Illinois Duck Raisers

[BReeder!]

I am in Illinois and began raising ducks last year. We currently just have Rouens. Or raft is small, containing just 5 ducks currently. We also have chickens, but I thought I would start a thread to meet some local duck raisers.

Our Rouens are housed in a section of our coop that is closed off just for them. They have access to their own 12'x15' run with a 5'x10' pond. Tell me about your ducks and their setup please.

 

[ronott1]

Hi BReeder!

Have you checked for Duck raisers on the Illinois state Thread?

 

[BReeder!]

Hi BReeder!

Have you checked for Duck raisers on the Illinois state Thread?

Hey, Ron. I am regularly on the IL thread. Not many (if anybody) there has ducks. I find that people navigate to the duck forum often to talk ducks. My hope is to find those people who don't frequent the IL thread, but do browse the duck forum. There has to be fellow duck loving BYC members in IL.

 

[ronott1]

Hey, Ron. I am regularly on the IL thread. Not many (if anybody) there has ducks. I find that people navigate to the duck forum often to talk ducks. My hope is to find those people who don't frequent the IL thread, but do browse the duck forum. There has to be fellow duck loving BYC members in IL.

I hope you find them!

 

[davez]

I'm down the street from you, in Tinley. Just have 3 Australian Spotted for pets. They free range the back yard during the day and go into a house at night.

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

Hello @BReeder!
I live in Illinois up near Wisconsin and I love ducks. I have 9 currently and they are all pets. 2 Pekin hens, and 7 call ducks. For calls I have one black bibbed, one snowy, one white, one pastel, one grey, one blue fawn, and one blue fawn pied. They all free range together during the day but go into separate houses at night. The 2 pekin’s house is about 5x4 and 20 sq feet fully insulated with metal siding and shingles on the roof. It also has a plug in so I can put a heat lamp in there in the winter. My two younger call drakes (the blue fawns) and my black bibbed are all housed together in a little house, and the rest of my calls (the other 4) are housed separately I believe their house is 6x8. Their summer house has glass sliding doors and is made to look like a miniature cabin... it even has a tiny fake chimney that I put on the inside...


the favorite pastime of my calls is flying off and going in my neighbor’s swimming pool + pond...
Lol they are very naughty... I am lucky that my neighbor is so nice...

 

[BReeder!]

I'm down the street from you, in Tinley. Just have 3 Australian Spotted for pets. They free range the back yard during the day and go into a house at night.

Hello! I've never seen Australian Spotted. Do you have pics? And where did you get them? Not them I am rushing to get more, but sources of ducks/ ducklings are hard to come by here so good to know of any local stores or breeders who sell them.

 

[BReeder!]

Hello @BReeder!
I live in Illinois up near Wisconsin and I love ducks. I have 9 currently and they are all pets. 2 Pekin hens, and 7 call ducks. For calls I have one black bibbed, one snowy, one white, one pastel, one grey, one blue fawn, and one blue fawn pied. They all free range together during the day but go into separate houses at night. The 2 pekin’s house is about 5x4 and 20 sq feet fully insulated with metal siding and shingles on the roof. It also has a plug in so I can put a heat lamp in there in the winter. My two younger call drakes (the blue fawns) and my black bibbed are all housed together in a little house, and the rest of my calls (the other 4) are housed separately I believe their house is 6x8. Their summer house has glass sliding doors and is made to look like a miniature cabin... it even has a tiny fake chimney that I put on the inside...


the favorite pastime of my calls is flying off and going in my neighbor’s swimming pool + pond...
Lol they are very naughty... I am lucky that my neighbor is so nice...

It's great to meet you. I've never had calls. I here a lit off people are fond of them. I think they are a not more noisy though. Is that right? My neighbors put up with my suburban mini-farm (not at all a farm), but I try to keep things peaceful and within my yard best I can. We have had an occasional escapee chicken returned by a neighbors and I had to cross through the yards tracking down an escapee turkey. I don't think most of the neighbors realize we have ducks. They do make some noise (sometimes a lot off noise), but the noise seems to blend in with surrounding wildlife, especially this time of year as migrating birds are a common sight.

 

[davez]

https://www.amazon.com/photos/shared/XaFURUleRLGKhTFyaPIlsQ.7uTZmpxTKhmDrygLXiT6KH

They are bantam. Not useful for too much except laughs.
I might have gotten a couple of females so I might get some eggs out of them now. I'll get a photo of the new ones and post it later.

This one is fun: https://www.amazon.com/photos/shared/wIkgObuMQYefC4SgQjFJaQ.viGqRYwvmetWx6nycPhG61

Closer shot of the new ones: https://www.amazon.com/photos/shared/7xxA_ZFZQxWNcNNj_Rlx-Q.SF0t4rVdICIQ0KcLEBUTF5

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

It's great to meet you. I've never had calls. I here a lit off people are fond of them. I think they are a not more noisy though. Is that right? My neighbors put up with my suburban mini-farm (not at all a farm), but I try to keep things peaceful and within my yard best I can. We have had an occasional escapee chicken returned by a neighbors and I had to cross through the yards tracking down an escapee turkey. I don't think most of the neighbors realize we have ducks. They do make some noise (sometimes a lot off noise), but the noise seems to blend in with surrounding wildlife, especially this time of year as migrating birds are a common sight.

Sorry I didn’t see this post until now, I’ve been busy. I love my calls dearly, they are great! In my opinion they are not much louder than my jumbo Pekins (who are quite loud). They are loud though and their quack is much higher pitched than an average duck. That’s nice that your neighbors put up with your animals as well. I have only 2 neighbors in kind of close proximity so that’s nice that i don’t have a lot because if I did I’d probably have more issues. The noise of my ducks is usually overshadowed by the noise of other animals as well (neighbors have geese, goats, and cattle)... there was one time that Squeegee, my little snowy call, made a nest in my neighbor’s giant burn pile... I had to go digging through the branches to find it and came out covered in soot!