How do ducks handle cold?

[Hattiegun]

Quote:
GREAT PICS !! cant believe them trudging thru the snow like that lol lol..... Every nite when I go to bed and start worrying I try to remember what ya'll say about the cold winters.. My run/pen is completely enclosed with attatched Heated Hut (that they barely go in) .. they have a 250gal pond that I put a stock tank heater in that works PERFECTLY. NO ICE AT ALL>. it was down to 4 degrees this morning but prbly around 20 in their pen.. BUT when I got there at 7am they were SWIMMIN as usual !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hate cold so assume EVERYTHING else should tooo lol... thanks for the reasurance-- its my first winter and its going to be a LONG one ~~ uggghhhgggg *siighhhh**

 

[Where The Wild Things Are]

But remember, the water is above freezing...so it's not as cold as the ambient air temps. Ducks are strange...are they a boat, or a plane, or a tank? Ok maybe the tank part is more in reference to my tubby Rouen's, rather than some of your slim Runner's and tiny Call's etc. No matter how you look at them, they are soooo much more than a "bird". Gotta love em'

 

[Hattiegun]

Quote:
Thats the problem I LUV THEM TOOOO MUCH ! eeekkkksss... I could spend most of everyday with them...
somethin only u guys would / could understand... told the DH last nite that I may spend the nite in the duck
hut !!! he's like "have fun with that" lol


edited to say " U CAN NEVER HAVE TOOO MANY PICS !!!!!!!!! " those are awesome snow ones..

 

[Just_Ducky_In_NH]

Regarding Heat Lamps and Pond Heaters in months of freezing weather...

I have six Khaki Campbells and this is their first winter. We are in the teens now and are expecting a cold winter steady in the teens. Libby is limping and I think it is from the first few days of cold when their pond froze and they were walking on hard cold ground. She has just a small spot on the bottom of her foot so may recover on her own. We are keeping a close watch.

We now have a good layer of hay down and a heated dog bowl that they politely take turns bathing in.

Our pond is 100 gallons. Any recommendations on a pond heater? Should we just let them do without? Their world revolves around that pond, however, they really have not been interested in the pond when it has been very cold, nor have they been very excited to come out in the cold. Our concern is that they will get their feet wet then stick to the ground.

Also, heat lamps scare us....we don't want a fire. It is reassuring to hear that some of you go without. They have a single wall south facing shed. Any type or brand recommendations there? We have read that ceramic bulbs are best. We ran an electric cord out to their pen for the dog bowl so may try and hook a cord up with a lamp somehow inside.

BTW- We have read that each Drake should have several females; but our pairs get along just fine.

Watching the leaves fall from the big maple:

Jack, Hugo, Drako, Clair, Katy in the pond

Hugo & Clair

 

[katharinad]

I would empty the pool, cover it and call it quits for winter. It is kind of hard to exchange the water and the bacteria they dispose into it just sits there. Not too good. In summer it is easy to exchange the water, because the soil around it will absorb it. I have taken the kiddie pools away and give them twice per week two concrete mixing bins with warm water for about an hour to play in it. They are quite happy about it, and their feathers look great too.

I have an insulated duck house which I do heat a little bit. I keep the temp around 35-40 degrees. This keep the water defrosted and their egg production going. They also have a light in it. I use an oil filled radiator, since the duck house has two room divided by a gate. This keeps the heater clean. Plus is dries up any moisture they produce with their poo. They make flat heating panels that mount on walls, they are safe for ducks. Reality is they don't need the heat at all, because their downs are superb when it comes to retaining heat.

Recheck the foot on the limping duck. It could be bumble foot, which needs to get treated.

 

[Just_Ducky_In_NH]

Thank you, katharinad - How did you insulate your duck house? We do have an oil filled ratiator...not sure if it is meant to be used outside but we may be able to do some modification to our duck hut. Only Libby began laying late in Fall but stopped with the cold. These ducks are about seven months.

 

[katharinad]

We had an old green house that was a lean on to the southern side of the shop. It was in bad shape since some frozen pine cones slammed through the plastic roof. We gutted it down to the studs, doubled the space and then insulated the walls with fiber glass and covered it with panels inside. It has concrete pavers as a floor, because the inground sprinkler pipes are below it. Good thing, because we had a manifold break 2 years ago and had to dig it up. I've covered the floor in the duck area with rubber runner mats from Home Depot for about 10 bucks a roll. 3 rolls covered 10x10 feet and makes clean up a breeze. The mats are grooved so the ducks cannot slip on them. They do have a full window front down to the ground and love it. This way they get the first light in the morning. I would not add to much heating, because it messes with their down production. Just slightly above freezing is fine. Ducks really like the cold. The main reason for the duck house is the predators we have around. They need to be secured at night. Otherwise I would probably just offer a igloo with hay in it. I did build some shelters like a-frames etc for the outdoor time. They use it when it get very windy and cold. Right now it is above freezing and they lay in them just for fun. They take a nap and then they walk all day. Pampered little babies.

 

[Just_Ducky_In_NH]

Yes, we are in the woods, too. Almost as soon as we got the fence up a fox came trotting out of nowhere...then a raccoon...it was a parade! No breaches, however. We have a solar fence zapper as well as there are coyotes and bears, even a wolf spotted on our road recently. I've seen a fisher cat in the tree above the pen...but so far, thank goodness, no problems. The ducks can see so far away...I'll see them looking up and it will take me awhile before I spot a soaring hawk..way, way up...and far! Smart devils....but a little dumb too. Took them all day to figure out the heated dog bowl.

So the shed pic above is before we drilled ventilation holes fore and aft and fixed the doors so they close more securely. I've been starting to layer the pine shavings as it is getting quite packed down with their goings-on. In the yard is hay. Have to go home and put them in now....gets dark at 4:15 now.

 

[katharinad]

It's hard to insulate what you have. They do sell foam panels at Home Depot. They may be the easiest to do. You can instead put hay bales against the outside. That will add a lot of insulation. The room is small so they probably produce enough heat as is. I would put in a remote sensor thermometer and read the temperature readout. I know the electric heater we have is just sitting on the lowest setting, because they produce plenty of heat themselves. I've read an article of a German duck keeper. He fills 5 gallon buckets with hot water, put a lid on it, and puts it into the duck house on those extremely cold nights. His house is insulated and he monitors the heat with a remove sensor. Be careful with only adding pine shavings to what you have. The decomposition can release ammonia gas, which is very harmful to ducks. Just stick your head in when you open it up and smell the air. You cannot miss the smell of ammonia, if it is bad. I clean daily, so I don't have to worry about it and it works best for my setup.

 

[Amiga]

Wanted to mention that when we moved the ducks into the 45ish degree F basement from their unheated but insulated outdoor house, we were getting three eggs a day. A few days later, it was four, then five, now six. Production is definitely up.

Some of it is related to them getting more light in the basement - lights out is around 9:30 p.m., not sundown. But it seems to me that they now have some energy for egg making instead of just trying not to freeze.

Just tossing this in the mix. I had not even thought about egg production benefits to keeping them a bit above freezing. During the day, they go out an hour, or two, or three at a time, depending on weather and how they are acting. Vier is getting feathers back, Eins is just about completely done with her molt. So I am less concerned now. There have been some days in the teens when a few ducks plop down on the dry straw outside and tuck their legs up, but no hunching or shivering. shew.