Is a pond a must have?

[Chesher]

Hello there! Been a lurker for a little while here and thought I'd finally come out and ask a couple questions.

We're small town dwellers and have a little backyard where we keep 3 chickens very comfortably. They're great fun and my 2 year old son loves picking them up and collecting eggs. I've been thinking of adding a duck to our flock but have gotten conflicting information about having swimming water available for them. I'd rather not have a "pond" (kiddie wading pool) as it could be a safety hazard with the 2 year old who now can free range without too much supervision (and it sounds like a potential grody mess!).

So... how necessary is a pond for keeping one or two ducks? Also, are there any great "intro to backyard ducks" info sites you can recommend?

Thanks for any info!

 

[Goat_Walker]

Sorry! I scanned through your post and just reread that you didnt want a kiddie pool. Well besides one of those you can always use tubberware or stargae boxes. Ducks need a water source to be able to clean out their eyes and noses - so you could just have a Bucket filled with clean water and then every other day or once a day give them a plastic storage box to swim and preen in. Then you can just dump it and refill it the next time.

 

[kcardella]

You don't need to have a "pond", but they do love to splash around, and will benefit from being able to put their heads under water. This can be accomplished with a large pan of water or a bucket. It does not have to be something they can swim in. I do have a small pond, but mine also love the sprinkler, and will walk up and stick their face right over the spray!

 

[duckyfromoz]

Over the summer my ducks always have a kiddie pool, But over the colder months they usually only have their water dishes. They are big enough for one duck to sit in and have a splash- about 1 foot wide by two foot long. I sometimes fill up the kiddie pool in the winter as well- but they they dont seem to mind only having the water dishes as although they cant really get in and swim lapps and dive, they can still have a good old flap around and clean themselves..
Ducks need deeper drinking water than chooks to clean their bills face and eyes- but a swim on weekends would be a real treat and something you can do supervised with Master two. Im sure he would love to watch the ducks swimming.

 

[Amiga]

I have been told it doesn't take much water for a two year old human to get into serious trouble . . . that pointed out, you may want to have something like a wheelbarrow replacement bucket with fence around it nothing major - to keep younguns away, that you let the ducks into for their splash - the ducks really need to be able to clean themselves.

 

[Morri]

I only have a bucket in their pen but whenw we let them out everyday they have a baby bath that they like, maybe you could sit out there with your todler and watch the ducks swim for about 1/2 hr then tip the water out and do it again every 2nd day or so. jut make sure they have a bucket of fresh water to clean their nostrils and eyes or they get clogged up and can get quiet ill.

 

[dot n'dave]

Get more than one duck so it doesnt get lonely!

 

[4-H chicken mom]

Since you have already been given the advice I would have given I will just say

and

from Ohio

 

[Bates22]

i would say get a couple muscovys, they dont like the water as much as other ducks, but still do the idea of letting them play in bucket full every second day so they can wash them selves off

 

[Chesher]

Wow! Thanks for the great suggestions and support! We have a little "water table" thing that my toddler plays with that might work really well. It's about 2 feet high and a little larger than an infant bathtub. I really like the idea of filling it up every couple days during "foul free range time" and just tipping it over to drain into the garden. If they don't HAVE to have access to swimming water (they'll definitely have a water bucket for bill/head cleaning) I think we're in business.

Given that we have the 3 chickens, will we need to have 2 ducks? Would 1 duck be lonely even if interacting with the chickens? I have a feeling the answer is 2, but I'm not sure how hubby will swallow 2 ducks! I'll have to work on some pleading.