duck pens/house...space needed? any ideas?

[mtadkins5]

I am new to ducks and I have someone coming over to fix me a pen for my ducklings. I don't know what to ask for or what I need.Can some of you share your duck pens and houses? What do I need to think about as far as keeping who seperated as they are older and when they lay eggs? Any ideas on pool and how to clean it the easiest way? I live in Tennessee so any thoughts for the winter? what about food and water area? Sorry for all the questions I just want to do the right things and make sure we are all happy in the end.

 

[Amiga]

You ask some good questions!

You could also use the Search option for "duckling pen" "duckling shelter" "duckling brooder" "duck shelter," or some such.

I kept my ducklings in the house for three months . . . for a number of reasons outside my control. Water management is a key skill for making everyone happier, I must say that. Mine was okay at first, but has gotten better.

I cannot remember, how old are your ducklings? Breed? Number? Security is a big deal. So many critters enjoy eating ducklings and ducks. So they need protection above, below, and around. And food with water 24/7. And warmth, and if they are not fully feathered, they are at risk of diseases from black flies and mosquitoes.

 

[mtadkins5]

Right now I just have eggs. Out of the 15 I think 12 look good

I plan on keeping them inside at first but I do plan for them to move outside. I am going to have electric in their building though. I can't believe a few eggs has become sooooooooo exspensive

My husband is ready to shot me I think but my 3 girls are loving it.I am about 99% sure they are Muscovies.

 

[Amiga]

Hmmm, so a dozen Muscovies. They roost, don't they? Be careful with the electric - - - don't want fires.

I would want at least four square feet per duck, that's 48 square feet, if the house were 8 feet long it would need to be 6 feet wide. If you went with 6 sf per duck, 72 square feet, or 8 ft by 9 ft.

The larger area is really really great for long periods of inclement weather, or duck math issues.

I would make it tall enough to stand in for cleaning and duck care. Then you could use a thick layer of bedding to keep it nice and cozy. I have found that the deeper the bedding, the easier it is to keep clean, because the shavings I use absorb the moisture from the poop. So if the bedding is not thick, it gets overwhelmed with moisture and must get changed out more often. Not the end of the world, just an observation.

Predator protection is a huge consideration. Metal half inch hardware cloth is important to cover all openings. Sliding pop doors are popular, because raccoons cannot open them as easily. I use keyed locks. A couple of strands of electrified fence would be good, too. I used equine tape for our outdoor shelter. Zapped a couple of raccoon noses, at least, I heard the yelps.

I recommend vinyl sheet flooring, not only on the floor but going up the wall about a foot, with a furring strip across the edge to keep poo out from under the flooring.

Here is the outdoor shelter. The porch is attached, and has hardware cloth top, bottom and sides.

and

 

[mtadkins5]

What great advice! What type of bedding do you use?

 

[Amiga]

Right now I am using softwood (pine) shavings I buy by the bale wrapped in brown kraft paper. The paper either becomes mulch or firestarter for the woodstove.

The basement pen, where I keep them at night right now, only has 4 inches available for shavings (the "walls" are plastic poultry fence at this time). So I need to change it out, as it gets used up much much more quickly than when I kept a foot and a half of bedding in the outdoor shelter.

For the latter, I would do spot pickup of poops (as a gardener, those chunks are precious for my plants), then thoroughly stir the bedding. Done. A couple of times a week I added an inch or two of fresh bedding on top after stirring. To prevent ammonia from forming, I added a bucketful of peat to each bale of shavings. From a composting class I learned that if the pH is too high (not acid enough), that nitrogen in manure turns into ammonia. That piece of information was worth the tuition!!!!

I only changed out bedding twice a year.

So, I may replace the fence "walls" downstairs with luan (thin plywood) so that I can go deeper with the bedding. We'll see. Since I use the old bedding as mulch for my gardens, It doesn't go to waste.

 

[Going Quackers]

Main things predator proof! how cold do you get? basically think for your climate, some will need to battle against the heat, so you need A LOT of ventilation, others have the cold(like me!) and need to guard against, snow, ice, sleet you get the picture lol so mine can be in sometimes, -30C windchilld or temps knocks them out for being outside.

If they are Muscovy, they roost like Amiga said.. i have a shelf in my barn for them, even the one drake will be up there sometimes.. I'll take a pic to show you later on.

With food the main part of the barn has a hanging feeder and then i have a big chicken waterer this is to provide water so they can eat, they must have that but they also need deeper to clean the nares all that is kept outside they'd make a hot mess otherwise, only 9 have access to this, i have smaller stalls that the almost 12wk old reside and the other drake, they get nothing, not being mean just the stalls don't allow for proper water and that means no food, they do fine though. I mainly keep extra in the barn so the laying ducks have access 24/7.. there is a nesting duck in a stall that is open too...

Under the shelf is where most of them lay, i don't bother with "nest boxes" i find my ladies have their own ideas and usually don't take to an actual nest box but some do make them for them.

My floor is wood, then i have rubber stall mats down, i bed with a combo of shavings and horse wood pellets but am experimenting with flax at the moment. The floor was painted before we put anything down.

Mine has antique wood windows backed with hardware cloth, used old farm metal roofing(my hay guy have it to be! ) and it's all elevated on industrial wooden skids so it's not on the ground, it's also being sided with old wood barn boards.

 

[Haunted55]

Right now I am using softwood (pine) shavings I buy by the bale wrapped in brown kraft paper. The paper either becomes mulch or firestarter for the woodstove.

The basement pen, where I keep them at night right now, only has 4 inches available for shavings (the "walls" are plastic poultry fence at this time). So I need to change it out, as it gets used up much much more quickly than when I kept a foot and a half of bedding in the outdoor shelter.

For the latter, I would do spot pickup of poops (as a gardener, those chunks are precious for my plants), then thoroughly stir the bedding. Done. A couple of times a week I added an inch or two of fresh bedding on top after stirring. To prevent ammonia from forming, I added a bucketful of peat to each bale of shavings. From a composting class I learned that if the pH is too high (not acid enough), that nitrogen in manure turns into ammonia. That piece of information was worth the tuition!!!!

I only changed out bedding twice a year.

So, I may replace the fence "walls" downstairs with luan (thin plywood) so that I can go deeper with the bedding. We'll see. Since I use the old bedding as mulch for my gardens, It doesn't go to waste.

Amiga, can I make a suggestion about the luan? If you go to HD or Lowes, they have plastic panels for showers and baths, as stiff as the luan and about the same price. Luan even when painted with many coats, just doesn't seem to hold up to the wet in my experience.

Also, fantastic information about the PH! I just never thought of it that way before. Thanks for that!

 

[Haunted55]

One thing that I would add here, is also make plans for your water in the Winter if you are in a place that gets cold. Lugging buckets or hoses when it's below zero and windy isn't a whole lot of fun, believe me.

 

[mtadkins5]

Wow I am overwelmed with all this great information!!! Will some of you post some pics plz. I am interested on how to section of the coop too.