ducklings arriving soon-help!

[5fathens]

hi we are hopefully getting week old ducklings this weekend.....any advice gratefully received......we are hoping to pop them in with our chicken once they are big enough......

I have big plastic boxes for keeping them in the kitchen but have no idea how long they'll need to be inside for.
our chicken coop has an indoor part that can be closed at night once they are with them the run /pen is totally enclosed so do they need shutting right in? we tend to only shut the door for our hens when the weather is really bad!


thanks

 

[TwoCrows]

Hello there and welcome to BYC!

Congrats on the new ducklings! You will need to keep them under heat until they are fully feathered. You might want to stop by our Duck section for lots of help with raising your new babies...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/42/ducks

So glad you could join our community and welcome to our flock!

 

[Kelsie2290]

Hello And Welcome To BYC! TwoCrows gave you the link to the Ducks forum you'll want to check out, and here is a nice thread on raising ducklings you might find helpful https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/750869/raising-and-caring-for-ducklings
If your run is secure/ predator proof, you can leave the coop door open for the duck section, like you do for the chickens.

 

[sumi]

Welcome to BYC

 

[gander007]

Ducks tend to foul the water so you need to have and pond for them to clean up in ....



And they are so much fun to watch ...


If you have any question please ask ...

 

[5fathens]

thank you i am so glad to have found this site

am very excited about our ducklings-just a little nervous as they are so small!

at about 1-2 weeks old would they be ok left at home alone for a day privided they have food and water ( carton with hole only big enough for their heads?

if not how often would i need to ask somebody to check on them?

thanks

 

[shelbydog]

thank you i am so glad to have found this site

am very excited about our ducklings-just a little nervous as they are so small!

at about 1-2 weeks old would they be ok left at home alone for a day privided they have food and water ( carton with hole only big enough for their heads?

if not how often would i need to ask somebody to check on them?

thanks

They will be fine as long as they have food, water, and room to get away from heat. I'm gone during the day for over 10 hours and I'm on my second batch of ducklings right now.

 

[5fathens]

They will be fine as long as they have food, water, and room to get away from heat. I'm gone during the day for over 10 hours and I'm on my second batch of ducklings right now.

thank you, so if i leave them in their brooder (plastic box) in our kitchen out of direct sunlight with food and safe water they'll be ok?

 

[shelbydog]

thank you, so if i leave them in their brooder (plastic box) in our kitchen out of direct sunlight with food and safe water they'll be ok?

I start mine off in a plastic tote (I don't remember how many gallons it is but it's the largest clear tote at home depot). They out grow it fast if you have several. First batch I had 10. I did the tote till they were climbing out and then I put them in bathtub till they were climbing out. Then I put them outside. They were still fuzzy and still had some freezing nights and they handled it just fine.

Right now I have 10 10 days olds. I kept them in tote for 1 week. Then I made a cardboard box corral and using a tarp to protect carpet. They have WAY more room to grow now.

Be forewarned they will make your house stink. They are worth it though.

 

[5fathens]

well they've arrived and are super cute

we left them for an hour and half this afternoon and they were all cuddled up asleep when we got back. I have just let them have a run around the kitchen whilst I cleaned out their box but am wondering if I need to leave food and water for them over night or whether it should be removed? and also if they need to be in the fairly warm kitchen or the cooler cloakroom?

I had started them with newspaper in the bottom of the box but they started to tear it up to eat so I had to remove it pretty quick......they have an old jumper to snuggle on and I could put some of the soft straw stuff we have for the hens but I suspect they'll probably try and eat that too.....any ideas?

sorry for so many queries-we haven't managed to get hold of a book yet and you guys seem to know so much

thanks