I have found the best way to brood ducks is on wire. If you put them in where you have to have bedding you will get nothing done except changing bedding every time you turn around. I have a stack cage for puppies that has the nice deep plastic pans under each cage. Duckies go in there so all I have to do is dump the pans about every 2 days. Ducks will dump & splash any water you give them. Also, they poop A LOT!!! You would never think so much poop could come from something so little. Ducks need to be able to dunk their entire head in the water, but not their bodies unless you are letting them swim (not a good idea to leave this option available all the time). This lets them clean their nasal passages & helps them swallow their food. Never feed ducks without water. They can choke very easily, especially as babies. A chick waterer will work for the first few days, but as they grow you will need a deeper container to allow them to get their heads in. For 20 ducklings you could use about 4 cottage cheese containers or butter bowls WITH lids for a couple weeks. You may need to start with shorter bowls like chip dip containers. Cut a hole in the lid that allows the head in without rubbing but not the body (holes will need to be enlarged as they grow). Fill containers about 3/4 full of water to allow them access to water without being able to climb in & dump it all. After they get tall enough, 1 gallon buckets work well for several more weeks until they are feathered enough to head outside. Flock Raiser or All-Flock type feed is best. Do NOT feed medicated feed as it will make the ducklings sick. Many people say to add niacin to duckling's feed, but if you use something formulated for ducks like the Flock Raiser or All-Flock it's not necessary. This same feed can also be fed to chicks & even adult birds. You can add a little grit or sand to the feed after the 1st few days & allow them to nibble fresh or frozen veggies diced up small for younger ducks & graduating to whole as they grow. They love diving for veggies in their water at bath time. Ducklings shouldn't be allowed to swim unsupervised until about 3 weeks old because their oil glands are not developed enough to keep them from getting waterlogged & tired babies sink quickly.Yes I know the feeling, it really is hard to believe that we are already halfway to chicks!Very exciting. Tonight while turning and candling I went ahead and removed the three that looked like they weren't developing. Cracked them open, they were infertile it looked like, no blood and no veins just messy yolk. The other fifteen still look good I think. Some are getting way to dark to see anything though
But I hope that's a good thing. I also cracked and went for the sale from Ideal poultry and bought 20 Pekin Ducklings ... Will be our first time with ducks so it'll be interesting! They'll be shipped on the 23rd and will be getting here around the time my eggs go into lockdown.
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. I felt so bad. It was the first one I candled and at first I thought to myself, "Oh, well it was probably dead anyway." Then I opened up the cracked egg and there was a tiny little chick staring up at me. Poor little fella. Me and my clumsy hands. 
