Duckling Bedding

[mtadkins5]

Crystal here are some more links that might help

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/788873/what-to-feed-ducklings/10#post_11354255

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/789231/duck-pens-house-space-needed-any-ideas#post_11355462

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...duck-eggs-and-lost-as-can-be/20#post_11351252

 

[Red-tailed Hawk]

tractor supply company actually carries a duck starter food so you don't have to use niacin in the water. If they are near you I would go and check. I've also heard that if they don't have it they will order it for you so you don't have to pay shipping. You can just pick it up when it comes in. They also carry grower, finisher, and layer duck food. A lot of feed stores actually do. The best thing for the ducks, and easiest thing for you in the long run, is to just check with the feed stores around you. I was really worried about finding some and found some within an hour. Not ever store carries duck food but a lot do. Also, a tip for keeping things less messy is to have the food and water on a cooling rack over a brownie pan. It makes it so the water, poop, food that gets spilled can quickly and easily be changed. I'm trying to remember where I found the visuals of it. I'm a visual person myself. I'll do some looking and post it when I find them!

 

[Red-tailed Hawk]

Here it is!!! This is the awesome page full of pictures! So glad I marked it as a favorite since I was having extreme issues finding it from memory. https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/duck-duck

Here is a good article on raising ducks http://shantiperez.hubpages.com/hub/Keeping-Pet-Ducks-and-Geese
This is another article that I haven't read entirely through but looked pretty good.https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/750869/raising-and-caring-for-ducklings

 

[mtadkins5]

My Tractor Supply don't carry duck food of any kind and told me yesterday they couldn't order it or the Niacin

 

[Red-tailed Hawk]

tractor supply company actually carries a duck starter food so you don't have to use niacin in the water. If they are near you I would go and check. I've also heard that if they don't have it they will order it for you so you don't have to pay shipping. You can just pick it up when it comes in. They also carry grower, finisher, and layer duck food. A lot of feed stores actually do. The best thing for the ducks, and easiest thing for you in the long run, is to just check with the feed stores around you. I was really worried about finding some and found some within an hour. Not ever store carries duck food but a lot do. Also, a tip for keeping things less messy is to have the food and water on a cooling rack over a brownie pan. It makes it so the water, poop, food that gets spilled can quickly and easily be changed. I'm trying to remember where I found the visuals of it. I'm a visual person myself. I'll do some looking and post it when I find them!

I meant I found a store with duck food within an hour of driving around as opposed to an hour of wandering the store. Just had to clarify that. lol

 

[Red-tailed Hawk]

mtadkins5 that's such a bummer about your Tractor Supply store.

Is it too much to hope that the person you asked was just incompitent and didn't know they could? Is there perhaps another one within a reasonable driving distance? I think I've heard you can get the Niacin from drugstores? Don't quote me on that one though. I'm not positive. Maybe talking to a manager about oredering duck food at one of the feed stores? I guess it's not a huge deal just as long as the chick starter isn't medicated. I've heard of people being ok on it. I'm just paranoid with my birds, and I'm a little bit like a german shepard when it comes to chasing down a solution I like.

 

[Red-tailed Hawk]

CrystalM One thing I have discovered with my various birds over the years is that if you find a vet that is either preferably an avian vet or one that deals with ducks, they can more often than not tell you were you can find the right products near you.

 

[CrystalM]

i live in Philadelphia Pa right near the race track

 

[CrystalM]

im going search more on line on google maps to see if i can find somewhere shady brook farm would more then likely have it thats just a little ways away from he about a half hr problem is i dont have a car im going to try and see if theres any where closer to me i hoping there is thank you so much and yeah someone told me about how they got it from walgreens and i dont no what to do cause some people are telling me to get the niacin and others are telling me not to. i guess it wouldnt hurt to get. is it just plain tablet niacin not the capsle kind right?

 

[ducklover87]

I've always used pine shavings from tractor supply but this is my first time brooding anything indoors when there's no snow on the ground. So I've been using grass as my new bedding material. For one its free which is always nice, they can eat it (with grit provided), and it doesn't really smell. This is my second day using it and so far I can't complain. I had 17 chickens and 3 geese on it for the majority of the day yesterday then my mom took her chickens and now its just the 3 geese. I changed out the grass this morning but it really didn't need it. As long as your allergies aren't really bad there is no problems. At least not yet anyway. I have fields all around me so its easy to pick grass. I won't use lawn clippings though as they go into the duck house during the summer. I will let you guys know how the grass works.