Is this ok?

[Joey6392]

A have 2 ducks that I got from tractor supply co about. 4 1/2 to 5 months ago and I was wondering if I can add some different breeds of chickens to the flock and if the ducks/chickens would get along
Should I raise the chickens sepratly until they are big enough or will our 2 Peking and ruen ducks attack them.
We had a small black Australorp chicken growing up with the Ducks. when they were little he was taken by a hawk he was the sweetest one to.
We now have a tarp that goes from the fence to the house to make shure the have a place to hide so it wont happen again to the new chickens.
If anyone has recommended breeds let me know in the comments.

Ps. Sorry if this was a messy post im kind of new to this.

 

[Fishkeeper]

Are your ducks male or female?

You should very much not put baby chicks with adult ducks.

 

[Joey6392]

I think that the peking is a male and the ruen is female

We had the ducks and the black Austrolorp together since they were about a week old the ducks got huge while the chicken barley grew but all the same they thought that they were the same flock they would follow each other around everywhere and they would sit and snuggle together
I was so sad when i came out that morning and the chicken was gone.

 

[Joey6392]

Are your ducks male or female?

You should very much not put baby chicks with adult ducks.

 

[BjaJra826]

Do either of your ducks have drake feathers ( curly tail feather) yet? This is an indication of male. I would not put a chicken in with a large bird like a pekin until it had grown close in size or had hiding places where the pekin cab't get at it. Delay mixing until at least a month or two. Slowly integrate with barriers to allow them to interact without causing bullying. GL!

 

[Joey6392]

We think that the peking is a male and the ruen is a female.
We had the black Austrolorp with the ducks since they were about a week old and even when the ducks got big they still followed eachother around.

 

[BjaJra826]

I agree your rouen is female, but can't tell on your pekin as they don't have sexual differences other than the drake feather/size. I would still be leary of putting a chick with a full grown duck, as they are territorial towards other birds. Even if they had a chick with them when they were small their drive to have a pecking order could cause them to bully a small bird to death. Also, male ducks have an insane sex drive and are known to mate other birds to death. This is more true when they mount a chicken because chicken reproductive tracts arn't able to take the very large duck cork-screw duck penis.

 

[BjaJra826]

It is possible to do, you just have to gauge your flock's reactions and act accordingly.

 

[Joey6392]

It is possible to do, you just have to gauge your flock's reactions and act accordingly.

Thank you for the info what do you think of my birds.

 

[aart]

i came out that morning and the chicken was gone.

Gone as in total disappeared or gone as in dead on the ground?

Integrating new birds can be tricky, best to keep them separate at first.
Ducks and chickens have different housing needs,
so it's often best to keep them separate long term.

Here's some tips about.....
Integration Basics:
It's all about territory and resources(space/food/water).
Existing birds will almost always attack new ones to defend their resources.
Understanding chicken behaviors is essential to integrating new birds into your flock.

Confine new birds within sight but physically segregated from older/existing birds for several weeks, so they can see and get used to each other but not physically interact.

In adjacent runs, spread scratch grains along the dividing mesh, best if mesh is just big enough for birds to stick their head thru, so they get used to eating together.

The more space, the better. Birds will peck to establish dominance, the pecked bird needs space to get away. As long as there's no copious blood drawn and/or new bird is not trapped/pinned down and beaten unmercilessly, let them work it out. Every time you interfere or remove new birds, they'll have to start the pecking order thing all over again.

Multiple feed/water stations. Dominance issues are most often carried out over sustenance, more stations lessens the frequency of that issue.

Places for the new birds to hide 'out of line of sight'(but not a dead end trap) and/or up and away from any bully birds. Roosts, pallets or boards leaned up against walls or up on concrete blocks, old chairs tables, branches, logs, stumps out in the run can really help. Lots of diversion and places to 'hide' instead of bare wide open run.