indian runner ducks - talk to me about them.

[Miss Lydia]

I have Runner, Buff, and Muscovy and a goose and chickens.
My Runners and Buffs and goose share a coop with the chickens the Muscovy have their own house.
I put food and water on a shelf for the chickens mainly in winter since I have some bantams that don't like it when it's under 30 and there is ice and snow all over. My Runner drake nor my Muscovy have ever tried to mate the chickens they stick to their own girls and the 2 roosters take care of their hens. Having Ducks in a run with chickens will be a challenge because they love to make a mess with their water and having a pool will really make a mess. I have paving blocks under my stock tank[pool] to keep the mud down but mine aren't in a pen during the day they have a half acre fenced in to roam. Plus being blessed to live along a mountain river I have plenty of flat river rocks to place around where the water buckets are. But 2 ducks sure won't be as messy as 13 and a goose.

I love the Runner breed they are the little clowns of the barnyard.

 

[lizo97]

@Quatie How did you deal with prolapse?

 

[Quatie]

@Quatie How did you deal with prolapse?

How I dealt with the prolapse, is I bring them inside and give them a bath. For minor prolapses, the tissue will actually go back in on its own in the bath. If the tissue doesn't not go back in, I gently push it back in. I treat with hydrocortisone ointment 3-4 times a day. I give them extra calcium to help with the proper contraction of the muscles. I then also try and get them to stop laying by either making them go broody or reducing light. This will allow their vent to heal. I also keep them separated from drakes for at least a month.

If it is really severe, a vet can put stitches in to hold in place.

 

[Chikenshiken]

I am a poultry novice (n00b, to be precise)
This spring I bought 5 chicks. My husband wanted ducks.
and lordy ducklings are so precious.
However, we have no natural water source on the property, so I declined.
I am partial to runner ducks though, because they are just so goofy looking, they make me smile.
I had considered getting 2. And males I thought were cool since I do not need their eggs.
Then I learned that drakes are not so nice to have around hens.
I understand the dietary needs are different than those of chickens. Runner ducks also need their bathing puddle?
I have hawks in the vicinity and a Dachshund with a high prey drive.
The lot is small, in a suburban setting.
Am I just setting myself up for heartache if I get 2 ducklings?

Hi! I live in a suburan area as well. 4 chickens and kept 2 ducks, one now. While I do keeps pekins rather than runners I know all ducks make a big mess. both of my ducks were drakes and I found they really didn’t have any interest in my chickens. They were born and raised with 3 big chickens and 1 bantam and I found all of them don’t really care for each other. I guess it’s a case by case though because I have heard of drakes mounting chickens but mine have never and actually find my chickens really annoying . They’d nip but never bite, my chickens got the idea pretty fast that they really shouldn’t be too close. Chickens and ducks have different bowls as well to limit any food aggression but theres really never been any either.


About the mess and pool… I do keep a kiddy pool for my ducks and when I say it’s a mess it is a mess! Part of our yard is grassless due to our ducks digging holes and walking on it constantly. Also water poured out from the pool will eventually mud up the area so you need to move it frequently if you want to keep grass. Not all the grass will survive so don’t expect a beautiful grassy yard with ducks In a suburban Backyard. I also have a large amount of hawks. My drakes were great protecters! They saved my hen from a hawk attack if it wasn’t for them she would’ve died. But since my drakes are pekins and not runners, I’d say that runners are much more susceptible to all kinds of hawks because of their small size and weight. Since you already keep chickens you’re already under the hawk watch umbrella. If you’re worried about hawks in general I’d try using fake owls. Theres some guides online for using owl fakes, it’s what I use and they work great.

Id be precautious of your dog around chickens and ducks. No matter if their prey drive is high or low, animals are animals. Your dog may just kill your chickens and ducks if given the chance I’ve seen this first hand with my aunts dogs going buck wild in a chick pen they broke in to. Just make sure everyone is separated and secured

 

[Chikenshiken]

I don't have runners, or chickens. But if you got two female runners, I think it could be manageable. The main issue I imagine would be the wet mess and how that affects your chickens. If you could give them a separate coop/duck house, and just a small pool to keep the mess somewhat separated, maybe it could be do-able.

yes I agree. My ducks and chickens have completely separate homes. My chickens have a coop while my ducks have a house. Everyone is free ranged so the pool is just wherever I put it. Sometimes the chickens come and hang out by the fresh pool and drink from it and leave when the ducks start splashing around My chickens also love to dig for bugs in the dirt when the pool gets poured out it’s so cute to see them scratching about the puddle. It’s do- able for sure! I could see trying to house together causing lots of complications. They should be housed separately and a small kiddy pool is great for 2 ducks