Ducks.... Chickens..... Muddy water

[honeynajar]

Hey all.... I've had chickens for over a year and after Easter came home to find 2 baby ducks at my house. I've raised them and they are in the run with the chickens but they make one heckova mess in the water. I put up a baby pool.... but it doesn't take anytime at all before the water is brown... then the chicken's water.... turns brown and muddy. I don't know what to do... I had no problem with muddy water until the ducks arrived. Any thoughts????? Thank you so much. Any help you can offer will save me from pulling out my hair.

 

[olijo123]

Hey all.... I've had chickens for over a year and after Easter came home to find 2 baby ducks at my house. I've raised them and they are in the run with the chickens but they make one heckova mess in the water. I put up a baby pool.... but it doesn't take anytime at all before the water is brown... then the chicken's water.... turns brown and muddy. I don't know what to do... I had no problem with muddy water until the ducks arrived. Any thoughts????? Thank you so much. Any help you can offer will save me from pulling out my hair.

I have had ducks for 2 years now. Thats just what they do. It is alot of work cleaning the water and pool. I would see my ducks at the chicken waterer splashing water on their heads and cleaning themselves. But when I got a kitty pool they started getting it muddy. So it must just be something with ducks! Also, I eventually put in a small pond because it got way too messy and to much work. What breed of ducks do you have? Let me know.

 

[honeynajar]

They are both all browns and they have a stripe of blue feathers on each side. I have no clue because I didn't buy them... just inherited them from an aunt who bought them from Tractor Supply for her grandson who was visiting. That's all she wanted them for - was while he was visiting over easter. Then plopped em at my house. They get along fine with everyone but the water. I just wondered if I was doing something wrong.

 

[olijo123]

They are both all browns and they have a stripe of blue feathers on each side. I have no clue because I didn't buy them... just inherited them from an aunt who bought them from Tractor Supply for her grandson who was visiting. That's all she wanted them for - was while he was visiting over easter. Then plopped em at my house. They get along fine with everyone but the water. I just wondered if I was doing something wrong.

They are most likely Mallard ducks. No, your not doing anything wrong! Thats just ducks.

 

[Going Quackers]

Your doing nothing wrong it's typical, one reason why i don't mix mine

They are waterfowl and they are true to that, they adore mud and wet places, chickens? yeah no.

You can try elevating the waterers so the chickens have cleaner water or perhaps a nipple waterer for them so there water is clean? or separate them. I have a lot of ducks and i can tell you mud, water is the main issue, my main flock has 1/3 of acre fenced then free range, you should see the area surrounding the pools and water bowls.. i could sink several inches in the ground and i am not heavy lol

 

[honeynajar]

Thanks so much! I've tried the nipple waterers but only a portion of my flock will use them. Dummys! LOL