Ducks:

[Rachelj07]

Okay peeps I have a couple of questions. I want to get ducks but the boyfriend won't let me. His excuses: he'd have to build another pen (we currently have chickens), if we let them live out at our pond they would get eaten or go in the road and get hit. Oh yeah and the big one, we'd have poop everywhere in the yard.
So my questions are: Can we house a duck or two with chickens? Are ducks not smart enough to go into hiding at night? Would they really wander into the road? Do they make that big of a mess? Would they stay at the pond if that is where we put them or would they wander closer to the house?

Thanks!

 

[nissa_loves_cats]

Ducks can be housed with chickens. Mine are currently in a pen which includes chickens and a turkey. If they free-range, yes, they do poop, but unless you have a flock of a hundred you won't have poop all over the yard. (Now if you got geese, that's a different story, they are major poopers.)

Ducks do wander. I've had ducks of different breeds on and off for years, and I haven't lost one to a predator (other than my dog) yet. When I let mine free-range, they crossed a very busy road regularly and none became road kill.

Ducks don't need a pond, although they'd like one. It's perfectly possible to keep them with chickens in a pen and they are perfectly happy (unless you have a mean rooster that picks on them.)

 

[Rachelj07]

We have wild geese that seem to make their home at our pond, so I totally get them being huge poopers! I figured what's a little duck poop mixed in. Though if we can house them with our chickens that's even better

Thanks!!!

 

[Amiga]

May I add that separate waterers for chickens and ducks are often used by people who keep them together? It is to have mercy on the chickens - ducks make water very cloudy very quickly. Also, the predator issue is probably different for each person's location.

Ducks do well when they have at least enough water to wash their entire heads in, as they can get eye and sinus infections if too much dust and muck builds up.

Ducks are beautiful!!