is duck poo poisonous to dogs and cats?

[lovethepeep]

I have a small pond (8ftx15ft- 3 ft deep) and plan to get ducks, but someone told me today that ducks poo is poisonous to dogs? My dogs and cats will drink the pond water at times, so if this is true, it's not going to work out. TIA

 

[scratch'n'peck]

I have never heard that before and find it pretty hard to believe. I would ask for more info from this person who told you this. That said, drinking water filled with fecal matter is not great for anyone. In fact a ponds that size with more than a couple water fowl, it should really should have a way to drain and clean it or some running water. Our pond has a drain and flowing water to keep the water reasonably fresh for the geese.

 

[lovethepeep]

It does have a drain, and we run well water through it about once a week, and if it rains, it receives run off water that flushes it really well. Planning on getting two Runner ducks.

 

[Miss Lydia]

If that were true my dogs would have been dead long ago.

 

[scratch'n'peck]

That sounds great. It is hard for me to imagine what is poisonous in duck poop exactly. I wonder if that person was talking about something like samonella?

 

[farmer boy]

ya i agree with miss lydia my pitbull would be dead by now he likes to eat chicken poop duck poop and cat poop and dog poop lol my dog is very weird and gross one time in the winter i caught him playing with frozen poop lol .. so ya poop wont kill a dog or really do anything to it do you see what dogs or stray dogs eat / drink my oldest dog use to bring home raccons all the time and he is fine nothing wrong with him im surprised my oldest dog is not dead if you heard what happens to him you would think he would be dead to anyone want to hear what happened

 

[JasoninMN]

The duck poop is not poisonous but it can cause botulism and blue green algae in stagnant ponds which will kill a dog.

 

[scratch'n'peck]

The duck poop is not poisonous but it can cause botulism and blue green algae in stagnant ponds which will kill a dog.

I think because you have a way to avoid stagnant water in your pond you don't have much to worry about considering all the feedback here. You even have a pond that would be fine for 3 or 4 Runner Ducks. Sometimes I worry when there are only 2 ducklings or chicks. If one of them passes away then you have a one lonely bird left.

 

[thomasboyle]

My dogs ate some of my new Pekin's droppings, and had the worse case of the runs! She was soupy for 3 days, getting us up every hour each night to go outside and do business. We won't be letting them eat that again! Our dogs are small - 12 and 15 pounds each.

 

[TLWR]

My dogs love dog and chicken poop. And the water in the duck pond, they love that too.