- Apr 14, 2009
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I've got some Ancona eggs in the 'bator right now, and although we were originally planning on partitioning part of the chicken coop off for the ducks, we're thinking now about building them a separate coop (is that what you call a duck house?
). But I'd like some advice on how much space ducks need. In the Storey's Guide, it says 2.5-6 sq ft if they're only in there at night, and 6-8 sq ft if they may be held in there continuously (during severe weather).
I sort of have a limited amount of space - I don't think we really want to build a gigantic coop in addition to my already pretty big chicken coop. But I don't want them to be cramped, and I want them to have enough space that it won't get filthy in there too quickly. The plan is for the ducks to have free-range whenever they're willing to go outside during the day, and shut in at night.
So, a couple of questions:
How much space do your ducks have? How much space would you recommend? (Right now my plan is to have a watering station (a waterer on wire over a pull-out drawer, in an enclosed, walled space) that's somewhat isolated from the rest of the house, to try to keep splashing/spills away from most of the bedding...if that makes a little difference for cleanliness, but maybe it doesn't.)
I live in MN, where it gets really cold over the winter - below freezing for 3-4 months straight, snow for about 5 months. Will the ducks go outside during the winter? I know my chickens refused to step outside their door during the winter - I think the snow freaked them out. If the ducks will go out, then I could hopefully go with a little less room, but will they?
Thanks!
I sort of have a limited amount of space - I don't think we really want to build a gigantic coop in addition to my already pretty big chicken coop. But I don't want them to be cramped, and I want them to have enough space that it won't get filthy in there too quickly. The plan is for the ducks to have free-range whenever they're willing to go outside during the day, and shut in at night.
So, a couple of questions:
How much space do your ducks have? How much space would you recommend? (Right now my plan is to have a watering station (a waterer on wire over a pull-out drawer, in an enclosed, walled space) that's somewhat isolated from the rest of the house, to try to keep splashing/spills away from most of the bedding...if that makes a little difference for cleanliness, but maybe it doesn't.)
I live in MN, where it gets really cold over the winter - below freezing for 3-4 months straight, snow for about 5 months. Will the ducks go outside during the winter? I know my chickens refused to step outside their door during the winter - I think the snow freaked them out. If the ducks will go out, then I could hopefully go with a little less room, but will they?
Thanks!