How to water after a snow storm

[buggymuffin]

So we are digging out from the nor'easter this morning and I have a problem. We keep our ducks in a smaller room in our barn with outdoor access (at some point in the barn's history, a small 1' square door was installed in a outside wall). We fenced in the area outside the door for our ducks. The door sits about two feet off the ground outside and we built a ramp for them to get out. So this morning the snow is almost up to the door. In and of itself this isn't a problem, they get around on the snow just fine. The problem is that their food and water are kept outside (I don't want the mess inside). The feeder will sit on top of the snow, but of course the waterer won't. How do I deal with this for the next day or two. Do I need to shovel the 2 feet of snow out of their pen, or will they be okay for the day? What do they do when they free range and lakes are frozen over. I want to make sure they have what they need, but this drifting snow is a nightmare and this is the first time we have had more than 6 inches since we started raising ducks.

 

[Amiga]

Do you have any silt fence? Or mulching fabric? I would cordon off several square feet against a fence and then just tromp the snow down, or shovel it, put a bunch of bedding on top, and sit the waterer on that.

I have a similar situation but less urgent as we have a way to water ours in the basement-barn. Hmm. For what it's worth, temporarily, you could try it.

I made a watering station from the bottom half of a large plastic dog crate. It works very very well.

 

[duckins]

If you could do like Amiga suggested something to catch the water inside the barn maybe the short totes like the ones made to slide under your bed. I put waterer in a small glad container when brooding it catches the water very well keeping bedding dry.

 

[Miss Lydia]

You just want to make sure they have access to water when they have access to feed because they need the water when eating. Amiga has a good idea there and hopefully it will only be temporary for a few days till things get a little more back to normal. Don't depend on them eating snow to make up for the water they need it won't work.