Is limestone poisonous to ducks?

[Mini Moe]

We're setting up our duck house and would like to add limestone to the gravel around it, to help with the winter, muddy, muck that is created with rain, dirt and ducky poop. I use to use it in my dogs graveled run, to help with the organic matter that my dogs would deposit but my dogs weren't dabblers. So my question is...Is it safe to add lime and lime stone to the ground around the duckhouse, which unfortunately sits at a low area that tends to puddle:/?

 

[Amiga]

Backing up a bit, is there a way to have a shallow channel to direct excess water out of the duck pen area? Our Day Pen is on about a 2% slope, and water runs off into a channel directed into a garden area.

 

[Mini Moe]

There may be a slight slope going towards our neighbors side yard...

 

[Amiga]

Hmmmm.

As far as I know, limestone is not problematic for ducks, though loads of lime could be caustic (burning). Sharp edges on stone are a problem. Just trying to think about how to deal with the drainage. Could you have a small swale that you can grow plants that don't mind wet feet? There are ideas on web sites about rain gardens - My gardens LOVE duck poop soup.

Anyway, the swale/garden could be just downhill of the duck pen and the water could run off into that area and not be as big a problem as it would be in the pen itself.

Even putting down gravel, the poop and other organic material tends to gum up the gaps in gravel and so you might just be buying a little time if you don't have some slight slope and a place for the water to go to sink into the ground.

Thinking, thinking.

 

[Mini Moe]

Thanks for your idea, Amiga. I always appreciate the help from fellow duckers! I sure wish I had enough space to put a wet garden down hill, but we live in a residential neighborhood with not a whole lit of space to work with.

My thoughts on the limestone came from something I read online and that I use to use the lime powder in our graveled dog run. We use to let the dogs run around our grassed backyard, while we powdered up their run and hosed it in before we put them back in for the night. It seemed to work then but they weren't dabblers. :0) Of course this was in a totally different house that had a bit more space.

So what we were thinking is, dig a trench from one end of the duck area, to the other end of a backyard where a tree and rose bushes are, place the Lime or Limestone in the trench, cover that with the round stone pea gravel. We would dig it just deep enough to cause a downward environment, directing it towards a larger, deeper end. Of course taking care not to destroy the roots of the tree and roses.

 

[Amiga]

I think you are onto something there.

 

[Mini Moe]

Thanks again for your suggestions...it really did help. Well...now that their nice new duck house is up, they dont want anything to do with it. Yikes :/

 

[Amiga]

Oh, duckies. I threw a few pea parties in the new duck house, and that helped quite a bit.

 

[canard]

I would use "barn safe" lime. The powdered stuff NOT labeled barn safe is caustic, & could hurt them.

I sometimes but a layer of barn safe lime on top of straw in their coop before putting on fresh straw (or I use sweet pdz).

It really cuts poop & ammonia smell. I have used it on areas where poopy straw piles used to be.

I rented a house once (& we were moving soon into the house I closed on) where some weirdo had dumped used cat litter all around the perimeter of the house. Seriously??? My boyfriend & I put down lime & it totally cut the used litter smell.

 

[canard]

The dust isn't good for duck or human lungs. I would use it in or around their coop when they r out & about playing. Leave time to let the dust settle before cooping them up.