Duck Housing

[Kayelas]

I incubated some eggs with my elementary schoolers and was shocked to end up with ducks! They're really entertaining but they're getting big enough that I need to figure out how to house them. My backyard is small (5 feet to the wall on the sides and 10 feet to the wall at the back) and completely unlandscaped so I don't really mind if they just wander around back there. My question is is that safe? I live in the suburbs of Phoenix, AZ and the only predator like animal around here is my neighbor's car. Do I need a full duck run or can I just let them run around out there?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I suppose the first question is are they legal there? Usually there's coding on where pens can or can't be

 

[Lucy Brown]

It would be safer to have some sort of fencing and possibly a pen. You never know when a hawk might attack or a wild cat. I agree that you need to make sure it is legal to have a pen in your area

 

[Kayelas]

Backyard chickens are legal so I'm assuming ducks would fall in the same category. I have a six foot block wall around my house so as long as it's lower than that I should be ok regardless.

 

[Ratchnick]

Its possible you could have a falcon come in. But most people take their chances with birds of prey rather then put netting over everything. You bigger concern will be dealing with the poop and they will need shade, and constant water for the summer.

 

[Kayelas]

Could I train ducks to use a dog door and just let them sleep inside?

 

[SolarDuck]

You might be able to

 

[Trisseh]

Don’t assume that ducks fall under the same rules as chickens. Definitely look further into the laws or bylaws for your area because there are definitely some places that have very clearly outlined rules for chicken hens only, and prohibit other types of poultry. Not to be a downer but it would be much better to find out now that they’re not legal, than after you spend a lot of time and resources setting everything up and having to rehome them after you’ve fallen in love with them.

My ducks took a bit of time to figure it out, but were able to use a door opening that had the a plastic flap that’s meant for dog houses. I should think they could eventually figure out an actual dog door as well. You still have to be aware of predators during the day, however, as not all of them will necessarily be nocturnal. Having a secure area you can put them in if you’re unable to watch them would be a good idea.

one other question is how many ducklings are we talking about? If stocking density is moderately high you will wind up with a pretty sparse, crater filled yard anytime you get precipitation and around their water area. Basically anywhere they can drill in the ground they do, and plant life will be trampled and eaten. The more birds in a space the faster they clear it, unfortunately.

 

[Runner duck mom]

Could I train ducks to use a dog door and just let them sleep inside?

Our ducks have a dog door that leads into a pen in our garage at night. They sure can be trained to use one. You'll just want to remove the plastic flap and use the hard plastic cover to open and close for them.
Since it is a relatively small yard you could always put up bird netting to keep them safe from hawks.
If you've never had ducks before you'll find they are quite messy but super cute and fun to watch.
Hopefully you'll be allowed to have them there and the neighbors don't mind a bit of duck noise