Help! How much should my 2 week old ducklings be eating?

[jveracco]

O.K., I will try to keep this short and sweet, but do need to give some background.

One week ago we picked up ducklings from a farm as part of a "rent-a-duck" program. You take the ducks home for 2 weeks and return them to the farm where, we have been told, they keep them forever.

The ducks are rouen ducks and are 2 1/2 weeks old. They supplied us with a ziploc gallon bag of feed saying that it would be more than enough for the 2 weeks and that we should feed them 2x/day and give them a Gatorade capful of water with meals. Soo.....I quickly learned they needed much more water than this! I give them a ramkin of water at each meal. And, between the two ducklings, they share approx. 3 tbsps of this meal food 4x/day. I will be running out tomorrow and they said I'm overfeeding them. What gives? Have I been duped? Thanks in advance for your responses!

 

[casportpony]

The ducklings should have access to food and water 24/7.

 

[QuailExpert]

haha sounds like my quail ! honestly i let her eat all the food she wants because she knows when she is full ! in my opinion i dont think they know what they are talking about. any bird/fowl that young need to have enough nutrition in order to grow and a restricted diet is not the way to go. animals also need lots of water to stay hydrated ! a capful with meals is for sure not enough water !

 

[4 ever Orpington]

O.K., I will try to keep this short and sweet, but do need to give some background.

One week ago we picked up ducklings from a farm as part of a "rent-a-duck" program. You take the ducks home for 2 weeks and return them to the farm where, we have been told, they keep them forever.

The ducks are rouen ducks and are 2 1/2 weeks old. They supplied us with a ziploc gallon bag of feed saying that it would be more than enough for the 2 weeks and that we should feed them 2x/day and give them a Gatorade capful of water with meals. Soo.....I quickly learned they needed much more water than this! I give them a ramkin of water at each meal. And, between the two ducklings, they share approx. 3 tbsps of this meal food 4x/day. I will be running out tomorrow and they said I'm overfeeding them. What gives? Have I been duped? Thanks in advance for your responses!

 

[jveracco]

Thanks for the quick responses! Ugh-at this point, I'm so angry at myself for even being a part of this program and feel bad for the ducklings. I e-mailed the owner and she said 2 of the supplied containers a day is fine (which is approx. 3 tbsps per duck/day) is enough. What? After the 2 week program, I'm thinking of not bringing the ducks back and giving them to a reputable local duck owner;(

 

[casportpony]

Is this something they do each Easter?

 

[jveracco]

Is this something they do each Easter?

Yes. You can also adopt chicks. I thought it would be good for my kids, since I knew owning a duck would be too much for us right now. The program has been around for a long time and I didn't see any bad reviews or anything of the like online (and even had a friend do it 5 or so years ago). Maybe I'm overreacting, just something doesn't seem right...

 

[AshleyNicole06]

Yes. You can also adopt chicks. I thought it would be good for my kids, since I knew owning a duck would be too much for us right now. The program has been around for a long time and I didn't see any bad reviews or anything of the like online (and even had a friend do it 5 or so years ago). Maybe I'm overreacting, just something doesn't seem right...

Doesn't seem right to me at all!

 

[AshleyNicole06]

Yes. You can also adopt chicks. I thought it would be good for my kids, since I knew owning a duck would be too much for us right now. The program has been around for a long time and I didn't see any bad reviews or anything of the like online (and even had a friend do it 5 or so years ago). Maybe I'm overreacting, just something doesn't seem right...

Doesn't seem right to me at all!

 

[CarleeAnn]

Yes. You can also adopt chicks. I thought it would be good for my kids, since I knew owning a duck would be too much for us right now. The program has been around for a long time and I didn't see any bad reviews or anything of the like online (and even had a friend do it 5 or so years ago). Maybe I'm overreacting, just something doesn't seem right...

Some do say that they need food 24/7, but that is debatable. It could be enough food that they provided, but when a baby is hungry it usually needs to eat! It’s a growing thing!!

Only a Gatorade capful of water though? Maybe I misunderstood, but make sure they have access to water 24/7 and enough that they can dip their nares in to clean them. Make sure they cannot fall in the fish though to prevent drowning. A Tupperware container with a hole cut in the lid is sufficient.