Ducks in my Chicken House

[Chicken Trimble]

I am new to raising ducks and chickens and am really enjoying it. I have a chicken house about 18' by 18' and have it divided in half with a door so I can increase my flock size in the future. My 9 Barred Rocks that live in the chicken house were hatched on 2/22/2010 and are doing great and I am really looking forward to those eggs!

Easter weekend I made and impulse purchase of four bantam chicken and two pekin ducklings at Tractor Supply "Chick Days", and they too having been growing wonderfully. Since the ducks outgrew their brooder they have been living under our porch and have access to a door in the lattace work to wander in our yard. Inexplicably our dog which has been friendly with the ducks held one down and pulled the feathers off of its back today. Ouch!

The injured duck is eating and drinking and appears to be healing but I was curious if I could let them stay in one side of my chicken house where the dog can not get them? My main concern is my chickens. In no way do I want to take a chance of them getting sick...

 

[chickboss]

If your chicken house is divided, I would put them in the other half. Less because of disease, but more so because ducks are so much messier and may or may not get along with the chickens. That being said, I put my first small duck house and a temporary coop for my juvinile chickens in a shared yard. The ducks always went to bed down in the coop, and I was having to round them up every night to put them in their house. I finially gave up, and just let them be. We aren't having any problems. A lot of people house them together. And a lot of people prefer not to, so I think the choice is yours. Hope this helps.

 

[goosedragon]

Quote:
About the only time there are problems is when you let them hatch their own. Chickens will often kill other chicks so they probably kill ducklings hatched in the hen house. Ducks may do the same but usually the mother duck watches her ducklings closely.

 

[chickboss]

Quote:
About the only time there are problems is when you let them hatch their own. Chickens will often kill other chicks so they probably kill ducklings hatched in the hen house. Ducks may do the same but usually the mother duck watches her ducklings closely.

Thanks goosedragon, I will remember that as mine get older. I am going to seperate them within the next few months anyway, just because I have a larger group of Kahkis in the brooder right now that I bought to even out my Drake/Hen ratio, so they are destined to part from their beloved chikens. But I was considering keeping some of the Pekins with the chickens at some point. I'll be sure to seperate any broodies if I go that route.