- Apr 26, 2012
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About 2 weeks ago, we got an extremely nasty cold front that moved through with high winds and sub zero wind chills (I’m in Michigan). I have two ducks, a pekin and a Muskovy (both hens). They roam my fenced yard during the day, and I coop them each evening in a small duck coop filled with fresh, dry straw on top of pine pellets for absorbency.
The first day of the bitter cold weather, they came out and did not know what to make of it. They’d take two steps and sit down in the snow. They didn’t even eat or drink. They wouldn’t seek out shelter. This went on for several hours before I finally picked them up and put them in their coop. They didn't come out the rest of the day, not even to eat or drink. So before I shut them in, I pulled them out and tried to encourage them to eat and drink, which they did….a little.
Next day, I had to pull them out. They ate/drank a tiny bit and immediately went in the coop and didn’t come out again to eat or drink. So I did the same thing again. The temp has gone up, ranging from about 20 to about 45 today, so now they will come out and stay out, but they are still not eating well. I don’t understand it. Their pellets are just going to waste, especially when it rains. There is no way I’m putting their food and water in the little coop. It will be an unhealthy mess.
I don’t understand why they didnt go in the cooop that first day on their own. It’s like I had to give them “permission”. Then they wouldn’t come out to eat or drink. Now they come out, but they’re not eating hardly anything. There’s not much to forage right now with winter here. I can’t imagine there are many bugs. They can’t go in my pond because I put a net over it back in September to keep leaves and garbage out. I know they miss that a lot, but when the weather permits, I do allow them to get sprayed with a hose I operate from my back porch. They enjoy that a lot.
I’m new to raising ducks and I enjoy them thoroughly. But if anybody can shed some light, I’d much appreciate it. This is stressing me out a bit.
One final question, with the extreme cold, I was so concerned about potential frostbite. I don’t know if I was just overly aware that first day and noticed it then, or if it happened weeks ago, but the Muskovy’s feet have always been solid grey/black. Now I notice a kind of pink pattern mixed with the black (if that makes sense). The tissue looks perfectly healthy. It just looks like her feet are changing color and they look like the pattern in her beak. I’d assume frostbite would turn them an unhealthy black color, not pink.
I do raise a couple species of feeder insects that I feed them off and on. And they love thawed frozen corn, which I ran out of, but they do love. They are not keen on dry, cracked corn, but I’ve noticed they love the black oil sunflower seeds I feed the birds. Will any of that be harmful?
Any comments or thoughts will be much appreciated. Thanks so much, and Happy New Year, everybody!
The first day of the bitter cold weather, they came out and did not know what to make of it. They’d take two steps and sit down in the snow. They didn’t even eat or drink. They wouldn’t seek out shelter. This went on for several hours before I finally picked them up and put them in their coop. They didn't come out the rest of the day, not even to eat or drink. So before I shut them in, I pulled them out and tried to encourage them to eat and drink, which they did….a little.
Next day, I had to pull them out. They ate/drank a tiny bit and immediately went in the coop and didn’t come out again to eat or drink. So I did the same thing again. The temp has gone up, ranging from about 20 to about 45 today, so now they will come out and stay out, but they are still not eating well. I don’t understand it. Their pellets are just going to waste, especially when it rains. There is no way I’m putting their food and water in the little coop. It will be an unhealthy mess.
I don’t understand why they didnt go in the cooop that first day on their own. It’s like I had to give them “permission”. Then they wouldn’t come out to eat or drink. Now they come out, but they’re not eating hardly anything. There’s not much to forage right now with winter here. I can’t imagine there are many bugs. They can’t go in my pond because I put a net over it back in September to keep leaves and garbage out. I know they miss that a lot, but when the weather permits, I do allow them to get sprayed with a hose I operate from my back porch. They enjoy that a lot.
I’m new to raising ducks and I enjoy them thoroughly. But if anybody can shed some light, I’d much appreciate it. This is stressing me out a bit.
One final question, with the extreme cold, I was so concerned about potential frostbite. I don’t know if I was just overly aware that first day and noticed it then, or if it happened weeks ago, but the Muskovy’s feet have always been solid grey/black. Now I notice a kind of pink pattern mixed with the black (if that makes sense). The tissue looks perfectly healthy. It just looks like her feet are changing color and they look like the pattern in her beak. I’d assume frostbite would turn them an unhealthy black color, not pink.
I do raise a couple species of feeder insects that I feed them off and on. And they love thawed frozen corn, which I ran out of, but they do love. They are not keen on dry, cracked corn, but I’ve noticed they love the black oil sunflower seeds I feed the birds. Will any of that be harmful?
Any comments or thoughts will be much appreciated. Thanks so much, and Happy New Year, everybody!
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