that call. Something well balanced in nutrients should do it. There is waterfowl starter/grower available in many stores.
I am going to get some gro-gel, with vitamins and probiotics for them.
Any waterers need to have clean gravel (as in, completed cleaned off - I am thinking of boiling and following with hydrogen peroxide to disinfect them) or marbles, to prevent drowning of the wee ones. Enough room at the trough, both water and feed needs to be available because they will all want to eat and drink at the same time, and from what I am told, they don't share very well.
What kind of brooder setup do you have? They need to be 90 degrees F the first week, 85 the next, dropping about 5 degrees a week until room temperature is okay for them (as they get on some size and feathers). If they huddle under the heat source, they aren't warm enough. If they avoid it, they are too warm. Drafts are big trouble for them.
I think the oyster shell is for later, when they are full size, but not yet laying. Seems I recall that too much calcium too soon causes trouble for ducklings. Once they are full grown, some free choice oyster shell seems to work out for many who have posted here.
If the ducklings' feed is just in an open tray, they are likely to step and mess in it as well as eat it. That may not be such a bad deal, but I am using a little feeding tray with a cover over it and openings for their little heads.
There are some poultry first aid kits for sale, I know Meyer hatchery has one. I am still deciding whether to just order some wound wrapping fabric and bleeding stop powder to add to my home medicines of triple antibiotic and raw apple cider vinegar.
I would not assume they would need deworming - would rather deworm if they have them. I believe you can tell by checking their feces.
I will be using old towels at first for their bedding - good traction, soft, warm, absorbent, washable, and the birds can't choke on it as they might with some kinds of bedding more appropriate for older birds. When they are bigger, I will switch over to pine shavings.
Electrolytes are a good thing to have on hand, just in case they seem punky but it's hard to tell what is bothering them.
This week, I find myself mentally herding the ducklings from the brooding room to the bathroom and the deck. I have cats, so I need to have indoor predator protection as well as outdoor when they are old enough to move into their own pad.
My brooder is a large tub, about 5 ft by 2 ft and 2 ft deep, with a half inch hardware cloth top. Light weights will keep the top on and I can move the ceramic heat lamps around to increase or decrease temperature in the brooder. With another person, I can even move everybody (10) to a different room if need be.
Okay, I will send this with blessings for you and your birds. I hope to find out more from others about the geese! And certainly, there are many ideas, much good experience here in helping your ducklings grow up healthy and strong.
